Valentine’s Potion

There is a link in this article to this paper: http://wilsonweb.physics.harvard.edu/arsenic/UbiquitousPoiso... And it's a fascinating history of the use of arsenic.

If you're curious about whether you're consuming any arsenic, this Consumer Reports analysis of rice may interest you: https://www.consumerreports.org/cro/magazine/2015/01/how-muc...

My father and grand-father are from Danville and I had relatives in Bloomsburg, just 9 miles away. Somewhere in my grand-father's family tree, one of my relatives created "Moyer's Oil of Gladness" in a time when snake-oil, elixirs and patent-medicines were very common. Most "worked" because they were alcohol and then became heavily promoted by doctors "treating" the wealthy during prohibition.

I should also note (given the history described in the links below), that my grand-father and father are also William and my uncle is John. My siblings and cousins each have a nice stamped bottle (first image) as a keepsake.

https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/bloomsburg-pennsylvan...

https://americanhistory.si.edu/collections/search/object/nma...

https://www.flickr.com/photos/elycefeliz/8704680638

Note that Virgil actually wrote "...omnia vincit Amor...", not "Amor vincit omnia" like the article claims. See lines 68-70 here:

http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%...

Each age has its snake oil vendors.

In the article it was arsenic.

In the last century it was uranium and radium revitalizing products.

Now we have thorium infused wearable ( https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=22368960 ). Though if you want to get rid of your rich old husband it may not be as efficient.