Caution! This isn’t for the faint-hearted.
In 1814, a company in Schweinfurt, Germany, created a new type of green dye that was so much brighter than normal dyes of green – almost jewel-like called emerald green. This colour took over many parts of Europe that were under several changes in society for years to come. Women, especially in Ireland and England, loved this colour as it depicted wealth and formality in all aspects of life, which also meant that party halls were usually brighter than they normally were decades ago. The point being that this colour was very popular and rich, but little did it know that its reign over Europe would soon end, not with a bang, but with a whimper. In order to make this intriguing shade of green, arsenic played a very important role in the list of ingredients needed. Arsenic was a rock, that’s it; it was just a rock, however, this rock was not something you would find in the middle of the desert, but a rock you’d have to retrieve from the core of the earth. I know, wow! People did this over a colour, not knowing that arsenic is poisonous!
If one were to dare and touch arsenic, they would develop scabs and sores. The best part is that they could witness their hair fall out, piece by piece, falling on the ground like a lonely feather on a winter night – striving for hunger. Oh! How could I forget? You also get to witness yourself vomit and spew out your guts and courage; slowly seeing the light flickering above you as your kidneys shut down and your lungs stop working whilst you hopelessly wait for death to come to you, killing you with all its might.
These facts were not known to the public, which led to people still purchasing arsenic for its bright, vivid colour. I know what you’re thinking – If so many people kept dying due to arsenic, surely there would be articles posted about them? Well, in taking part in the first few deaths due to arsenic was a lady. She was not identified, however she stated that she went to the Sunday market to buy something for her weekly shopping spree which led to her purchasing a royal pair of emerald green gloves only to go home and try the gloves to see if they fit. After she tried them on and loved them, she was surprised to discover scabs and sores developing all over her skin.
If you thought that was terrifying, listen to the story of 19-year-old Matilda Scheurer who worked with this dye to apply this colour to flowers on one fine day, which led to her vomiting in the same shade of emerald green alongside the whites of her eyes.
This poisoning took over Europe and killed people, but Europe changed after that and this was one of the most unknown mass killings in the entire rich history of Europe. This made one of the most non harmful things harmful and forever changed the course of Irish and English history.
