Dentist's mold guide for "Veri-Chrome Five Phase Anteriors," the artificial teeth made by the Universal Dental Company of Philadelphia, in its original hinged case. Bound like a large book in black alligator-grain covers, the front lettered "Mold Guide / Veri-Chrome / Five Phase Anteriors" in faded gilt, it opens to a tray of porcelain teeth: sets of front teeth mounted in rows on black strips against a mauve card, each keyed to its mold (L, M and S for long, medium and short, with the width and an F or C), a section of "Short Bite Molds," and below, a drawer-like panel of "Veri-Chrome Dr. French's Posteriors – New Carvings." Inside the front cover, a printed sheet titled "Coordinate System of Scientific Sizing and the Interchangeability of Laterals in Veri-Chrome Five Phase Anteriors," explaining with diagrams how the coronal index (breadth over length) governs the shape of a tooth and how laterals can be swapped between sets; with the imprint "Universal Dental Company, 48th and Brown Streets, Phila., Pa., U.S.A." and "Copyright, 1940." Some teeth missing; wear to the case, with splitting along the spine and at the corners; scratches and surface marks; toning. 12.5 x 16 x 1 inches; 31.8 x 40.6 x 2.5 cm.

Mold guides like this one sat at the dentist's or dental technician's chair, so that ready-made teeth could be matched by size and shape to a patient's face before a denture was ordered. This example doubles as a striking piece of graphic design, and as a small encyclopedia of the human smile.