ABSTRACT
Introduction .............................................................................................................. 13 Mercury’s Ancient Uses ........................................................................................... 15
Mercury-Based Pigments .................................................................................... 15 Mercury-Based Medicines .................................................................................. 16
The Age of Alchemy ................................................................................................ 17 Ancient Alchemy ................................................................................................. 18 Early Modern Alchemy and the Rise of Chemistry ............................................ 18
Mining Mercury ....................................................................................................... 19 Mining Hazards ...................................................................................................20 Rening Hazards ................................................................................................. 21
An American Amalgamation Revolution .................................................................22 Mercury in Spanish America’s First Great Mining Cycle ...................................22 Mercury in Spanish America’s Late Colonial Revival ........................................23 Mercury in the California Gold Rush and Western US Bonanzas ......................23
Industry’s Call ..........................................................................................................24 Scientic Instruments ..........................................................................................25 Lighting, Switches, and Batteries........................................................................25 From Industrial Handmaiden to Angel of Death .................................................26
The Price of Power ...................................................................................................27 The Age of Activism ................................................................................................27
