The History of Articulators: A Critical History of Articulators Based on Geometric Theories of Mandibular Movement: Part I

Edgar N. Starcke, DDS

SINCE AS early as the 1860s, dental scientists and inventors investigated the nature of mandibular movement for the purpose of reproducing these movements in an articulator. Simple hinge articulators became commonplace, but by the turn of the 20th century, the natural variability of the condylar paths, both between individuals and from side to side in the same individual, had begun to be recognized and appreciated as important determinants of mandibular movement. Undoubtedly, the investigators’ interpretations of what they observed varied greatly. This is demonstrable in the features of their articulators. From the inspired to the near-genius and from the “ridiculous to the sublime,” these articulators simply reflected what was perceived to be the anatomic and kinesthetic characteristics of mandibular movement. Despite differences in investigators’perception and application of mandibular movement, the complexity of articulators began to evolve as a result of the important work of such scientists as W.E. Walker, Alfred Gysi, and George Snow. By 1910, most inventors had become more systematic in their attempts to reproduce the individual natural movements of the mandible.

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