Asbestos: 1830

Much of the discussion about the commercial benefits of asbestos fibers to society begin their discussion in the 1870s or 1880s. However, that is somewhat too late.

For those readers who like old pictures, today you are in luck. History will take us all the way back to 1830 with Art de se préserver de l’action de la flamme, appliqué aux pompiers et à la conservation des personnes exposées au feu; avec une série d’experiences faites en Italie, à Genève et à Paris. Par M. le Chevalier Aldini. Roughly translated to English, that means the Art of Preserving from the action of flame, applied to firemen and persons exposed to fire; with a series of experiments made in Italy, Geneva, and Paris.

By the 1830s, Mr. Chevalier Aldini had very much advanced the idea that asbestos suits for firemen were a critical piece of protection. His recommended design was as follows:

Aldini’s rationale was simple: Life was more important than just protecting objects:

“The celebrated Peter Franck, in his Treatise on medical police, complains that in cases of conflagration, governments have not sufficiently borne in mind that human life ought to be the first object of their solicitude. Firemen, says he, ought to be supplied with a covering at once light and thick, enveloping the body as completely as possible, so as to enable them to resist the action of the fire.

The spirit of speculation has given rise to insurance companies against loss by fire. These have doubtless done much good, but they afford no guaranty against the loss of life. What compensation is it to the owner of a house, to be assured that his mansion will be rebuilt by the insurers, for the benefit of his heirs, after this same house shall have become his tomb.”

An example of how this would look in the real world is as follows:

The book also contains a sketch on how to save people by the Society for Preventing the Loss of Life by Fire which I find fascinating.

I very much enjoy history, and especially written history that takes us back almost 200 years; another era to be sure. Please feel free to drop me a comment or send me an email at TheAsbestosBlog@gmail.com at any time about your thoughts on history or about my weekly asbestos blogs.