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Dental Furniture

During the 19th century, great craftsmen turned their attention to dental furniture (24-25). Dental cabinets were made of beautifully hand carved mahogany and oak with nickel-plated swinging doors, mother of pearl drawer pulls, and beveled mirrors. Other collectible items include fancy wrought iron dental chairs (26-29c), nickel-plated spittoons (30), bracket tables (31), lighting fixtures (32), foot drills (33-34), and burrs (35). Manufacturers also attempted to meet the needs of a growing public, which was now more able to afford products related to dental health (36-40).

End of an Era

By the turn of the century, fine materials and craftsmanship yielded to the standard bactericidal materials of steel and chrome that we now see in modern dental equipment.

24-25) Harvard Dental Cabinet

The Harvard Company in Canton Ohio manufactured some of the finest dental furniture of the 19th century. The pictured cabinet is made of mahogany with beveled glass mirrors (for the patients to admire their new teeth), roll top, swing out drawers, and fancy nickel-plated hinges. These dental cabinets make wonderful display pieces for medical or dental antiques.

26-29c) Morrison Dental Chair

The Morrison chair was the first to have an adjustable lumbar support and the height of the chair could be adjusted so that the dentist could be seated while at work. These chairs were wonderfully crafted with fancy wrought iron, polished nickel-plate, and hand rubbed wood. The pictured chair is restored and was made by SS White and patented in 1887, while the second chair is an SS White "Stuck" dental chair (1889) and was the first to have a disc base - note the fabulous lion.

30) SS White Dental Spittoon

The nickel-plated cuspidor attached to the Morrison chair was also made by SS White and is the no. 1 type with an internal gold-catcher. Spittoons were faded out as indoor plumbing became more available in dental offices.

31) Holmes Bracket Table

Dental instruments, drill bits, and other materials could be brought close to the patient by way of small multidrawered tables that extended on fancy wrought iron arms. The Holmes was a top of the line model and has a reversible marble top.

32) Cluster Lamp by Electro-Dental Manufacturing Co.

Oil lamps gave way to those powered by electricity when dentists modernized their offices in the early 20th century. The pictured cluster lamp gave the dentist a source of "soft" light from several directions depending on the requirements of the situation.

33-34) SS White Side Wheel Engine

Foot powered dental engines were popular throughout the end of the 19th century. Note the unusual gold filigree still present on the pictured example.

35) Revelation Burs

SS White made this nice little set of dental drill bits, not often complete as in this example.

36-40) Home Products for Dental Health

At the turn of the century, toothpaste was sold (and advertised) in very fancy porcelain containers like the one shown. Tongue scrapers were very popular for dental hygiene and were made of silver, ivory, and tortoise shell; some health authorities are now looking again at the health benefits of this practice. Very beautiful home scaling sets were common in the 19th century, as were personal grooming sets, the pictured one containing a mother of pearl toothbrush, tongue scraper, toothpick, and dental scalers.

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24) Harvard Dental Cabinet

26) Morrison Dental Chair

30) SS White Spittoon

31) Holmes BracketTable

32) Cluster Dental Lamp

33) SS White Foot Drill

35) Revelation Burrs

40) Grooming Set