We spoke to Dr John Davies about the story behind the ADAWA Presidential Chain.
It’s a part of tradition and ceremony when, every two years at the ADAWA Annual General Meeting, a new President is announced and wears the ADAWA Presidential Chain.
The original chain, started in 1928 is engraved with the names of past ADAWA Presidents until the year 2000, and when the chain was nearly full, then President, Dr John Davies, was charged with commissioning a new one.
“I approached David Walker, who was the Associate Professor of Jewellery at Curtin University and a friend of mine, and asked if he would like an interesting project,” John recalls.
David Walker, noted for his work on public artworks, and of considerable Australian and international renown, clearly understood the brief – during the five-to six-month process, he created a ceremonial chain in which every part had dentistry in mind.
“He did a beautiful job not only of the drawings but of the execution,” John says.
Bite pattern
At the base of the chain, there is an image of a black swan (made from oxidised silver) symbolic for Western Australia, but it is the pattern behind it in gold that has a dental significance. “The gold background behind the swan is a stylised occlusal pattern of both upper and lower molars,” he says.
The gold was donated by member dentists from extracted teeth, with Dr Ray Owen one of the significant gold donors for this project.
The materials
Each material was chosen with a link to dentistry in mind, including silver, stainless steel screws (a nod to old-world dentistry) stainless steel wire (to reference orthodontics) and titanium (to reference implant material).
A modern design
The design was considered very modern for its time, with the names being laser engraved instead of the traditional engraving. “The most important part for me was the blending of the old and new,” John says. “I graduated in 1976 and then by the time I was president there were the titanium implants, the orthodontics with stainless steel…materials had taken off and David Walker really grasped the concept of using these materials that were significant to dentistry.”
Change is constant
John says it was important to continue the tradition of a Presidential chain because it is important the President is identifiable, but the design of the latest chain was symbolic of the changes that constantly occur in dentistry.
“When I retired, I was very aware of technology moving quickly; CAD CAM technology came in and I guess the next step will be we will be growing teeth
in a laboratory. And that is key – there is nothing more certain than change itself. The next Presidential chain might be a virtual chain.”
