Victorian ‘Arsenical wallpaper’ roses oval brooch

These pretty florals are from toxic ‘arsenical’ Victorian wallpapers that were popular in the 19^th century. The discovery of vivid arsenic-copper compounds in the late 18^th century led to a vogue for these dyes in wallpapers, furnishings, clothes, toys, and even food. By the 1840s, the dangers were becoming apparent, but many refused to believe that arsenic in a wallpaper dye could sicken or kill you. Among others to warn of the dangers was Professor Robert Kedzie, of the Michigan State Board of Health. He put together a book of wallpaper samples with an explanatory introduction, in 1874, called ‘Shadows from the walls of death; facts and inferences prefacing a book of specimens of arsenical wall papers’, and distributed copies to 100 American librairies. By 1900, the message had got through and demand for arsenical colours disappeared.

The US National Library of Medicine has one of only 4 remaining copies of this book. The images in this jewellery are photographic reproductions from that copy, which the NLM digitised and made freely available - and do not contain arsenic!

 The bronze-tone brooch is made from nickel-free alloy, and the glass cabochon is 25x18mm across. Each brooch comes in a sturdy black card gift box.