Asbestos: A Historical Overview

The term “asbestos” is derived from a Greek term, which signifies “unquenchable” or “indestructible.” The term is often used to refer to a group of mineral fibers that share properties of heat and chemical resistance, flexibility and high tensile strength. Because of its usefulness, asbestos has been referred to as the “magic mineral.” Asbestos has been used in over 3,000 different household or commercial products.

Even though asbestos was used in so many varied products during the Industrial Revolution (and continues to be used in products today), modern industry was not the first to use this hazardous mineral. Asbestos use can be traced back to at least 2500 B.C., when it was incorporated into Finnish pottery. The earliest accounts of asbestos use was in the wick of a golden lamp crafted for the goddess Athena in the fourth to fifth centuries B.C. During this period, asbestos cloth was also used to retain the ashes of the dead during cremation. Pliny has described using asbestos cloth as a funeral dress for kings. Emperor Charlemagne is said to have displayed a tablecloth made from asbestos that was used during great feasts. After the feast, the cloth along with its contents would be thrown into a fire, and the cloth would then be removed without damage to amaze the guests! In the year 1250, Marco Polo referred to an asbestos cloth in the northern provinces of the Great Khan. It had the property of being unconsumed and refined by fire.

Around 1720, industrial uses of asbestos began on a limited scale shortly after the discovery of relatively large deposits of asbestos in the Ural Mountains in western Russia. The discovery of these deposits led to the establishment of factories making asbestos products. The products included handbags, gloves, socks, and textiles. In the following years, discoveries of different types of asbestos were made on several continents, setting the stage for many uses of asbestos.

Chrysotile asbestos was discovered in Quebec, Canada in 1860. The mining of chrysotile deposits started in 1878, with 50 tons being produced during this mine’s first year of operation. Crocidilite asbestos was discovered in South Africa in the year 1815. The mining of significant amounts of South African fibers began about 1910. Amosite asbestos was discovered in central Transvaal region in 1907, and the mining operations began around 1916. The beginning of mining operations, along with the inception of the Industrial Revolution, set the stage for the widespread use of asbestos. This widespread use has caused a public health crisis. (The many types of asbestos are discussed in detail below).

Source: PATHOLOGY OF ASBESTOS-RELATED DISEASES (Victor L. Roggli et al. eds., 2004)