Copy of portion of George Washington's false teeth with associated letter (A600147).

This is a copy of a portion of the lower denture made for George Washington (1732-1799). George Washington was first president of the United States of America following the Constitution of 1789. He experienced a large number of dental complaints and lost all his teeth by 1796. John Greenwood (1760-1815) designed and made four sets of dentures for Washington during the ten years Greenwood was his dentist. The dentures were made from gold, elephant ivory, hippopotamus ivory and human teeth. It is a myth Washington wore wooden dentures. This example is made from ivory. It is inscribed with the initials ‘IG’. This may refer to Greenwood’s brother or father. They shared the name Isaac and were both dentists.