DentaltownUK May 2017 - 6

mike gow
editorial

William Dall: A Dental Research Pioneer
I'd like to introduce you to one of my 'dental
heroes'-a pioneer by the name of William Dall LDS,
RFPS (Glas). He was born in Fife in 1855 and passed
his exams to gain his LDS and become a qualified
dentist in 1881, despite there being no record of him
ever attending any official training at a dental school!
I love the thought of Dall, just turning up to sit his
dental exam, having not attended a single formal
lecture. His training would likely have been in the
form of apprenticeships and self-learning.
I have been using digital techniques to manufacture
ceramic inlays for around ten years now, and have a
keen interest in dental history (I sit on the Executive of
The History of Dentistry Research Group- see www.
historyofdentistry.group).
I am very proud that my great grandfather's adopted
cousin Edward Tull-Warnock (the first black UK
qualified dentist) was awarded second prize in the
Dall Medal in 1910. Dall sponsored student medals
in Scottish Dental schools for 'expertise in laboratory
and porcelain techniques'. It was while researching
Edward's life for an article that I was writing that I
first encountered the name William Dall and I was
interested to learn more about him.
Dall gave a lecture to the West of Scotland branch
of the British Dental Association on the 28th February
1889. The topic was 'Porcelain Fillings, Plain and Gum
Coloured'.1 He confessed in this lecture that he started
trying to use porcelain as a filling material in 1886
but abandoned it because of the unsatisfactory results
he obtained using fused porcelain fillings or inlays
supplied by the dental depots. "These were neither
of the proper shape nor delicate enough in shade of
colour". His patients however disagreed and continued
to request more work of this nature. Dall stated that
"People are becoming more artistic"
and, "we are more and more asked
to keep the gold out of sight." He
became the foremost exponent of
ground porcelain inlays of his day,
developing and demonstrating
techniques which facilitated and
improved every aspect of porcelain
inlay work and recommended its
use for practically every restorative
procedure. He said, "Some dentists

use porcelain only in exceptional circumstances; with
me it is the exception where it cannot be used."1
Dall started work on his book Ground Porcelain
Inlays2 in the 1890s and had nearly completed it by
1911. Due to 'unforeseen circumstances' and then the
outbreak of war, however, it remained unpublished
until on his deathbed he proclaimed that this was
his deepest regret in life. His dying wish was for it to
be completed, and so it came to pass, that just a few
months after his death in 1932, through great endeavour from his wife, the book was finally published. Mrs
Lilian Lindsay (first female UK qualified dentist and
first female president of the BDA) and Sir Frank Colyer
assisted Mrs Dall to ensure the book made it to print. I
own a copy of the book that was presented by Mrs Dall
to the school library at The Royal Dental Hospital of
London.
In his preface, Dall states, 'This book is the outcome
of over twenty years' experience of a class of work
which from the outset has had a strong fascination
for me. In the search for something which would take
the place of the unsightly appearance of gold, and be
more durable in its nature than white filling material,
I commenced in 1887 to experiment with little round
inlays ground from any porcelain tooth which was
conveniently at hand.'2
The book is a fascinating read, with explanations
as to how to restore a variety of cavity designs with

by Michael A. Gow BDS (Gla) MFDS RCPS (Gla) MSc Hyp (Lon) PGCert (Edin), Editor, DentaltownUK magazine

MAY 2017 // dentaltownuk.com

http://www.historyofdentistry.group http://www.dentaltownuk.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of DentaltownUK May 2017