Recently, we often talk about environmental pollution. But very few of us know that the first ecological disaster broke out thousands of years ago in ancient Rome. Some scientists even suggest that the reason for the decline of the famous Roman Empire was the regular household use of such a toxic chemical element as lead by its citizens.
Environmental problems at the dawn of civilization
Australian scientist Kevin Rosman, examining Greenland ice from a drilled well, was amazed when he discovered that two thousand years ago, the virgin nature of our planet had already been subjected to large-scale chemical pollution. In the samples, which in their age corresponded approximately to the interval from 150 BC. until 50 AD, the lead content was four times the norm. The culprit could be … the ancient Romans, who at that time were carrying out large mining of lead ore in the south-west of Spain. The ratio of lead isotopes 206 and 207 in the Greenland ice samples and ore from the Rio Tinto deposit was the same. Based on this and using information from historical annals, Kevin Rosman absolutely accurately established that humanity faced environmental problems at the dawn of civilization.
Why did Ancient Rome need lead? It turns out, despite all their education, the Romans knew absolutely nothing about the toxicity of this metal and used it to make water pipes, dishes, and boilers for food. Even wines were tried to be prepared in lead-coated containers: it was believed that this improves the taste of alcoholic beverages. As an ingredient, lead was also included in cosmetic preparations, especially in whitewash, which women used as a powder.
The use of this chemical has been spectacular indeed. Suffice it to say that in ancient Rome, lead production per capita was four kilograms per year! By comparison, the United States now produces about six kilograms per American per year. Of course, such a widespread use of this metal could not but affect the health of the ancient Romans.
The tragic consequences of lead poisoning
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But are scientists right who believe that regular lead poisoning of citizens could have caused the decline of the Roman Empire? To assess the seriousness of this assumption, it is worth considering the consequences of chronic intoxication with this metal. So, first of all, in such a case, the organs of hematopoiesis, the nervous system and the kidneys are affected, and mental disorders are often noted.
Perhaps the ancient Romans were surprised by the appearance of a gray-lilac streak on the gums and a grayish tint of faces - these are also symptoms of lead poisoning. Acute intestinal disorders, loss of appetite, constipation, paralysis - all this accompanied the life of those who came into close contact with the insidious metal.
And in 1978, foreign studies showed that even minor lead poisoning leads to chronic distraction and a decrease in a person's mental abilities.
The licentiousness of the customs of ancient Rome, which has long become a byword, quite possibly had its roots in lead intoxication, fairly seasoned with wine, again "charged" with the same poison.
And what could be expected from ordinary Romans if their emperors were the very first libertines and perverts? So, according to Suetonius, Caligula had long-term ties with all his sisters, whom he then gave to his lovers. He turned his own palace into a real brothel, into which he invited the Roman aristocracy to indulge in debauchery with him.
The emperor Nero, putting on an animal skin, threw himself at the men and women tied to the pillars, and satisfied his lust with them. After that, the exhausted Nero, in turn, became the prey of the former slave of Dorifor … It is interesting that Nero even married … this very Dorifor. Prior to this, the emperor had already taken part in the wedding ceremony with the young man Spore, whom he first made a eunuch. Could the Roman Empire withstand such rulers?
The cause of the death of the Franklin expedition
How negatively lead affects human health and mental abilities can be judged by the tragedy that ended the expedition of the English polar explorer John Franklin in the 19th century. As it turned out in the late 80s of the XX century, she died due to lead poisoning of people.
On May 19, 1845, two ships left the Thames estuary - the Erebus and the Terror - under the command of 59-year-old John Franklin. The expedition set out in search of the Northwest Passage, the shortest route from the Atlantic to the Pacific. The ships were well equipped: the hulls were reinforced with sheet iron, and water heating was installed under the floor of the cabins. In addition, ships could go both under sail and with the help of a steam engine. The ships had a library of 1200 volumes; at the services of the sailors were china dishes, silverware and even barrel organs performing up to 50 melodies.
The supply of provisions, calculated for several years, included the most recent invention in cooking - canned food - eight thousand cans of meat, soup and vegetables.
On July 9, Franklin's expedition was met by two whaling ships in Baffin Bay, after which the polar explorers went north, and 130 people disappeared without a trace in the polar ice. The search for the missing expedition began only in 1848. Over the years, the public has organized 39 rescue trips! Alas, it was not possible to find any of the survivors.
In 1851, three graves of members of the Franklin expedition, John Hartnel, William Brain and John Torrington, were found on Beachy Island, and in 1854 an Eskimo reported that he saw British polar explorers trying to escape on foot after their ships were crushed by ice.
Later, a boat with two dead bodies in polar clothing and with rifles in hand was found in the ice. The little boat was filled with objects of little use for that situation - toothbrushes, soap, books, there was even … a writing table. However, in those years it was not possible to find out why people died and why, even when dying, they dragged a writing desk with them.
In 1981, Dr. Owen Beaty decided to uncover the mystery of the death of the Franklin expedition. At the sites of the alleged death of its participants, he collected fragments of human bones and examined them in the laboratory of the University of Alberta. It turned out that the lead content in bones was 10 times higher than the norm!
To prove that the polar explorers from the Franklin expedition really died from lead poisoning, in 1986 it was decided to exhume the remains on Beachy Island.
By melting the permafrost with hot water, the researchers opened the graves one by one. The bodies of the deceased were perfectly preserved, on one of the "ice" mummies a U-shaped cut was clearly visible. John Hartnel was clearly anatomized by the ship's doctor, probably trying to establish the cause of death. And William Brain weighed only 40 kilograms, he was so exhausted by an unknown disease.
Lead tends to accumulate in the body. If the members of the Franklin expedition were really poisoned with lead, then this chemical element should have been found in the corpses from Beachy Island. And Beaty's assumption was brilliantly confirmed. After analyzing the hair, bones and tissues taken from the deceased, it became clear that they had died from lead intoxication.
How did Franklin's polar explorers manage to get poisoned? As it turned out, canned food was the reason.
The seams of the canned food were sealed with lead, which got into the contents of the cans. With each meal, the insidious metal poisoned the members of the expedition more and more.
In addition to the deterioration of the general physical condition, the exacerbation of other diseases, lead caused, as already mentioned, mental disorders. That is why the distraught people dragged with them a desk, books and other things that were absolutely unnecessary for Franklin's polar explorers. Lead even from the seams of cans turned out to be destructive, then imagine what happened to the ancient Romans with their lead dishes and plumbing!
Are we following in the footsteps of the ancient Romans?
Now there are no lead plumbing, and cans have long been made from safe materials, but insidious lead still gets into our bodies. The same Kevin Rosman, who discovered lead contamination of Greenland ice, notes that the current content of this toxic metal in the upper part of the Greenland ice sheet is 25, or even 50 times higher than the level of the first environmental disaster.
Lead gets into the atmosphere and into our bodies as a result of the activities of various metallurgical industries, with the exhaust gases of cars. Yes, we do not drink from lead mugs, but the insidious toxic element gradually accumulates on the land, along the highways and streets of our cities. With air, dust, food, lead enters our body. Well, you already know what he is capable of doing with a person …
F. Perfilov. "Secrets of the 20th century"