Death Does Not Become Them

When I went to see the Hope Diamond, I was attracted to another exhibit displaying the forsenic files of 17th century Chesapeake Bay.

The blurb on the museum's website reads:

"Human anatomy and forensic investigation provide intriguing information on people and events of America's past. This exhibition will examine history through 17th-century bone biographies, including those of colonists teetering on the edge of survival at Jamestown, Virginia, and those of wealthy and well-established individuals of St. Mary’s City, Maryland. At no other time in our history have we had the technological capability or opportunity that are now available to help us tell this tale."

It was absolutely fascinating.

Here are some pictures I'd like to share with you and detail a bit with my own spin.

Pipe smoking was a habit that all the colonists shared in.  The pipes were made of clay.  Imagine yourself with your teeth clamped around the edge of a plant's orange clay pot.  It was very tough on their teeth.  After years of gripping a clay pipe with your teeth, the wear would show.  Teeth would break down and become chipped and decay.  They'd turn yellow and brown, too, as pipes rarely left the mouths of most colonists.  It was one of the only pleasures they had in those rough times.  Women, men, young, old, all smoked from pipes.  Enclosed in a case were mounds and mounds of entire pipes or fragments of pipes that were unearthed at an archaelogical site.

Dental hygiene was a major issue.  Colonists would experience abcesses, tooth decay, tooth loss, jaw disorders.  You name it, they had it, and there was little relief from the pain.  Some abcesses could cause death.  And, if you were one of those few who knew that dental hygiene was critical to keeping tooth pain away, the material you were likely cleaning your teeth with was an abrasive.  These good intentions did not prevent tooth problems.  The abrasive cleaners used led to lose of tooth enamel and brittle teeth.  Eventually, the teeth would become former shadows of what was once a tooth.

The rich were not insulated from death even with all their little niceties.  The upper class enjoyed their porcelain, painted dishes, and pewter diningware all of which contained extraordinary amounts of lead.  Though they might feel ill, they could not pinpoint the origin.  After testing some skeletons that were identified as being gentry, lead tests were conducted.  Three times the amount of lead that is safe for a human being to have in his or her body was found in one man.  It was recorded that up to his death he complained of symptoms that are indicative of lead poisoning.

Were you to get a broken bone, your bone would likely just have to heal itself.  Back-breaking work did just that.  It broke your back.  Spines would become curved and contorted into shapes you wouldn't think possible.  I  saw one with my own eyes that was S-shaped.

Now, I bring you to a George Jetson bone.  It's the bionic man.  Look closely to the left and you'll see the shiny, metal ball.  This picture is of a hip replacement.  And the bottom bone is reinforced with steel pins and a shaft.  I have no clue what kind of replacement this is.  Oh, how the times have changed!