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THIRTEENTH TO EI ETTENTH CENTL'R/ES 153
he prescribed astringent month washes. Against dental worms, whose
existence no one at that period doubted in the least, Plateario recom-
mended various remedies, chieHv under the form of fumigations; and
among these latter, those performed with burnt opium. Against ulcera-
tions of the gums and mouth he commended the use of wine and aro-
matic substances. An excellent remed\ was also, according to him,
lime dissolved in verv strong hot \inegar, and mixed, after complete
evaporation of the licjuid, with a fourth part of orpiment.
Giovanni of Arcoli (in Latin, /(jtmiies Arculatms), professor at
Bologna and afterward at Padua (who died in 1484), wrote a commentary
on a celebrated book of medicine, which Rhazes had dedicated to the
glorious King Almansor, great patron of science and art.'
In this most valuable work of Arculanus there are several chapters
relative to diseases of the teeth; and this subject is treated rather fully
and with great accurac\".
The author, first of all, treats of the anatomv and physiology of the
teeth; he, however, falls into many errors, for instance, in regard to the
number of dental roots. ("The first six teeth of the upper jaw have
onlv one root; the first six of the lower not more than two; the molars of
the upper jaw have three; those of the lower generally only two in like
manner; the iiegiiezid- of the upper jaw have four roots, but the two
lower neguezid have only three.")
According to him there is not the least doubt that the teeth grow during
the whole lifetime, thus repairing the continual waste caused by use;
and among other proofs he adduces that, w^hilst in the old all other organs
shrink and waste away through lack of nourishment, the teeth, on the
contrary, show very frequently an increase in length.
For the preservation of teeth—considered by him, quite rightly, a
matter of great importance—Giovanni of Arcoli repeats the various
counsels given on the subject by preceding writers, but he gives them
as ten distinct canons or rules, creating in this way a kind of decalogue
of dental hygien e. These rules are: (i) It is necessary to guard against
the "corruption of food and drink within the stomach; therefore, easil\-
corruptible food—milk, salt fish, etc.—must not be partaken of, and
after meals all excessive movement, coition, bathing, and other causes
that impair the digestion, must also be avoided. (2) Everything must
be avoided that may provoke vomiting. (3) Sweet and viscous food
such as dried figs, preserves made with honey, etc.—must not be partaken
of. (4) Hard things must not be broken with the teeth. (5) All food,
' Joannis Arculani commentaria in nonum librum Rasis ad regem Almansorem, etc.,
Venetiis, 1542.
' This Arabian word was used to indicate the last molars.
THIRTEENTH TO EI ETTENTH CENTL'R/ES 153
he prescribed astringent month washes. Against dental worms, whose
existence no one at that period doubted in the least, Plateario recom-
mended various remedies, chieHv under the form of fumigations; and
among these latter, those performed with burnt opium. Against ulcera-
tions of the gums and mouth he commended the use of wine and aro-
matic substances. An excellent remed\ was also, according to him,
lime dissolved in verv strong hot \inegar, and mixed, after complete
evaporation of the licjuid, with a fourth part of orpiment.
Giovanni of Arcoli (in Latin, /(jtmiies Arculatms), professor at
Bologna and afterward at Padua (who died in 1484), wrote a commentary
on a celebrated book of medicine, which Rhazes had dedicated to the
glorious King Almansor, great patron of science and art.'
In this most valuable work of Arculanus there are several chapters
relative to diseases of the teeth; and this subject is treated rather fully
and with great accurac\".
The author, first of all, treats of the anatomv and physiology of the
teeth; he, however, falls into many errors, for instance, in regard to the
number of dental roots. ("The first six teeth of the upper jaw have
onlv one root; the first six of the lower not more than two; the molars of
the upper jaw have three; those of the lower generally only two in like
manner; the iiegiiezid- of the upper jaw have four roots, but the two
lower neguezid have only three.")
According to him there is not the least doubt that the teeth grow during
the whole lifetime, thus repairing the continual waste caused by use;
and among other proofs he adduces that, w^hilst in the old all other organs
shrink and waste away through lack of nourishment, the teeth, on the
contrary, show very frequently an increase in length.
For the preservation of teeth—considered by him, quite rightly, a
matter of great importance—Giovanni of Arcoli repeats the various
counsels given on the subject by preceding writers, but he gives them
as ten distinct canons or rules, creating in this way a kind of decalogue
of dental hygien e. These rules are: (i) It is necessary to guard against
the "corruption of food and drink within the stomach; therefore, easil\-
corruptible food—milk, salt fish, etc.—must not be partaken of, and
after meals all excessive movement, coition, bathing, and other causes
that impair the digestion, must also be avoided. (2) Everything must
be avoided that may provoke vomiting. (3) Sweet and viscous food
such as dried figs, preserves made with honey, etc.—must not be partaken
of. (4) Hard things must not be broken with the teeth. (5) All food,
' Joannis Arculani commentaria in nonum librum Rasis ad regem Almansorem, etc.,
Venetiis, 1542.
' This Arabian word was used to indicate the last molars.
