During his now-infamous journey to the Orient Marco Polo is said to have been amazed when, following meals with wealthy Persians, the tablecloths were cleaned by exposing them to fire the cloths surviving the ordeal without a mark. The fibres from which the cloths were woven came to the Persians from the Hindu Kush, and many at that time belived it to be the fur of an animal they called Samandar – purported to live within fire and die when exposed to water.
What the Persians were actually importing was Asbestos, one of six fibrous minerals known to geologists as chrysotile, amosite, crocidolite, tremolite, anthopyllite, and actinolite.. The natural shape of the mineral as it grows is as fine fibres that are strong enough to weave into material.
Its widespead use as insulation and a fire retardant commenced with the Industrial Revolution since which time it has been used in the manufacture of concrete, bricks, pipes, gaskets, flooring, roofing, ships, aircraft, and a wealth of other products. In the 1950s it was even used by one cigarette manufacturer to produce filters!
We now know that Asbestos can be extremely harmful when the fibres become lodged in the lungs and the substance is now restricted in its use.
