Metals and Life Chapter 9
Eleanor Crabb and Elaine Moore
Metals and their compounds have been used for medical applications throughout history and it is interesting here to take a brief look at some of the milestones. Some of the earliest examples date from as far back as 3000 BC, when the ancient Egyptians were using copper sulfate to sterilise the water used in their tonics. There are also reports of gold-based medicines being used in China and Arabia around 2500 BC. Gold has also been used in dentistry; excavated graves in Italy dating from 1000 to 400 BC were found to have skulls containing gold bridges. Zinc was also reportedly used to promote the healing of wounds by the Romans.