The Royal Art of Poison

Filthy Palaces, Fatal Cosmetics, Deadly Medicine, and Murder Most Foul

By: Eleanor Herman

Narrated by: Susie Berneis

Length: 10 hrs and 31 mins

Publisher's summary

The story of poison is the story of power. For centuries, royal families have feared the gut-roiling, vomit-inducing agony of a little something added to their food or wine by an enemy. To avoid poison, they depended on tasters, unicorn horns, and antidotes tested on condemned prisoners. Servants licked the royal family's spoons, tried on their underpants, and tested their chamber pots.

Ironically, royals terrified of poison were unknowingly poisoning themselves daily with their cosmetics, medications, and filthy living conditions. Women wore makeup made with mercury and lead. Men rubbed turds on their bald spots. Physicians prescribed mercury enemas, arsenic skin cream, drinks of lead filings, and potions of human fat and skull, fresh from the executioner. The most gorgeous palaces were little better than filthy latrines. Gazing at gorgeous portraits of centuries past, we don't see what lies beneath the royal robes.

In The Royal Art of Poison, Eleanor Herman combines her unique access to royal archives with cutting-edge forensic discoveries to tell the true story of Europe’s glittering palaces: one of medical bafflement, poisonous cosmetics, ever-present excrement, festering natural illness, and, sometimes, murder.

©2018 Eleanor Herman (P)2018 Dreamscape Media, LLC

An interesting history lesson

I found it very interesting to learn how stupid people have always been when not using logic. I particularly like the chapter on Napoleon, and the history of contemporary poisonings. I recommend this book as a must-read for any history buff.

Recommended for history buffs

I suppose going into this I was expecting something a bit more informative in the way that poisons work. While this book does have some of that, it is primarily about famous poisonings and suspected poisonings. In this regard it was great. There was a lot of good detail and background on the historicity of poisons and I particularly enjoined the Russian chapter near the end of the book. Probably worth a credit if you are big into history, otherwise get it while it’s on sale.

Not all poisoning was malicious

This book is like listening to the latest gossip in whatever royal court you happen to be. Famous names are dropped and rumors abound. Fear raged and not only which country will invade next, but who will be poisoned!

Not all poisoning was malicious, however. Many a royal princess or mistress poisoned herself with arsenic face paint, mercury based rouge and lip paint. Eyebrows and lashes were laced with kohl made with lead.

Physicians were the next poisoners. They administered treatments containing arsenic or other heavy metals. If your illness didn't kill you, the doctors would. Just ask Henry VII of Luxembourg, the Holy Roman Emperor.

Modern poisons are more sophisticated and deadly: ricin, sarin, VX, and polonium 210. The Soviets often used these agents on political enemies.

Questions still remain: were Napoleon, Yassar Arafat, Lenin, and Stalin poisoned? Likely, we will never know for sure.

informative and entertaining

I work in a medical laboratory. I found this book entertaining and I love the modern postmortems . Treachery knows no bounds. Loved it.

Interesting and Morbidly Enthralling

How the human race didnt die out before we reached penicillin I'll never know. oof

Great tales of poison through the ages

This is a great audiobook. The stories of how the royal courts of the past lived and how they used poison to advance their status, is so interesting and a bit gross. The narration keeps you intrigued the whole time. The use of modern medicine to diagnose past deaths of royals is awesome! I couldn’t stop listening. I highly recommend this audiobook!

super fascinating

This was a fascinating look into the past and the history of poisons and toxic chemicals. It did hit a slow spot in the middle but quickly picked up. I'm surprised people are here today with all the stupid and disgusting stuff people did! Blah!

Fascinating and informative

I really enjoyed this book and am impressed with the author's thorough research on the topic.

Interesting

I listened to this in one sitting (knitting a pair of socks) as both a medical professional and a history buff, this was fascinating. It definitely showed a side to history that we don’t often hear. The nitty gritty. Not for everyone though. There are descriptions that might make some listeners queasy

Great Narration

I enjoyed this book, the chapter on Caravaggio was really interesting. most importantly for me was the narrator was easy to listen to and didn't try and use voices for different people while reading.