Vikings and dentistry: archaeologists find evidence of advanced medicine in the Middle Ages (photo)
During archaeological excavations in Varna, the remains of a Christian church were found. Next to it was a cemetery with numerous Viking graves dating back to the X-XII centuries AD.
This place is known for extensive excavations of tombs, where the skeletons and teeth of the Vikings are well preserved due to favorable soil conditions, scientists say. This is stated in a study published in the journal PLOS ONE, Arkeonews reports.
Researchers conducted clinical studies of Viking teeth using standard dental instruments in bright light. A series of X-ray studies were also conducted using a technique used in dentistry when a patient bites down on a small square plate to obtain images of the oral cavity.
According to the data, 49% of Vikings had at least one caries lesion. In adults, 13% of teeth were affected by caries, mostly at the roots, while children did not have this problem, life.pravda reports.
Over the course of their lives, adults lost an average of 6% of their teeth, not including wisdom teeth.
The researchers found that tooth decay, dental infections, and toothache were common among the Vikings in Varna. They also found examples of different methods of dental care.
There is ample evidence that the Vikings altered their teeth: using toothpicks, filing their front teeth, and even treating infections, says dentist and researcher Karolina Bertilsson, who is also the author of the study.
Scientists also describe one of the most complex dental manipulations: drilling molars (the largest permanent teeth of the upper and lower jaw) from the crown to the pulp. This was probably done to relieve pressure and alleviate severe toothache caused by infection.
"This is not in line with modern dental treatment methods where we drill out infected teeth. The Vikings obviously had some knowledge about teeth, but we are not sure whether they performed these procedures on their own or with someone else's help," says Bertilsson.
At the same time, the filed front teeth, mostly in men, could have served as a kind of "identity marker," the scientists add.
"This study provides new information about the oral health of the Vikings and emphasizes the importance of teeth in their culture. It also suggests that dentistry in the Viking era was probably more advanced than we previously thought," Bertilsson concludes.
Earlier, we told you that archaeologists found a mysterious monolith in a 4000-year-old temple in Cyprus.
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