Just in case you needed another reason to wash your hands…
The vibrant emerald green cloth on these bindings gets its shocking color from copper acetoarsenite, more commonly known as arsenic. The inorganic pigment was also famously used in Victorian era wallpaper.
The bindings seen here, along with others in our collection, were tested by Melissa Tedone, Conservator at Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library, in December 2019 as part of the Poison Book Project. The sample is comprised largely of green cloth case bindings, but some green paper (upper left) also tested positive. They have since been properly rehoused, along with updated safe handling instructions. Read more about the Poison Book Project here.
Wishing you all a wonderful and nontoxic #greenpublishersbindingThursday!
