[Aztlan] Earliest dental work in the Americas found in Mexico

Sun Jun 18 22:44:46 CDT 2006

Guillermo,

There is no more information I have seen then the news stories. I  
will send out any new information that I see.

Mike Ruggeri

On Jun 18, 2006, at 10:26 PM, Dr. Guillermo Mata Amado wrote:

> Dear Michael:
>
> Its a very important news the one about the findin in Michoacan. Of  
> the first dental work in Mesoamerica.
> In my opinion I think it has to be more investigated. The  
> conclutions I suppose are  premature.
> For many reasons , as they say the pulp was exposed the pain and  
> infection was a big problem. At the end they say that he died  
> because of and infeccion in his front teeth. It will be of  
> importance that  they recover the upper maxila with the file teeth  
> in place and if so if the bone have any evidence of a dental  
> infeccion and the conscuence of the reabsocion of the bone. If not  
> maybe the work was done Post Morten. . Individualy I thik that it  
> in no posible to mount one animal tooth on the rest of the human  
> tooth. I suppose that they glue together the animal teeth and mount  
> them in a base of maybe wax, clay or wood togther and then be  
> place  on top of the gums and the remaining of the teeth. Like the  
> teeth and gums of plastic that the boys use for halloween.(Dracula)  
> It could  be use for a short time at special events. The article   
> says "IT´S LIKE HE WAS  USING THE MOUTH OF SOME OTHER ANIMAL IN HIS  
> MOUTH"  I wonder the teeth or the mouth? For placing a mouth of an  
> animal over a man  mouth, thats another story. After they mention  
> "SUCH MODIFICATIONS TYPICALLY USING BEAST OF PREY, BECAME MORE  
> COMMON CENTURIES LATER IN THE MAYA CULTURE". I have studied  
> hundreds of  prehispanic  skulls and never find one, and on the  
> literature there is no mention. After they mention "DURING THE LATE  
> POST CLASSIC PERIOD, SHORTLY BEFORE THE SPANISH CAME WE HAVE SEEN  
> EVIDENSCE ON INSERTIONS OF TURQUOISE AND FILE TEETH IN DIFFERENT  
> FORMS, BUT THIS IS THE EARLIEST EVIDENCE OF DENTAL MODIFICATIONS BY  
> ABOUT ONE THOUSAND YEARS". There are books and articles that  
> indicate that the filing stared around 1300 B.C  in Arbolito near  
> Mexico City and around 1000 B. C. what the autors  call insertions  
> are the unique procedure of INCRUSTACION place in a perfect cavity  
> that is dentistry. And only in Mesoamerica of all the ancient  
> Cultures all around the worl were placed. They were not only  
> turquoise but of Jadeite, Pyrite, Hematite, and Obscidian.The oldes  
> found in Guatemala was publish by Dr. Richard Hansen and myself  
> from Nakbe with a carbon dated 850 B.C.  the  Incrustation was of  
> Hematite style E 3 in the well known Romero clasification. So if  
> posible I would like to have more information. Or there is a web  
> page that givesall the details. The opinions of other archaeologist  
> that have express their opinion are in a good direcction, with some  
> opinions that have to be consider.
> The filing of teeth is this 2006 are still done.In  Africa ,  
> Oceania. Tailandia and many other places.
> Guillermo Mata A.
>
>  Original Message ----- From: "michael ruggeri"  
> <michaelruggeri at mac.com>
> To: "Aztlan" <aztlan at lists.famsi.org>
> Sent: Wednesday, June 14, 2006 7:23 PM
> Subject: [Aztlan] Earliest dental work in the Americas found in Mexico
>
>
>>
>> Archaeological site yields dental surprise
>>
>> By RANDOLPH E. SCHMID, AP Science Writer
>>
>> Thousands of years before screen idols began beautifying  
>> themselves  with cosmetic dentistry ancient Mexicans were getting  
>> ceremonial  dentures.
>>
>> Researchers report Wednesday that they found a 4,500-year-old  
>> burial  in Mexico that had the oldest known example of dental work  
>> in the  Americas.
>>
>> The upper front teeth of the remains had been ground down so they   
>> could be mounted with animal teeth, possibly wolf or panther  
>> teeth,  for ceremonial purposes, according to researchers led by  
>> Tricia Gabany-Guerrero of the University of Connecticut.
>>
>> "It's like he was using the mouth of some other animal in his  
>> mouth," explained James Chatters, an archaeologist and  
>> paleontologist with  AMEC Earth and Environmental Inc. in Seattle,  
>> Wash., and a member of  the research team.
>>
>> Such modifications, typically using beasts of prey, became more   
>> common centuries later in the Maya culture, Chatters said in a   
>> telephone interview, but this is the earliest example that has  
>> been  found.
>>
>> The individual, aged 28 to 32, would not have been able to bite  
>> with  his front teeth but appears to have been well fed  
>> nonetheless,  Chatters said. The body indicated he didn't do hard  
>> work, perhaps  having been an important person in society.
>>
>> Found in the Michoacan area, the body had been placed on a large  
>> rock with another rock on top of it, Chatters said.
>>
>> "The teeth were filed down so much that their pulp cavities were   
>> exposed, leading to an infection," Gabany-Guerrero said in a  
>> statement.
>>
>> "During the Late Post Classic period, shortly before the Spanish   
>> came, we have seen evidence of insertion of turquoise and filed  
>> teeth  in different forms, but this is the earliest evidence of a  
>> dental  modification by about one thousand years," she said.
>>
>> The researchers said they found rock art and symbols related to  
>> other ancient cultures in the region including calendar symbols.
>>
>> In addition to the teeth they found pieces of skull and bones  
>> from  his hands, legs and feet. There was no indication of  
>> physical  problems and he did not suffer from ailments such as  
>> arthritis.
>>
>> The cause of death was not clear but the researchers said there  
>> had  been active infections in two teeth.
>>
>> Primary funding for the research came from the National Geographic  
>> Society with added support from foundations, academic and   
>> governmental organizations in Mexico and the United States.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>> Copyright © 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.
>>
>>
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