WHEN Ludwig van Beethoven the dozen bottles of Rüdesheimer Berg wine that his publishers Schotts sent him in March 1827, his health was in such terminal decline that he could only mumble: "Pity, pity - too late." They would be the last known words the great German composer uttered.
Two days later, Beethoven died in Vienna aged just 56, with his incredible output and legacy making him one of the most revered figures in music history.
Yet scientists have revealed that the great man's adoration of Bacchus may have been the main contribution to his deafness, as well as the plethora of other illnesses that plagued him during the last three decades of his life.
New research by the Mayo Clinic in the US on strands of Beethoven's hair, appar ently cut from his head while he lay on his deathbed, have been analysed. The results show, for the first time, the highly toxic levels of lead in the body of the "Master".
"These are the highest values in hair I've ever seen," says lab director Paul Jannetto, whose research results are published in a letter included in the new edition of the Clinical Chemistry journal. "We get samples from around the world and these values are an order of magnitude higher."
One of Beethoven's locks had 258 micrograms of lead per gram of hair and another had 380 micrograms. This is in quite staggering contrast to the four micrograms of lead per gram nor mally found in human hair.
"It definitely shows Beethoven was exposed to high concentrations of lead," Dr Jannetto concluded.
On top of this, the new analysis found that Ludwig had four times the normal amount of mercury and 13 times the levels of arsenic in his hair compared with what would be considered normal for his time.
This story is from the June 10, 2024 edition of Daily Express.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the June 10, 2024 edition of Daily Express.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
DROSS TO BOSS AS LIONS ESCAPE
Southgate had looked lost on touchline until amazing twist
Year of hurt never stopped me dreaming
RELAXED RADUCANU READY TO BE PART OF GLORIOUS SUMMER
It's a Shangri-La moment for our leaders of the pack
GARETH SOUTHGATE and England love a leadership group but for more than an hour and a half of an utterly dreadful performance it went missing.
DUEL'S GOLD
Verstappen and Norris gift laughing Russell a rare win
IT'S OUR MOMENT OF TRUTH
KEVIN SINFIELD has warned England their tour starts now as Steve Borthwick's side prepare to face New Zealand on Saturday in Dunedin.
LOS FIRMLY IN PROFIT
Angeles wins Irish Derby
Tories and Labour working to get small business votes
FOUR in five bosses of small and medium-size businesses are still holding out to be wooed Thursday's General Election.
'Jane saved my life...it's as simple as that'
Dog charity worker nominated for her PTSD crusade
Children killed by missiles
THREE children were among seven civilians killed by a Russian missile attack on a town in southern Ukraine.
Pub's not the best place if you have a hangarover
IT may not be the best choice for a quiet pint - this pub garden is just 50ft from an airport runway.