I am sure that most students at one time or another have thought that if they had to read one more word, it would just kill them but this may be an actual thing. A team of researchers at the University of Southern Denmark has found three books (so far) that are poisonous. OMG! I knew it!
Because old books often reused parchments, these researchers had taken these three books to be x-rayed to see if any of them had manuscript fragments under the covers. It is well documented that book-binders of the 16th and 17th centuries used to recycle used parchments. The three Renaissance-era books had covers that were caked in green paint which was shown, under x-ray, the presence of arsenic. (Do not lick your fingers before thumbing through these pages.) The pigment was used more as an undercoat and probably not for aesthetics so it was probably used more as a pesticide to keep the bugs and vermin away from the treasured pieces.
Arsenic in a naturally occurring metalloid element (an element whose properties are intermediate between those of metals and solid nonmetals) that makes up approximately 0.00015% of the Earth’s crust making it the 53rd most abundant element. It occurs in many minerals quite often in combination with sulfur and metals but it can also be found as a pure element.
Although there is some evidence that arsenic is needed in trace amounts in birds and some mammals including humans, the function of it is still unknown. Arsenic is classified as toxic, dangerous for the environment, and a class 1 carcinogen. The most common avenue of poisoning comes from ingestion. Not the kind of thing that you really want to take into your body. It is bio accumulative (a substance that becomes concentrated) in many organisms, marine species in particular.
Symptoms of arsenic poisoning starts with headaches, vomiting, confusion, diarrhea, and drowsiness and then can lead to organ damage, Vitamin A deficiency, and death. Not the kind of fun I like to plan for a Friday night. There are many areas of the world where this is still a problem mainly because of contaminated water and soil. There are tests using blood, urine, hair and fingernails to diagnose exposure and there area treatments like chelation and potassium supplementation but these can have their own problems and are not 100% effective. Your best way of dealing with arsenic, is avoiding arsenic.
Historically, it has had many uses including: the preservation of wood; as a doping agent in semiconductors to help increase conductivity; as a leather preservative; weed killer, antifriction additive in ball bearings; treatment for syphilis before the discovery of penicillin; and in the case of this story, as a green pigment. It was the go-to additive for many things in Victorian times and women used to take wafers infused with arsenic to maintain that pale, never-see-the-light-of-day complexion. Oh the things, women go through to keep their beauty.
Two pigments that had been widely used since their discovery – Paris Green and Scheele’s Green – and were widely used in book production and painting so there are probably even more toxic articles in our museums and galleries. There was even a book written in the 1800s telling people about the dangers of arsenic in wallpaper with examples of them which are, ironically, poisonous. The Impressionists and post-Impressionist painters used this type of pigment to create their vivid masterpieces so again, do not go about licking the Monets in the Louvre. You might not end up feeling too well.
For now, these rare books are being kept in a separate, ventilated cabinet to eliminate the possibility of accidental poisoning. They will be digitalized in the future so that they still be studied but will not be a hazard to the people reading them. No one should have to get sick in their pursuit of knowledge.
–Janice Willson
References:
https://www.livescience.com/63025-poisonous-books-coated-in-arsenic.html
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arsenic_poisoning
