Scaler set

Status

Not on view

Label Text

The Washington family attempted to maintain good oral hygiene by brushing their teeth and using mouthwash. An additional measure was a regular appointment with a surgeon-dentist to scrape off built-up tartar using tools known as scalers. The compact sets, such as the incomplete one seen here, typically included a common handle and as many as twelve individually shaped, interchangeable heads to enable a thorough cleaning.

See also case, W-546/A, and scaler set, W-546/D, F, I.

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Datec. 1795

Geography Probably made - England

Medium/TechniqueB: Ivory, silver, ferrous metal C: Ferrous metal E: Ferrous metal G: Ferrous metal H: Ferrous metal

DimensionsOverall (B): 3 3/8 in. x 1/2 in. x 1/2 in. (8.59 cm x 1.27 cm x 1.27 cm) Overall (C): 2 1/4 in. x 5/16 in. x 5/16 in. (5.72 cm x 0.79 cm x 0.79 cm) Overall (E): 2 9/16 in. x 5/16 in. x 5/16 in. (6.5 cm x 0.79 cm x 0.79 cm) Overall (G): 2 3/8 in. x 5/16 in. x 5/16 in. (6.05 cm x 0.79 cm x 0.79 cm) Overall (H): 2 5/16 in. x 5/16 in. x 5/16 in. (5.87 cm x 0.79 cm x 0.79 cm)

Credit LineGift of Marie Conrad Lehr as a memorial to her brother, Charles Angelo Conrad II, 1915

Object numberW-546/B,C,E,G,H

DescriptionB:
Faceted ivory handle with steel end cap and shank socket; the seamed sheet metal end cap is hammered to the shape of the handle's facets and is anchored by a metal pin; the seamed sheet metal shank collar is hammered and pinned into place; the collar supports a square socket and catch that receives the latched tenons of the interchangeable dental tools that are fastened by a wing screw threaded into the side wall.

C:
Coved and pointed scaler atop a long baluster shank with a collar and flared base below which extends a tenon with a shallow well set into the obverse that terminates in a latch.

E:
Coved and trapezoidal shaped scaler with a curved edge atop a long baluster shank with a collar and flared base, below which extends a tenon with a shallow well set into the obverse that terminates in a latch.

G:
Coved and pointed scaler atop a long baluster shank with a collar and flared base, below which extends a tenon with a shallow well set into the obverse that terminates in a latch.

H:
Coved and pointed scaler atop a long baluster shank with a collar and flared base, below which extends a tenon with a shallow well set into the obverse that terminates in a latch.

Published ReferencesJames C. Rees, Treasures from Mount Vernon: George Washington Revealed (Mount Vernon, VA: Mount Vernon Ladies' Association, 1999), 79.

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