Waterloo Teeth
Sometimes the poor could be persuaded to part with good teeth. In 1783, a dentist advertised in a New York newspaper, offering 2 guineas each for sound teeth. But people had to be desperate to sell their teeth. The dead did not need persuading. For the discerning patient, teeth from the battlefield were the best they could hope for. It was not always what they got. Many second-hand teeth came from mortuaries, the dissecting room and the gallows. The biggest purveyors of teeth were the “resurrectionists” who stole corpses to sell to medical schools. Teeth were one of the perks of the job. Even if they dug up a body too far gone for the anatomy classroom, they could still pocket a tidy sum by selling the teeth.
Do you know we own a really large spoon (a platter spoon) with a George III makers’ mark. This should not be confused with quaffing Makers Mark with three Georges.
I’m a sucker for antique cutlery – and, coincidentally, whiskey.