The Natural History of the Human Teeth
London: Thomas Cox, 1803.
This sammelband unites the two-part landmark treatise by Joseph Fox (1776–1816), Member of the Royal College of Surgeons and Lecturer on the Structure and Diseases of the Teeth at Guy's Hospital, London — one of the foundational English-language texts of modern dentistry. The first work traces the formation, eruption, and shedding of both temporary and permanent teeth, the causes and correction of dental irregularity, and diseases of dentition in children, closing with a chemical analysis of tooth structure contributed by the chemist William Hasledine Pepys. It is illustrated with fine engraved copperplates, including anatomical skull sections and injected-preparation studies showing the vascularity of developing teeth and gums, drawn by G. Kirtland and engraved by J. Basire (of the noted Basire engraving dynasty, engravers to the Society of Antiquaries). The companion 1806 volume extends the study into the treatment of diseased teeth, gums, and alveolar processes, the operations these conditions required, and — notably for the history of prosthetic dentistry — an early account of the fitting of artificial teeth.
Together the two works represent Fox's complete published output on dentistry and are frequently found bound as one volume, as here, forming a scarce and desirable unit for collectors of medical, dental, and scientific history.
Condition & Binding: The volume is bound in period boards with a leather spine, gilt-tooled in five compartments with a raised-band design and a gilt morocco lettering-piece reading "FOX ON THE TEETH." The spine leather is sound and attractively tooled; the paper-covered boards are heavily soiled and stained with old damp/foxing marks, consistent with a working library copy of this age, and the spine tone/condition suggests the book may have been rebacked or the boards renewed at some point. Internally, there is extensive foxing to the blanks and title leaves, though the printed text and plates themselves are legible and the engravings are crisp. Overall- good. Item #921
Price: $3,000.00