Gold Teeth

In honor of me getting wisdom tooth surgery today (send me good vibes) today we're going to talk about Gold Teeth.

Since as early as 629 AD in China, people have been filling their teeth with amalgams of precious metal, and

Gold is malleable, nearly immune to corrosion, and hard enough to form a biting surface that can be used for years. Gold was used before silver was available and continued to be used for specialized purposes.

Also, gold teeth, like gold earrings, were an insurance policy for a sailor. Since there was no banking and no guarantee that your crew mates would have your back if you died at sea, a gold tooth was a great way to guarantee that you could pay for a proper burial.