Exhibit of the Month

The "Pelican" tooth extraction instrument

This instrument was used in medical practice until the end of the 18th century. It was first cited in the literature by Guy de Chouliac (c. 1300-1368), who was a distinguished physician in the 14th century. The instrument’s name is based on the fact that it resembles a pelican’s beak in visual terms. Four basic models of the instrument were produced over the course of several centuries.

From the 14th to the 18th century, medical treatments in the territory of Latvia were mostly offered by scar doctors or barber surgeons who had studied in Western Europe. We know that at the turn of the 17th century, there were some 20 surgeons in the territory of Latvia who extracted teeth with the help of the “pelican-type” extraction instruments.