{"title":"Managing Dental Pain in Ancient Greece and Rome. Part I.","authors":"Andrew I Spielman","doi":"10.58929/jhd.2026.074.02.73","DOIUrl":"10.58929/jhd.2026.074.02.73","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Herbal plants were an essential component of the healing process in ancient medicine. Although only limited evidence documents the practice of dental extractions, a review of major medical works from ancient Greece and Rome demonstrates that conservative approaches predominated. A survey of the work of Celsus, Scribonius Largus, Dioscorides, Galen, Oribasius, and Aurelianus show that numerous plants-such as <i>Hyoscyamus, mandragora</i>, poppy, gall, pine, and pomegranate-were frequently employed to treat dental pain and gingival inflammation. These same herbal remedies reappeared throughout the medieval period, and many continue to be used in various forms today.</p>","PeriodicalId":73982,"journal":{"name":"Journal of the history of dentistry","volume":"74 2","pages":"73-86"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148725159","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Rachel Zinshteyn, Theodore P Croll, Andrew I Spielman
{"title":"Dr. Brown's Remedies in 19th Century Victorian Era Trade Cards.","authors":"Rachel Zinshteyn, Theodore P Croll, Andrew I Spielman","doi":"10.58929/jhd.2026.074.02.96","DOIUrl":"10.58929/jhd.2026.074.02.96","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The name Brown's Remedies appears frequently in the history of Victorian-era patent medicine. This study examines four of the most prominent late-19th-century companies bearing the Brown name: the Curtis and Brown Manufacturing Co. of Boston, MA; the Norway Medicine Co. of Norway, ME; the Brown Chemical Co. of Baltimore, MD; and N. K. Browns of Burlington, VT. Each of these firms is well represented in the Ted Croll Collection at the NYU College of Dentistry through its extensive trade-card advertisements. Their rise and fall-marked by mislabeling, overstatement, and the misuse of public trust-offers a powerful cautionary tale for today's unregulated digital landscape, where extravagant claims flourish, and public confidence continues to erode.</p>","PeriodicalId":73982,"journal":{"name":"Journal of the history of dentistry","volume":"74 2","pages":"96-108"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148723654","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Editorial Tribute.","authors":"Theodore P Croll","doi":"10.58929/jhd.2026.074.02.2","DOIUrl":"10.58929/jhd.2026.074.02.2","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>History aficionados and dental colleagues have lost a giant of the history of dentistry. Dr. Ben Swanson died at 91 years on 2 March 2026. Ben was born to accumulate things that interested him. As a youngster in San Antonio, he collected pencils, matchbook covers, stamps, coins, luggage labels, and postcards. As years went by, his collecting hobbies continued, including a concentration on Canadian coins. In the early 1960s, Ben's collecting interests focused on dentistry items, especially dental postcards and ceramic pot lids.</p>","PeriodicalId":73982,"journal":{"name":"Journal of the history of dentistry","volume":"74 2","pages":"2-3"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148726990","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pragya Pandey, Jorgelin Rodriguez, James L Gutmann
{"title":"The Bitewing Radiograph: Origin, Evolution, and Diagnostic Value.","authors":"Pragya Pandey, Jorgelin Rodriguez, James L Gutmann","doi":"10.58929/jhd.2026.074.02.42","DOIUrl":"10.58929/jhd.2026.074.02.42","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The evolution of the bitewing radiograph has a varied history, vacillating between who did it first and who popularized its commercial applications. However, its importance in diagnosis and application to multiple areas of dentistry cannot be underestimated, especially as oral care has adopted a minimally invasive approach to tooth retention. The hallowed vaults of history are rich with confirming data and clarifying intent.</p>","PeriodicalId":73982,"journal":{"name":"Journal of the history of dentistry","volume":"74 2","pages":"42-48"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148727168","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Theodore P Croll, Andrew I Spielman, Ben Z Swanson
{"title":"The <i>Ideal Felt Tooth Polisher</i>: Flags, Dentist Testimonials, and The Great Modjeska.","authors":"Theodore P Croll, Andrew I Spielman, Ben Z Swanson","doi":"10.58929/jhd.2026.074.02.9","DOIUrl":"10.58929/jhd.2026.074.02.9","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The Ideal Felt Tooth Polisher was made by the Horsey Manufacturing Company in Utica, New York, in the early 1880s. With multiple endorsements by prominent dentists, printed on the reverse side of trade cards, the company led readers to believe that the product was superior to toothbrushes. The text on one particular trade card displayed endorsements from C.M. Richmond and Josiah Foster Flagg. In addition, the obverse of that card features Helena Modjeska, a \"superstar\" actress of the time. Madame Modjeska added her very favorable endorsement on the reverse. By happenstance, \"Modjeskas\" became the name of a popular confection that has remained a delectable candy treat to this day.</p>","PeriodicalId":73982,"journal":{"name":"Journal of the history of dentistry","volume":"74 2","pages":"9-15"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148723757","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Serendipity in a Career in Dental Histology.","authors":"Barry Kenneth Bradbury Berkovitz","doi":"10.58929/jhd.2026.074.02.64","DOIUrl":"10.58929/jhd.2026.074.02.64","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>The paper describes examples of how serendipity and being in the right place at the right time have played a significant role in the academic career of a dental histologist (Dr BKB Berkovitz), in the hope that some of the big players in dentistry may reveal their examples to students of dental history.</p>","PeriodicalId":73982,"journal":{"name":"Journal of the history of dentistry","volume":"74 2","pages":"64-72"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148727159","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Homes of the British Dental Association, its Library and Museum (1880-2025).","authors":"Stanley Gelbier","doi":"10.58929/jhd.2026.074.02.87","DOIUrl":"10.58929/jhd.2026.074.02.87","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>Like many major organizations, the British Dental Association has had a number of bases over the years, from 1880 in private homes, next in shared and rented accommodations and then, for many years, leasing a whole building in London's medical district. The latter included a library and museum, both of major interest to dental historians. Sadly, that phase came to an end in 2025. This paper explores why that happened and its worrying implications for dental historians.</p>","PeriodicalId":73982,"journal":{"name":"Journal of the history of dentistry","volume":"74 2","pages":"87-95"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148723948","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"William H. H. Hinds, 19th Century Dentist, Inventor, Writer, and Clever Promotor.","authors":"Ben Z Swanson, Theodore P Croll","doi":"10.58929/jhd.2026.074.02.4","DOIUrl":"10.58929/jhd.2026.074.02.4","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>William H. H. Hinds used a \"letter sheet\" to advertise his dental services in Ayer, Massachusetts in the early 1880s. This letter sheet is an excellent example of a dentist using the United States Postal Service for educational and promotional purposes in the 19th century. Dr. Hinds's letter sheet is shown and his biographical summary presented.</p>","PeriodicalId":73982,"journal":{"name":"Journal of the history of dentistry","volume":"74 2","pages":"4-8"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148726595","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Adjusted Water Fluoridation Materializes in Australia: Obstacles and Resolution, 1945-1954.","authors":"Harry F Akers, Michael A Foley, J P Brown","doi":"10.58929/jhd.2026.074.02.49","DOIUrl":"10.58929/jhd.2026.074.02.49","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>In 1945, the North American concept of adjusted water fluoridation (AWF) formally emerged in the dental literature of the Commonwealth of Australia (Australia). Unconditional endorsement and implementation did not occur for eight years. Evidence is scattered throughout archives, involved many gatekeepers and the narrative is poorly recorded. The authors used a traditional historical approach in assessing the archives. The complexity, diversity and climate-specificity of decades of multidisciplinary North American research findings meant that, in Australia, the National Health and Medical Research Council could not simply endorse AWF in chorus with North American institutions. Accordingly, the authors provide the socio-political and scientific contexts, developments, evidence, findings, motives, thought and practice relating to the delayed introduction of AWF. The constitutional and statutory backgrounds and immediate post-1945 circumstances, the lack of contemporaneous research infrastructure and the physiographic features of Australia: all impeded nationally coordinated AWF advocacy, endorsement and implementation. Unlike many other therapeutic measures, the validation and implementation of AWF in Australia required assessment, caution, delay and, eventually, regulation. Despite Sydney becoming the hub of AWF advocacy, the unforeseen and autonomous implementation of AWF at Beaconsfield (Tasmania, 1953) was due to the diligence, foresight and influence of local engineer, Frank Grey.</p>","PeriodicalId":73982,"journal":{"name":"Journal of the history of dentistry","volume":"74 2","pages":"49-63"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148727372","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"A Brief History of Orthodontics.","authors":"Robert D Spielman, Andrew I Spielman","doi":"10.58929/jhd.2026.074.02.16","DOIUrl":"10.58929/jhd.2026.074.02.16","url":null,"abstract":"<p><p>This comprehensive historical review traces the evolution of orthodontics from antiquity to the 21st century. It begins by defining the major stages of orthodontic development, then explores early concerns about dental alignment in classical civilizations, followed by innovations in the 16th and 17th centuries that laid the groundwork for modern intervention. The 18th century marked a turning point with more deliberate attempts to correct malocclusions, culminating in the emergence of formal orthodontic treatment in the 19th century with the advent of fixed appliances and specialized elements used in orthodontics. The 20th century witnessed the institutionalization of orthodontics, including the development of orthognathic surgery, cephalometric imaging, and eventually the introduction of aligner therapy with Invisalign. Contemporary orthodontics in the 21st century is defined by digital technologies, interdisciplinary care, and personalized treatment planning. The review concludes with key observations and a detailed timeline summarizing landmark milestones in the history of the field.</p>","PeriodicalId":73982,"journal":{"name":"Journal of the history of dentistry","volume":"74 2","pages":"16-41"},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2026-06-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"148723289","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}