In 1778, Carl Scheele, a Swedish chemist, created a bright green pigment composed of copper arsenic. He named it Scheele's Green. It became popular in the Pre-Raphaelite movement, created by a group of painters, sculptors, and poets in England in 1848.

Scheele's Green/Schloss Green was inexpensive and easy to produce. Today, green dyes generally do not contain arsenic. But most of the ruby green, Paris green and Schweinfurt Green paints are full of arsenic.

 

Many families fell ill during the Victorian era. But there was no apparent reason. The houses were clean, and nothing was found in the water sources. But the families had one thing in common: green wallpapers.

The dangers of arsenic ingestion were known, but in the 19th century, people were unaware that arsenic-laden wallpapers could be as deadly as they actually were.

Allegedly, Scheele's green wallpaper and striped patterns in Napoleon's bathroom are Scheele's Green. Even Napoleon was obsessed with this color like many other people.

When the striped patterns in the bathroom got wet or moldy, the pigment inside was metabolized, releasing toxic arsenic-filled vapors. Napoleon alleged this was because of Scheele's Green.

 

In 1850, the famous chemist Dr. Letheby, who worked at the London Hospital, claimed that the cause of death of a dying girl was arsenic poisoning. The doctor claimed that the wallpaper covering the house had arsenic-filled paints that killed the girl. He even claimed that a few hours of exposure to the paint was enough for a person to die.

Newspapers published counter-arguments claiming this theory was impossible. Thomas Orton also Dr. They joined Letheby and took a stand against skeptics.

In fact, Thomas Orton talked about some of the poisoning cases he saw:

“I have known a family of sick children for some time now. After sending the boy to their village, they recovered. When they were brought back home, they fell ill again. When the wallpaper in the house was removed, the disease went away.

Again, a person in my own neighborhood lightly brushed the green paper on the walls while cleaning the house. Within a couple of hours, she and her husband had pain in her head and eyes. Irritation occurred on his upper lip and nostrils. They couldn't sleep all night because of the feeling of suffocation.”

Despite the claims of doctors, businesses did not give up their great income sources because the color was very popular. In 1859, the first arsenic-free wallpaper was produced in England by William Woollams & Co.

After a statesman who was visiting Queen Victoria fell ill in 1879, Queen Victoria tore up all the green wallpaper from Buckingham Palace. Eventually, a law was passed outlawing the use of paint.