Dr. Ralph and Mrs. Olga Crawford Canadian Dental Collection
Category
Diagnostic & Treatment Artifacts
Classification
Dental
Accession Number
010020468
Description
Lower denture with a complete set of plastic teeth minus the third molars, one lateral incisor and one canine; gums are made of vulcanized rubber which is painted pink until the first molar on either side where it changes to brown
Lower denture with a complete set of plastic teeth minus the third molars, one lateral incisor and one canine; gums are made of vulcanized rubber which is painted pink until the first molar on either side where it changes to brown
Number Of Parts
1
Provenance
Transfer from the Dental Canada Fund; previously housed in the Dentistry Canada Museum (Ottawa)
Dates
1910
1920
circa 1910-1920
Date Remarks
Date based on research
Material
vulcanite: brown
plastic: white
paint: pink
Permanent Location
Storage Room 0010
0010-B
Temporary Location
On display “Toothless: A History of Dentures” at the Museum of Healthcare; 27 Oct 2015
Dimension Notes
Length 5.6 cm x Width 5.7 cm x Depth 1.5 cm
Condition Remarks
There are some white smears on the underside of palate; shows signs of use
Copy Type
Original
Reference Types
Internet
JPG
Reference Comments
"British Dental Association Museum" website; CD #4
Research Facts
Dr Ralph and Mrs Olga Crawford donated their extensive Canadian dental collection to the DCF to create the museum in 1997; further donations were received while Dr Crawford was Curator Emeritus at the Dental Canada Museum until its closure in 2008; in 1864 the Goodyear Dental Vulcanite Co. was founded in the United States, producing dentures made with hardened rubber and helping them to become less expensive to make and thus more popular; porcelain was added to vulcanite bases to recreate the light pink colour of natural gums, since making the vulcanite the right colour weakened the denture