This item was purchased by me for US $250 in 2000. I was in Tibet that summer when a friend / Tibet art, archeology and thogchag expert told me he had seen this amazing dental instrument for sale in the Barkor Market. Of course, I responded immediately by dragging him to the seller's stall. My friend translated as the seller explained that the object was a forceps used for extracting teeth. Being a dentist by profession, I was compelled to purchase the thing, and after a long bargaining session that lasted many days, it was mine!

Having extracted many teeth in my tenure as a general dentist, I wondered: How in God's name did they get a tooth out with this thing? It was about 12 inches long and made of heavy base metal with a bit of gold decoration. Two parts to the jaw (shaped as a Lion when held in approximation) must grip the tooth and a sleeve tightens the jaws together. I guess having somehow grasping the tooth, the "extractor" torques it.

Of course, the only way a tooth could be removed by this thing in toto is if that tooth had severe periodontal disease, complete with a lot of bone loss around the tooth. This could not work for a healthy tooth anchored in bone.

Now, suppose a tooth were filled with soft decay and abscessed. This thing could just crush the whole crown of the tooth, allowing trapped pus to escape. This would be a life-saving drainage technique.

Before penicillin was discovered in the 40's, dying from a tooth infection was not rare. Today it still happens, more so in medically under-served parts of the world. Penicillin (we use amoxicillin now) and well-designed extraction forceps (hopefully along with local anesthetic) have saved many lives. Perhaps this thing was a life-saver too. I suspect I will donate it to a dental museum.

In any case, the thing is unusual. Now, when extracting a molar, I delight in the beautifully designed contra-angled stainless steel instruments in my drawer. (In fact I have at least 25 of them, one shaped for every tooth in the mouth, plus elevators to dig and pry, and Ronguer forceps to nibble away bone.)


(I have a web site about abscessed teeth  and one about toothache in case anyone landed on this page hoping to get that kind of information.)