Did the first emperor of China die of mercury poisoning?
Upvote:1
I've only read the English Wikipedia where it reads:
The cause of Qin Shi Huang's death is still largely unknown, reportedly, he died from Chinese alchemical elixir poisoning due to ingesting mercury pills, made by his alchemists and court physicians, believing it to be an elixir of immortality.
But from the view of an ancient chinese chroniker there was no mercury poisoning because it was believed to be a remedy for diseases or, in the case of the emporer, a cure for death itself.
Usually elemantary mercury was produced by heating cinnabar. This was mixed with fats or other carrier substances in order to create 'medicine'. Whilst elementary mercury has a low accute toxicity, chronic consumption causes brain damages which lead to symptoms like paranoia, from which Qin Shi Huang suffered.
So in general the mercury certainly weakened him much but the ultimate cause of his death may never be known, although it is likely that it is somehow connected with the mercury he received from his doctors.
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