An Original Case of Tin Dental Fillings from 18th Century Northern France

Abstract

During the 18th century, France was the leader in the field of dentistry, exemplified by Pierre Fauchard (1678–1761), who was given the title “the father of modern dentistry” for his comprehensive work, Le Chirurgien Dentiste. This paper examines an 18th century dental treatment in a barely 50-year-old male whose body was excavated from Saint Amé’s Collegiate Church, Douai, France. This individual had 6 dental restorations, exceptional for that period. All fillings were on the occlusal surfaces of molars and extended at least to the superficial dentin. Panoramic and retro-alveolar radiography confirmed the presence of a radio-opaque filling material, and x-ray fluorescence (XRF) and x-ray diffraction analyses demonstrated the exclusive presence of tin in these restorations.