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Preface
In today's situation where our quality of life is improving day by day, many high-tech products have been born, such as electric toothbrushes, mouthwashes and other products to solve our oral problems.
So in ancient times, people didn't have these products, how did they clean their mouths, and what did ancient people use to brush their teeth?
Let's take a look today, and the results may surprise you!
The earliest "gargle" cleaning
There is a relevant record in the "Historical Records": "Inside and outside, the chicken crows, and the salty rinse." This sentence shows that since thousands of years, the ancients have had the Xi of gargling.
Before the invention of the toothbrush, the ancients generally used the gargling method, that is, to rinse the mouth with various liquids such as salt water, vinegar, wine, tea, etc., the ancients believed that this could effectively clean the mouth, and the wine could be used to kill viruses and sterilization.
And gargling can not only keep the mouth clean, but also used to treat diseases, in the "Historical Records: Bian Que Canggong Biography" has been recorded that someone in Qi has tooth decay, Canggong let him use medicine to rinse his mouth, and sure enough, his condition has improved.
Early oral cleaning tool toothpicks
In the Qin and Han dynasties, people found that gargling could not solve the problem of stuffing teeth with food, so they would use the powder of stone bricks to clean the gap between the teeth.
In 1976, a cultural relic was unearthed in Nanchang, Jiangxi Province, which archaeologists thought was a tool for tooth flossing after research, and the appearance of toothpicks at that time allowed people to have a better treatment of oral cleaning.
There is also an effective and efficient cleaning tool, that is, dental floss, which is mostly made of hemp rope, and dental floss is more effective than toothpicks, which can clean the remaining residue of the teeth more deeply.
Willow toothbrush to bristle toothbrush
During the Sui Dynasty, it became popular to soak some of the willow branches that had just grown out, and then bite them open with their teeth.
After the Tang Dynasty, people still use willow branches to make toothbrushes, and use special potions as toothpaste to brush their teeth.
In addition to willow branches, people began to research new toothbrushes, using cow bones to make handles, and the process of making handles is very complicated, not only in terms of size, but also in terms of appearance, which must be measured before being made.
Then the bones have to be embalmed and polished, and after doing this, dozens of holes are drilled in the bones, and then the bristles are put on, and finally the toothbrush is sterilized, so that the toothbrush is completed.
In addition to cow bones, the handles can also be made of hard and flexible materials such as ivory and bamboo, and the bristles can also be made with deer hair.
The toothbrush that appeared in the Tang Dynasty improved the problems caused by people's mouths at that time, and was a very important scientific research achievement in human history.
Toothbrushes began to gain popularity
During the Song Dynasty, when the ancients got up, they rinsed their mouths first, and if they couldn't rinse cleanly, they would use a toothbrush made of willow branches.
The toothbrush invented during the Tang Dynasty, after a slight improvement, there are relevant records, and in the Southern Song Dynasty, the toothbrush has begun to be sold, and people have begun to clean the mouth well at this time.
In 2007, some bone products were unearthed in Qixian County, Henan Province, three of which were defective brush handles, and relevant archaeologists determined that this was a toothbrush of the Song Dynasty, but they were all defective products.
The fact that so many defective products can be found at the scene shows that toothbrushes were more common in the Song Dynasty.
In Wu Zimu's "Dream Lianglu" there is a relevant record, "all kinds of groceries" list common daily commodities, including "wooden combs, brushes, brushes" and so on, in the Southern Song Dynasty, toothbrushes and combs have become daily necessities.
Tooth incense, tooth powder
Toothbrushes appeared, toothpaste naturally appeared, and during the Tang Dynasty, a monk bought agarwood, sandalwood, borneol and other items, mixed these spices and herbs together and ground them into powder.
The powder is then mixed with the boiled honey and sealed in a container to set. That's what it was then: tooth incense.
After eating, the sealed container will be opened and a piece will be taken out, and it will be placed in the mouth, which can maintain a fresh breath, and the cost of tooth incense is very high, but fortunately, during the Tang Dynasty, the temple's incense money was endless.
In the Northern Song Dynasty, someone invented the "tooth incense chip", which can be carried around and extremely convenient, and the tooth incense chip is also made of various spices and medicinal materials, and then used a mold to press it, it becomes the appearance of a toothbrush.
It is convenient to carry it with you when you go out, and after eating, you can use the tooth incense chip to put it in your mouth and brush it several times like brushing your teeth, and then rinse your mouth, which not only cleans your mouth, but also maintains the fragrance of your mouth.
The most important point is that the tooth incense chip can not only "brush your teeth" but also recycle, while the tooth fragrance can only be used once.
In addition, the toothpaste of the ancients was also called tooth powder, which is called a mixture of shell powder, graphite powder and some plants, unlike today's toothpaste, tooth powder can not produce foam, but the same can achieve the effect of cleaning the mouth.
The materials for making tooth powder are not only like this, many people in ancient times made their own tooth powder, such as the famous writer Su Shi once made his own tooth powder.
He dried the pine resin and poria cocos and crushed them into crushed foam, and then sifted out the fine powder for use, and when brushing his teeth, he took out the tooth powder and put it in his mouth first, then drank water and rinsed his mouth, and then brushed his teeth.
Tooth powder and toothpaste in ancient times were different from today's production methods and usage schemes.
epilogue
Whether it is from the toothbrush, or from the tooth powder, toothpaste, we can see the importance of the ancients to their own mouth, and also reflect the wisdom of the ancients.
Nowadays, many of our daily lives were invented and handed down by the ancients, and we are just constantly improving and perfecting.
I don't know if you have any different views after reading this article, welcome to discuss and leave a message!
Bibliography:
- Exploring the World of the Ancients: Reading The Living World of the Ancients[J]. Lei Jingjing, junior high school student, 2021
- Toothpaste can be used as medicine[J]. Bao Xinlei, Family Chinese Medicine, 2001
- Comb hair with less plastic comb[N]. Health Times, 2006
- A Hundred Discussions on "Archaeology"[J]. Popular Archaeology, 2017
- On the Important Discoveries of Primitive Agricultural Relics and the Origin of Agriculture in Mainland China[J]. History Teaching, 1985