{"version":"1.0","type":"rich","provider_name":"Acast","provider_url":"https://acast.com","height":250,"width":700,"html":"<iframe src=\"https://embed.acast.com/$/69304179d6bc23eda246da43/6a3527ae4a187774acf92fc2?\" frameBorder=\"0\" width=\"700\" height=\"250\"></iframe>","title":"Mauve Measles","thumbnail_width":200,"thumbnail_height":200,"thumbnail_url":"https://open-images.acast.com/shows/69304179d6bc23eda246da43/a7bce2b4-db05-4ad5-bb8c-3c633b59958b.jpg?height=200","description":"In 1856, during the Easter holidays from London's Royal College of Chemistry, 18-year-old William Henry Perkin was attempting to synthesise quinine — the antimalarial drug derived from cinchona tree bark — from coal tar. He failed. But when he cleaned out his flask with alcohol, a vivid purple solution formed. Perkin recognised something extraordinary. He sent a sample to a dyer in Perth, who confirmed it could colour silk beautifully. Perkin patented his discovery on 26 August 1856 and opened a factory the following year. The colour, named 'mauveine' or 'aniline purple', became a sensation. Queen Victoria wore it to the 1862 International Exhibition. Empress Eugénie of France adopted it as her signature shade. The craze became known as 'mauve measles.' But the real significance ran deeper: Perkin's accidental discovery launched the synthetic dye industry, which in turn created the modern pharmaceutical and plastics industries. A failed experiment to cure malaria ended up being the foundation of almost everything.","author_name":"Atween Studios"}