Anne here. There I was, blithely writing a scene of my hero standing in his newly refurbished bedroom, and briefly describing what it looked like to set the scene. I'd already fallen down a general wallpaper rabbit hole — there are so many gorgeous wallpapers from that period. (Here's a National Trust site that has some beauties.)
But my hero is rather a plain man, and the gorgeous Chinese wallpapers I fancied were not the kind of thing he'd want in his bedchamber — perhaps in more public rooms in the house, but not where he slept.
So I gave him a nicely masculine room, with a green bamboo patterned wallpaper, and I had him pulling back his curtains — plain dark green with a kind of watermark pattern (which is male-speak for damask) — and looking down into the garden below. . . but as I continued writing, getting to the actual meat of the scene, a little voice started nagging at my brain.
Something about the color green and arsenic. So naturally I hit google . . . and fell down another research rabbit hole.
You see in the 18th and 19th century all kinds of experiments with chemicals and dyes were going on, and in 1771 a Swedish chemist called Carl Sheele used copper arsenite (which contains arsenic) to create a bright green dye. In 1814, Wilhelm Sattler, a German industrialist, improved on it by using arsenic and verdigris for a better green. The pigment could also be mixed to create bright yellows and rich blues.
Now, people back then knew that arsenic was poisonous, but it was freely available — and it popped up everywhere. It was mainly used for killing rats and mice (not to mention unwanted spouses), but it was also used in cosmetics — small doses of arsenic apparently improved the complexion, making it paler and more luminous (apparently the consumptive look was all the rage for ladies).
Sometimes meat was actually dipped in an arsenic wash to repel flies. (!!) And manufacturers used these wonderful glowing "new" bright colors in dyes of various kinds, dying dress fabrics and hats and feathers and basically anything that could be dyed bright emerald green (and other colors made from these arsenic-based dyes) was.
Children were even given toys painted with these brightly colorful toxic paints, because of course no child ever chewed on a toy. And babies were wheeled around in baby carriages painted with it. And wallpapers were gaily manufactured with these brilliant new arsenic-containing paints and whole houses papered with them. They were hugely fashionable and boomed in popularity.
People apparently didn't question it. In Europe questions had been raised about the dangers of arsenic in paints and dyes, and the toxic substances banned, but while British manufacturers kept producing them, people kept on trustfully buying their products.
“A great deal of slow poisoning is going on in Great Britain,” wrote Birmingham doctor William Hinds in 1857. He was among a growing movement of people concerned about a toxic killer in their daily lives: namely, their wallpaper. (Pic. below right included not because it's green and poisonous but because it's beautiful and why won't my stubborn hero have it?)
Many people believed that the wallpaper was only dangerous if licked —(why would anyone lick wallpaper???), but that wasn't true. Arsenic could leak into the air, especially in damp weather, which the UK had in abundance. And it wasn't only the wallpaper that was poisoning people — women were poisoned by their beautiful emerald green dresses and other green garments. (I wonder now about the Heyer heroine whose favorite color was "pomona green.")
Here's an example of the effects of such wallpaper. In 1862 a Dr. Thomas Orton was called to a home in London. The Turner family had had three children die over the course of six weeks, thought to be from diphtheria although no other people in the building has fallen ill. The Turner's last child was extremely ill.
Orton examined the family’s home for cleanliness and other possible sources of disease. He couldn’t find anything wrong, but the family had recently installed new wallpaper. When the last child died, an autopsy confirmed arsenic poisoning. The case went to court but was dismissed, and child’s death was ruled natural. Dr Orton, convinced it was the wallpaper, was ignored.
Even William Morris, whose wallpaper designs were (and still are) famous, claimed to be skeptical that products containing arsenic could be poisonous, saying that doctors who saw a connection between the products and patients’ ill health were victims of public hysteria.
“My belief about it all is that doctors find their patients ailing, don’t know what’s the matter with them, and in despair put it down to the wall papers when they probably ought to put it down to the water closet, which I believe to be the source of all illness,” he wrote to a friend. Though having inherited his fortune from an arsenic mine, he was perhaps a wee bit biased.
Fascinating isn't it, the disconnect between fashion and profit and public health? And how people can cling to what they want to believe, regardless of the evidence.
And now you ask, what did I do about my hero's bedroom? I haven't decided. I'll probably make it blue. Or red. Brown feels a bit too plain. Yes, I know, I could have saved myself a lot of time by changing that one word "green" in the first place, but one of the things about being a writer of historicals is, we can't resist these little research rabbit holes.
What about you? What colors would you decorate my masculine Regency-era hero's bedroom in? And can you name the Heyer heroine whose favorite color was "pomona green"?
(PS, while I have you, my book, MARRY IN HASTE, the first in the "marriage of convenience" series is on special for a short time at $1.99. Mainly in the USA but a reduction also in other places so check your local e-book seller.)
I love the idea of deadly furnishings. Perhaps a wife could get rid of an unpleasant husband by redecorating his library in green—green wallpaper, green draperies, green upholstery on his favorite chair.
I don't know who the Heyer heroine was, but I seem to remember a book in which a woman unintentionally killed someone by wiping his fevered brow with a nice soft cloth of green velvet.
As for your hero, I don't think brown needs to be plain. How about brown and gold? Gold brocade draperies with pale yellow silk panels on the walls and walnut furniture.
Posted by: Lil | Wednesday, April 21, 2021 at 05:29 AM
What an interesting post. So glad you went down that rabbit hole.
I can understand why people were reluctant to believe that things they commonly use could be dangerous. That is still a problem today. Lead, asbestos, any number of chemicals, global warming, etc., still a problem. Thanks Anne.
Posted by: Mary T | Wednesday, April 21, 2021 at 05:35 AM
Well, that was very interesting. And I like Lil's murder plot.
As for the Heyer heroine, I think it is the Grand Sophy who likes Pomona green a lot, but I might be wrong.
As for decorating your hero's bedroom, a very dark (almost midnight) blue with silver decorations would be nice I think. Red to me sound more like a boudoir and I do not personally like brown very much. A dark muted yellow, more like gold could be good as well.
Posted by: Katja | Wednesday, April 21, 2021 at 05:58 AM
I read an excellent novel recently set in 19th century Australia and the 'murderer' was green paint. Sorry I can't remember who the Heyer heroine was but it doesn't sound very wise
Posted by: Alice Mathewson | Wednesday, April 21, 2021 at 06:05 AM
Thanks for a fascinating post, Anne! I just read a book that featured a poisonous green dress though it was a detail not a plot element.
I like Lil's brown and gold decor choices; I also like Katja's midnight blue and silver. I could imagine a cranberry red and brown might make a nice manly combo in a regency era bedchamber.
Posted by: Kareni | Wednesday, April 21, 2021 at 09:48 AM
Katja is quite correct :)
I thought it was Sophy too, but I couldn't find it at first until I searched my Kindle for pomona hyphen green, and this popped up: "Sophy had chosen a dress of her favourite pomona-green crape, which she wore over a slip of white satin. It had tiny puff-sleeves of lace and seed-pearls, and was lavishly trimmed with lace. Particularly fine diamond drops hung from her ears; her pearl necklace was clasped round her throat; and an opera-comb was set behind the elaborate knot of hair on the crown of her head. Jane Storridge had brushed and pomaded her side-curls until they glowed richly chestnut in the candlelight. Green-striped satin slippers, long gloves, and a fan of frosted crape on ivory sticks completed her toilet."
All that green! It's a wonder she survived the evening :)
There's also the green furniture in Sancia's rooms. No wonder she was so languid!
In Friday's Child Hero fancied a pomona green outfit, but Mr. Ringwood ruled it out :)
Dorothy Sayers used the gradual administration of arsenic in Strong Poison, in which Lord Peter (my first Brit crush) saved his lady by proving that she didn't kill her former lover with it; gradual exposure was a factor in the alibi.
Posted by: Janice | Wednesday, April 21, 2021 at 03:36 PM
I think a light slate blue would be very masculine for the hero's bedroom walls, with darker blue drapes, and cherry wood furniture. Also a nice oriental rug with shades of blue, ivory, and beige.
Posted by: Karin | Wednesday, April 21, 2021 at 07:15 PM
Ah, but Lil, I could never do that, no matter how evil the husband, because the person who would spend most time in the library would be ME! LOL
Oh dear, wiping the fevered brow with green velvet? A very strange thing to do, arsenic in the dye or not. Velvet would never be my choice of brow-wiping fabric.
I like your suggestions for my hero's decor. Thanks.
Posted by: Anne Gracie | Wednesday, April 21, 2021 at 10:35 PM
Yes, that's very true, Mary. And even in the current pandemic there are still people who don't believe it exists.
Posted by: Anne Gracie | Wednesday, April 21, 2021 at 10:37 PM
I think you're right about The Grand Sophy, Katja — I didn't have time to check, but I see Janice ferreted out the scene. I do hope Pomona green wasn't the arsenic-based dye — it was quite hard to tell what might be poisonous and what might be safe from the research that I did.
There were some gorgeous gold background Chinese wallpapers. And the midnight blue and silver sounds lovely.
Thanks.
Posted by: Anne Gracie | Wednesday, April 21, 2021 at 10:40 PM
I hadn't heard of that book, Alice. Feel free to share the title and author. We love to hear of good book recommendations.
As for being wise or not, that was the point — most people had no idea that the color was toxic. This I take as a lesson that governments should step in on this kind of issue, and not leave it up to manufacturers who value profit before ethical behavior.
Posted by: Anne Gracie | Wednesday, April 21, 2021 at 10:42 PM
Janice I prefer to believe that not all green dyes contained arsenic, and Sophy's was quite safe! And if it was made with an arsenic dye, I devoutly hope the white satin slip protected her. Sophy is one of my favorite Heyeroines.
I never got into the Lord Peter Wimsey books when I was a teen, through a friend of mine loved them. I must try them again.
Posted by: Anne Gracie | Wednesday, April 21, 2021 at 10:45 PM
Thanks Karin — I am tending toward blue. My main worry was that it would be too dark — London not generally being known for masses of bright sunny weather. On the other hand, who needs light in a bedroom? But the combo of shades of blue, ivory, and beige sounds very appealing.
Posted by: Anne Gracie | Wednesday, April 21, 2021 at 10:47 PM
Thank goodness for Janice! I was mentally slapping my brain, which was insisting we had to go reread aaaalll of Heyer's books to discover the Pomona dress. Slapping it, too, on the other side now, for not going straight to Google as she did.
That was some rabbit hole, Anne. So many side tunnels, too. Fun read, thanks. I'm for a light background with patterned maroon strips, as maroon was my understated husband's favorite color. Looking forward to finding out what your hero chooses.
Posted by: Mary M. | Thursday, April 22, 2021 at 12:29 AM
Anne-Fabulous post. I knew about arsenic in cosmetics, but had no idea that it was used in paints and fabric dyes. And speaking of children's toys being painted with toxic colors - weren't thousand of those lead soldiers that legions of young boys played with also toxic? Not just the paint but the lead itself? As for the wallpaper in your hero's bedroom - I'd suggest burgundy and silvery grey. Just a thought...
Posted by: Binnie Syril Braunstein | Thursday, April 22, 2021 at 12:38 AM
I would choose a William Morris design. I find your peacock and dragon example a little too intricate and would prefer 'Strawberry Thief'. There are traces of green from the plant leaves but I'm sure that you could ensure that arsenic was not involved ... especially if the hero has an interest in the science. I could happily doze off surrounded by birds plucking delicious fruits ... and who knows what dreams would be inspired!
Posted by: Quantum | Thursday, April 22, 2021 at 01:07 AM
Great article. I researched this lately because I had pulled out a lovely Eastlake chair from my storage for my new apartment. It’s covered in a beautiful forest green. I fortunately saw a article on the poor women who were creating hats using the dyed green foliage and flowers who died young and in pain. The chair is back in storage wrapped in plastic until I can have it redone safely by a expert who can handle this. Thank you for sharing your information. These things are still out there.
Posted by: Alice | Thursday, April 22, 2021 at 02:43 AM
What a fun post, Anne! I had no idea wallpaper could be so dangerous. I absolutely adore Chinoiserie wallpaper and have some in one of our bedrooms (not green LOL) - couldn't resist! It was the very devil to hang though, trying to match all the little birds and twigs ... For your hero, I'd go with a blue stripe perhaps and matching hangings with gold trim?
Regarding Pomona green, it always made me think of Granny Smith apples although I'm not sure that's the right colour :-)
Posted by: Christina Courtenay | Thursday, April 22, 2021 at 03:40 AM
I love the Chinoiserie papers too Christina. As for Pomona green, I'm pretty sure it is associated with apples, and I always thought of Granny Smiths, too.
Thanks for that suggestion for my hero's decor.
Posted by: Anne Gracie | Thursday, April 22, 2021 at 03:53 AM
More on pomona green on this site: https://www.lomography.com/magazine/338556-color-chronicles-pomona-of-the-regency-era#:~:text=Pomona%20Green%20is%20a%20shade,associated%20with%20the%20green%20apple.
Posted by: Katja | Thursday, April 22, 2021 at 04:17 AM
Very interesting article! But did people lern? Every few years dangerous materials are discovered, especially dangerous for children. In modern times colors and materials are often found poisonous too, for example in cheap children's toys.
I looked the pomona green up. It is an apple green und does not contain arsenic. So our beloved Sophie should be safe!
Posted by: Annelie | Thursday, April 22, 2021 at 10:20 AM
I remember reading about the arsenic in wallpaper somewhere. It is not the most glowing evidence of business men's honor and integrity. Golly Gee, isn't it wonderful that that could never happen now. HO HO HO!
I think a lovely masculine bedroom would be a strong navy blue with bronze accents. And the drapes could be navy with a gold key design on the top and near the hem.
I loved the examples of wallpaper. Graceful, colorful and delicate.
Thank you for the post. You have given me a few rabbit holes.
I hope everyone is taking care and staying well.
Posted by: Annette N | Thursday, April 22, 2021 at 11:30 AM
Thanks Kareni. The idea of a poisonous dress is horrifying, isn't it? Thanks for the decor suggestions.
Posted by: Anne Gracie | Thursday, April 22, 2021 at 12:05 PM
Oh dear Mary, what a hardship, having to real aaaaalll of Heyer's books. But yes, Janice saved us from that fate.
As for research rabbit holes, they're a weakness of mine. I might need one small detail and I think hmmm, and click on google and I'm off, down a rabbit hole for who knows how long. For instance for my recent Christmas novella I had the hero whittle a chess set out of whatever was locally available (he was stuck in a cottage). It was just a very minor detail in the story, but oh the fun of that rabbit hole. There are some amazing home-made unconventional and lovely chess sets. I blogged about it on my own blog. It's fun, but it's not efficient.
Posted by: Anne Gracie | Thursday, April 22, 2021 at 12:11 PM
Yes, Binnie, those soldiers were made of lead, and probably painted with some kind of toxic paint as well. Dreadful, isn't it, to think about?
Thanks for your decor suggestion.
Posted by: Anne Gracie | Thursday, April 22, 2021 at 12:14 PM
Thanks, Quantum. There are some gorgeous William Morris designs, and the Strawberry Thief design is lovely, I agree. And not all greens on wallpaper or elsewhere were arsenic based, so I think we could find some good and safe ones. Though William Morris paper was only available much later than my story setting, alas.
Posted by: Anne Gracie | Thursday, April 22, 2021 at 12:19 PM
Oh dear Alice — I hope your lovely chair doesn't have arsenic in the dye. Well done you to be cautious. Some of the articles I read when I was down this rabbit hole said that testing had been done on so many things and arsenic had been found, even now. Best of luck in getting it dealt with.
And yes, there was plenty written about the rich people who decorated with these toxic wallpapers and the ladies who wore the brilliant emerald fabrics, but I was wondering too about the poor workers who created these materials, whose inevitable sufferings were seemingly ignored.
Posted by: Anne Gracie | Thursday, April 22, 2021 at 12:21 PM
Thanks Katja — most interesting
Posted by: Anne Gracie | Thursday, April 22, 2021 at 12:23 PM
Oh phew! Annelie, I'd hoped the softer apple green that Sophy loved so much wouldn't be the arsenic-based brilliant emerald. I'm glad she's safe — thank you.
And no, people never seem to learn, and manufacturers continue to put their profits before people's health and welfare. And somehow it feels so much worse to be so ruthless and money-grubbing with children's toys. Which is why we need governments and health authorities to be vigilant.
Posted by: Anne Gracie | Thursday, April 22, 2021 at 12:27 PM
Thanks, Annette, no, it was a shocking indictment of business men's honor and integrity. Or willful blindness. That bit about William Morris hotly denying there might be anything wrong with the wallpaper — was that a genuine belief, or a determination to believe what was most comfortable for him? Not a question we'll ever be able to answer.
Thanks for your decor suggestion. Blue and bronze would look lovely, I agree. And the rabbit-holes for wall paper are many and glorious, so beware.
Posted by: Anne Gracie | Thursday, April 22, 2021 at 12:31 PM
I was fascinated by this post.
In one of Patricia Rice's "Magic" series, a hero who sas a researcy chemist almost killed himself by continuously scorching the green wallpaper in his labratory.
Posted by: Sue McCormisk | Thursday, April 22, 2021 at 12:45 PM
I went to my Kindle app - the PC version is very useful for searching text in my Kindle books :)
But Google would have worked too :)
Posted by: Janice | Thursday, April 22, 2021 at 02:31 PM
I can't imagine regency nurses and their assistants letting a baby play with lead soldiers. Babies will put anything in their mouths, and that hasn't changed in forever :) I would imagine the toy soldiers were locked away with other nursery toys that weren't yet age appropriate.
Posted by: Janice | Thursday, April 22, 2021 at 02:36 PM
Here's another page on regency colors. Yvonne says pomona green, being named after the goddess Pomona, was a sort of apple green, but to me apple green is a light, bright sort of green. I think it was more like a bluish emerald green (or maybe it only looked bluer when it faded).
http://hibiscus-sinensis.com/regency/colors.htm
Would Georgette have known about the arsenic in green dyes when she wrote The Grand Sophy?
Posted by: Janice | Thursday, April 22, 2021 at 02:39 PM
Not quite the same, but this Christmas my husband took a notion to make garlands for over the fireplace, which I would do some years with the traditional Holly and Ivy. He made the longest garland ever, across the entire room, so to bulk it up added in a few other evergreens, including quite a bit of laurel. My 94 year old, just double-vaccinated, uncle was staying with us, and sat mostly in that room, all cosy with his newspaper and a roaring fire.
He knows all sorts of interesting tidbits, but it was Christmas Eve before he remarked, 'Of course, the Victorians used laurel to make death jars.'
So, cut laurel releases cyanide... Who knew? Apart from my uncle.
We had a very under-decorated Christmas.
If you decide to read Wimsey (I had such a crush on him when I first happened across the books as a 19 year old) I would start with Strong Poison, where he first meets Harriet Vane.
Posted by: Marianne McA | Thursday, April 22, 2021 at 03:01 PM
Depends very much on the kind of laurel apparently. What is commmonly known as English Laurel is not poisonous and does not contain cyanide. Real laurel - which is the stuff used in cooking - obviously is also not poisonous.
But the Prunus Caroliniana: Also known as the Poisonous Cherry Laurel does indeed contain cyanide.
So it depends on what you used for your decorations.
(Source of information: https://garden.lovetoknow.com/trees/laurel-tree). Still rather under decorated and safe than sorry.
Posted by: Katja | Friday, April 23, 2021 at 01:01 AM
Ooops. Just as well I don't write historical novels ... I would be rounding up to the nearest century!
Curiously googling 'William Morris Regency Wall Paper' does not draw a blank! Though 'Morris And Co' doesn't count ... lots of traps for the unwary on the internet!
I will look forward to finding out which décor you decide on. 😊
Posted by: Quantum | Friday, April 23, 2021 at 02:32 AM
The Heyer heroine was The Grand Sophie, whose robust good health indicates that the green she favored as not poisonous. We can hope, anyway...
Posted by: Tracy E. Blackstone | Saturday, April 24, 2021 at 02:15 PM
I read a murder mystery [can not recall the title or the author] where the murder gifted the victim with and antique green dress and then at a party spilled a drink on the victim. The explanation of the murder was very interesting and quite convoluted.
Posted by: Anne | Tuesday, May 04, 2021 at 08:38 AM