Featured Mother of Pearl surgical instruments

Came across this today and thought it might prove useful to someone someday. Granted, I’m far from an expert on antique surgical instruments, but I certainly wouldn’t have guessed what these were!

“This set of six instruments date from the 19th century. Two are for removing salivary calculus and four are chisels. The ornate handles are made from mother of pearl.”
https://bsky.app/profile/surgeonshall.bsky.social/post/3lkdksam42t2v

“Salivary calculiSalivary gland stones sometimes form in one of the salivary glands. These stones are small and form from chemicals in the saliva. A stone can cause a blockage of the flow of spit (saliva), which can lead to pain and swelling of the affected salivary gland. The reason why these stones form is not known.Jun 29, 2022”

https://patient.info

 

WAG, maybe they are manicure tools?

 

The Surgeons' Hall Museum refers to them as "dentistry instruments", not surgical instruments.

Whichever, they are odd things, nonetheless!

https://museum.rcsed.ac.uk/the-collection/key-collections/key-object-page?objID=4549

 

Well, shut my mouth !!!!!!

No, Really...........!!

 

i was gonna say i've had a couple before (stones that is) but no that was tonsil stones, and less said (or smelt ) about them the better

 

It's funny before I even scrolled down, and I was just admiring them, I thought they looked like dental tools. What a pretty carving. Absolutely the last place I'd expect someone to want artistic flair but I guess they loved their tools!

 

And I'm thinking they'd make great implements for clay work!