The diseases of the teeth were, in those days, most common; very often we find mention of loose teeth, and the medicines suited to make them firm again; from which we may deduce the great frequency of alveolar pyorrhea. It is reasonable to think that such a fact was caused principally by the intemperate life of those times, in which the followers of Epicurus were extremely numerous and the unbridled desire for pleasure reached such a degree that no abhorrence was felt of provoking vomit during the course of a long banquet, in order to continue dining merrily.
Concerning the teeth, their affections, and the means of healing and preventing them, the strangest superstitions existed, and this not only among the common, but also among educated and learned people. The number of remedies reputed useful against diseases of the teeth was extraordinarily great; but the modern saying, “therapeutic wealth is poverty,” could have been applied only too well.
Of the cleanliness of the teeth, it seems, great care was taken, for dentifrices were in great use. These, as we have already seen, were made of the most varied substances—stag’s horn burnt, ashes obtained by burning the head of the mouse, of the hare, of the wolf, etc., eggshells burnt and reduced to powder, pumice stone, and so on. For the cleanliness of the mouth, for strengthening the teeth and gums, mouth washes of sundry kinds were likewise adopted, especially formed of decoctions of astringent substances in water, wine, and vinegar.
Not only among the Romans was great care given to the cleanliness and beauty of the teeth, but also among many other nations. In this regard the following poem of Catullus, in which he lashes the silly vanity of a Celtiberian resident in Rome, who made continual show of his white teeth, is somewhat interesting:
“Egnatius, quod candidos habet dentes
Renidet usquequaque; seu ad rei ventum est
Subsellium, cum orator excitat fletum,
Renidet ille: seu pii ad rogum filii
Lugetur, orba cum flet unicum mater,
Renidet ille; quidquid est, ubicumque est,