Editing Cinnabar (section)

== Toxicity ==
{{See also|Mercury poisoning}}
Associated modern precautions for use and handling of cinnabar arise from the [[Mercury poisoning|toxicity of the mercury]] component, which was recognized as early as in ancient Rome.<ref name=Stewart14>{{cite book |first=Susan |last=Stewart |date=2014 |contribution='Gleaming and deadly white': Toxic cosmetics in the Roman world |page=84 |title=History of Toxicology and Environmental Health: Toxicology in Antiquity |volume=II |editor-first=Philip |editor-last=Wexler |location=New York City |publisher=Academic Press |isbn=978-0-12-801634-3 |url=https://books.google.com/books?isbn=0128016345 |access-date=2015-07-24}}</ref> Because of its [[Mercury (element)#Toxicity and safety|mercury]] content, cinnabar can be toxic to human beings. Overexposure to mercury, [[mercury poisoning]] (mercurialism), was seen as an occupational disease to the ancient Romans. Though people in ancient South America often used cinnabar for art, or processed it into refined mercury (as a means to gild silver and gold to objects), the toxic properties of mercury were well known. It was dangerous to those who mined and processed cinnabar; it caused shaking, loss of sense, and death. Data suggests that mercury was [[retort]]ed from cinnabar and the workers were exposed to the toxic mercury fumes.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/287174777 |title=Mining and Metallurgy in Ancient Peru |last=Petersen |first=G. |publisher=The Geological Society of America |year=2010 |series=Special Paper 467 |location=Boulder, Colorado|page=29}}</ref> "Mining in the Spanish cinnabar mines of [[Almadén]], {{cvt|225|km}} southwest of Madrid, was regarded as being akin to a death sentence due to the shortened life expectancy of the miners, who were slaves or convicts."<ref>{{cite book |title = Principles and Methods of Toxicology |edition = 6th |last= Hayes |first= A. W. |publisher=Informa Healthcare |location = New York City |year=2014 |isbn = 978-1-842-14537-1 |page = 10}}</ref>