The gold bands discovered in Etruscan tombs tell a similar story. They were probably dental splints designed to support teeth loosened by gum disease or injury, not devices for moving teeth into new positions<\/a>.<\/p>\n There are some rather compelling practical reasons why these ancient devices couldn\u2019t have worked as braces anyway. Tests on Etruscan appliances revealed the gold used was 97% pure<\/a>, and pure gold is remarkably soft. <\/p>\n It bends and stretches easily without breaking, which makes it useless for orthodontics. Braces work by applying continuous pressure over long periods, requiring metal that\u2019s strong and springy. Pure gold simply can\u2019t manage that. Try to tighten it enough to straighten a tooth and it will deform or snap.<\/p>\n Then there\u2019s the curious matter of who was wearing these gold bands. Many were found with the skeletons of women<\/a>, suggesting they might have been status symbols or decorative jewellery rather than medical devices. Tellingly, none<\/a> were discovered in the mouths of children or teenagers \u2013 exactly where you\u2019d expect to find them if they were genuine orthodontic appliances.<\/p>\n But perhaps the most fascinating revelation is this: ancient people didn\u2019t have the same dental problems we face today. <\/p>\n Malocclusion \u2013 the crowding and misalignment of teeth that\u2019s so common now \u2013 was extremely rare in the past. Studies of Stone Age skulls show almost no crowding<\/a>. The difference is down to diet. <\/p>\n Our ancestors ate tough, fibrous foods that required serious chewing. All that jaw work developed strong, large jaws perfectly capable of accommodating all their teeth<\/a>.<\/p>\n Modern diets, by contrast, are soft and processed, giving our jaws little exercise. The result? Our jaws are often smaller than those of our ancestors, while our teeth remain the same size, leading to the crowding we see today. <\/p>\n Since crooked teeth were virtually non-existent in antiquity, there was hardly any reason to develop methods for straightening them.<\/p>\n Jaws were larger, due to food being tougher to chew on. That said, ancient people did occasionally attempt simple interventions for dental irregularities. The Romans provide one of the earliest reliable references to actual orthodontic treatment. <\/p>\n Aulus Cornelius Celsus, a Roman medical writer in the first century AD, noted<\/a> that if a child\u2019s tooth came in crooked, they should gently push it into place with a finger every day until it shifted to the correct position. Although basic, this method is built on the same principle we use today \u2013 gentle, continuous pressure can move a tooth.<\/p>\n After the Roman era, little progress occurred for centuries. By the 18th century, however, interest in straightening teeth had revived, albeit through some rather agonising methods. <\/p>\n Those without access to modern dental tools resorted to wooden \u201cswelling wedges\u201d<\/a> to create space between overcrowded teeth. A small wedge of wood was inserted between teeth. As saliva was absorbed, the wood expanded, forcing the teeth apart. Crude and excruciating, perhaps, but it represented a step towards understanding that teeth could be repositioned through pressure.<\/p>\n Scientific orthodontics<\/p>\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/file-20251209-56-ji57dr.jpg\")
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