Gold and Silver Pomander, 16th Century

4500 years ago, Egyptian women were known to wear large, fragrant cones of sculpted tallow and myrrh on their heads. As the heat of the day melted the animal fat, it would trickle down over the face and body. A few millenniums later, your average Roman might be found lazing in an unguentarium, smeared in hogs’ lard laced with the musky glands of a slaughtered civet. Sadly, this sort of recreation has given way to a more practical and portable means of perfumery.

Mia Farrow in Rosemary's Baby, 1968

Buried deep beneath the pendant flacons and perfume glaces of the osphretic collector lies a whole history of scent cases and aromatic jewelry designed specifically for solid perfumes, the crown jewel of which is the “pomander”. Consisting of an elaborate filigreed gold or silver ball on a chain, pomanders were often filled with solid perfume made from ambergris - which was a coveted perfume staple, despite being derived from whale vomit.  Some pomanders were sectioned like apple slices, with a different perfume in each section.

Ambergris, Sperm Whale Faeces, Image by Nathan Aleksander Szpakowicz

Throughout history, precious, solid-state aromatics have been placed in small “unguent boxes” carried by men and women and sniffed to ward off unwholesome smells. These small charms have taken any number of shapes and forms, including the headpiece of a doctor’s walking stick filled with solid perfume for use when visiting rancid plague victims and mortuaries.

The process of isolating aromatics quite naturally lends itself to a thicker, more salve-like consistency. Solvent extraction of fresh flowers yields a waxy semi-solid with a soft aroma known as a “concrete”. It is only the application of hexane and ethanol that produces a liquid absolute. The same is true of tree resins like frankincense and myrrh, as well as sappy balsams with their sweet, cinnamon-vanilla aroma.

Colone, Museum of Applied Arts, Smelling Capsule, Silver, Germany, 16th Century

Solid perfumes and ornamental jewelry are a very natural combination. Occasionally, advancements can actually come in the form of a simple revival and this is very much the case with the current swell of solids from perfumers and fashion houses. They are merely imitating the immutable laws of nature. Indeed, even Neanderthals from 100,000 years ago were known to adorn themselves with their own type of aromatic jewelry. They were called “flowers”.

The Inscribtion Reads: ‘Rosen’, ‘Ruten’, ‘Moscat’, ‘Canel’ and ‘Rosmarin’, Courtesy of Science Museum

FURTHER READING

Chandler Burr. “Everyone’s a Critic”, The New York Times. April 17, 2008.

Luca Turin and Tania Sanchez. Perfumes: The Guide. Viking, 2008.

Smoking & Barbecuing Fish Filets, 1893, Courtesy of Shorpy (Click on Image for Details)

Of course, the olfactory triggering of remembrances of things past is so ingrained in our collective consciousness, so parsed over and discussed in literature, that even the unemotional and detached ivory tower-dwelling denizens of science are in on the matter, with a number of papers and experiments on the subject. They hypothesize that odor induced memories enjoy a “privileged brain representation”

Butler's Smokehouse Beef Jerky

Looking like a pea pod and located within the inner depths of the brain, the hippocampus appears to be the scientific explanation for what the Madeleine munching Proust knew to be true 100 years earlier. While our senses of touch, hearing and sight make their way to our memory after passing through the thalamus, it is the hippocampus, which manufactures memory and influences spatial navigation, that harbors our olfactory responses to taste and smell.

From "The Old North Trail" by Walter McClintock, 1910

And while this certainly could prove a point of debate, there is something especially evocative about smell – and particularly about the smell of smoke. From the campfires of the old West and countless teen summer camps, to America’s carnivorous love of BBQ and all manners of meat, smoke is uniquely part of American memory, and a uniquely American flavor.

Smoked Kielbasa

Now is the part of the article where a deep history would be launched, explicitly detailing the origins of smoking foods, for preservation and cooking and tracing its importing to this country built on imports. But whether the first caveman ate smoked Tyrannosaurus gristle or if it was the immigrant Europeans love of smoked fish, or the Native Americans’ tradition of smoking, its entrée into America is not a debate not to be had today.

Hickory Smoked Pork Shoulder Ham

Instead, what is it about smoke that is so alluring? Is it the atavistic infusion of the earth and wood into the foods we eat? Or is it our continued love affair with sugar and salt re-written?

Naturally, wood is the main ingredient in the smoking process, and as would be expected, different types of wood, often in the form of chips or sawdust, impart different flavors. Commonly used woods in America are Wild Cherry, Sugar Maple, Red Oak, White Oak, Ash, Northern Hickory, and Eastern Alder (Beech). These hardwoods are made of three main components, cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin. Those two celluloses are essentially sugars, and when burned caramelize, producing the sweetness and the color. The far more complex lignin, with its vast array of flavor-lending compounds, creates the varied other nuances: whether that be spice, smoke or vanilla essences depending on the individual wood.

Smoked Mackerel, Courtesy John Ross Jr.

Historically, smoking was combined with curing or drying to preserve meat, as the smoking process only adheres to the outer surfaces of the food and doesn’t penetrate the core. In more recent times, the issue of smoking has been one of flavor.

Noting this development of flavor over function, in 1895, a pharmacist named Ernest Wright revolutionized the world of smoking with his invention of liquid smoke. Using a proprietary distillation process similar to that of whiskey, he was able to manufacture, (at first) hand label and sell bottles of condensed liquid smoke. When he moved Kansas City to launch his product, he gave new meaning to the term “grassroots organizing” and started giving bottles to farmers who came to his drugstore. They, and their friends, and friends’ friends kept coming back for more, and the Wright company still makes liquid smoke today.

Traditional Smoking Pit

Liquid smoke remains a feature in kitchens and imparts its subtle flavors in the manufacture of meat, fish, cheeses, tea, salt, pepper and other spices. Not to mention the memories of us all.

FURTHER READING:

Marcel Proust. Swann’s Way: In Search of Lost Time, Penguin Books, 2004. (An excellent translation by Lydia Davis of the Proust classic)

Olivetti Valentine, 1969

Probablemente. Young Adriano’s visit to the Remington Typewriter Co. may have convinced him that productivity was a function of an organizational system and that industry must play a part in creating a more pleasing environment for the people it impacted, from factory worker to end user. Little is known about his visit there, but Adriano came back with a new vision to integrate labor and life outside of the workplace into one experience. It was a simple philosophical premise that had far-reaching consequences, one that the empathetic young man would soon apply to the product development and to the community of thinkers who would help forge the company’s design aesthetic.

Olivetti Advertising, 1973

After taking the reigns of Olivetti, Adriano merged the Italian modernist principles that guided his manufacturing philosophy with humanistic concerns for the modern worker worldwide. Olivetti’s primary goal of harmonizing labor with life led him to found a “Community Movement” and most certainly influenced the design of products used by office workers as well. These products strive to communicate with the public through bold design aesthetics and would transform the seriously technical into the tactile and sensual.

Olivetti Lettera 22, 1950

Olivetti encouraged independent thinking in its designers and hoped it would trickle down to the public as well. Marcello Nizzoli’s creation of the Lettera 22 typewriter (1950) was a compact and portable pup in a world full of elephants, introducing the idea that one wasn’t tethered to the desk all day. It eventually won the Compasso d’Oro prize in 1954 and was chosen by the Illinois Institute of Technology as the best design of the last 100 years.

Olivetti Valentine

It was Ettore Sottsass, however, that ultimately linked Olivetti and the typewriter in the minds of cult followers. The Valentine (1969), which attracted a new design-savvy generation of on-the-go typists, pushed the notion that productivity could be a happy (and even fun) affair. In fact, Sottsass considered the Valentine an “anti-machine machine.” Visionaries such as these, given adequate space to explore, transformed an otherwise mundane office with beautiful tools that invited the worker to be stimulated with color and form.

Olivetti Lettera 36, 1972

Like his American counterpart George Nelson, Olivetti’s goal of breathing life into the office was echoed in advertising campaigns ripe with bold concepts and color which were successful in a constantly evolving marketplace. High concept marked the postwar years, pushing the idea that work could be play, and that it should always be creative. Like Nelson and Herman Miller advertising, Olivetti campaigns portrayed the workplace as a fluid environment, much more inviting to the modern worker than the prewar office, heavy and oppressive.

Olivetti Lettera 22, 1950

Olivetti Lettera 22 Instruction Manual, Courtesy of Puppies and Flowers

Gustave Young Engraved Navy Percussion Revolver with Mother of Pearl Handle, 1851

The luminescent inner lining of seashells, mother of pearl looks as delicate as an ebbing spot of sunlight on the surface of the ocean. But fragile it is not. Mother of pearl is strong without being brittle and according to physics professor Pupa Gilbert, “You can go over it with a truck and not break it”. Nacre, the substance secreted by mollusks to create both pearls and mother of pearl, is mostly humble calcium carbonate—the stuff of eggshells and antacid tablets. Mother of pearl’s incredible resilience comes from thin layers of an organic lubricating substance, a molecular mortar to the bricks of calcium that redistributes force and makes nacre much, much stronger than the sum of its parts. As a natural material, mother of pearl has an eternal quality that modern science strives towards, and consumer plastics cannot even begin to replicate.

Photo by Tom Meijer

Mother of pearl, imported to Victorian England from the Pacific and Indian oceans in great mahogany crates, would be unpacked, inspected for quality, and auctioned to the over two thousand factories and artisans who would polish, cut and bevel the shells into the fineries that distinguished the Victorian gentleman or woman.  Mother of pearl, cut as peonies were inlayed into tea tables, formed into Gentlemen’s Knives, or carved into elaborate filigree for brooches, as well as the aforementioned posy holders—miniature vases fitted with fragrant bouquets that ladies of Victoria’s era carried as practical yet decorative charms to ward off the smells of a time before widespread bathing.

THE WILD, PEARLY WEST

During this same period, mother of pearl was beloved by the gentlemen outlaws of the wild American frontier. Wyatt Earp, the legendary lawman of the West, would likely have maintained that glorious mustache with a straight razor set into a mother of pearl handle.  And when he reached into his holster, it would be the cool iridescent shell that would greet his palm. Highwayman Bob Dalton was said to have special-ordered a set of pistols with mother of pearl grips for a spectacular double bank heist in his hometown of Coffeyville, Kansas in 1892. Despite being handsomely appointed, the robbery ended in disaster when vigilante townspeople killed Dalton and his entire gang.

Wyatt Earp (1848 - 1929), courtesy of the Craigs Fout Collection

Mother of pearl’s less nefarious incarnation as buttons is the classic tale of beauty and quality falling victim to ever-cheaper industrial production. In the mid-nineteenth century, from the moment the box of shells arrived at the factory floor to the moment when a finely engraved, skillfully shanked button was tacked onto a piece of bright blue card, the precious item would have passed through no less then eight specialized pairs of hands (albeit some of them uncomfortably young and small).

Buttons by Lady Washington Pearls and B. Schwanda & Sons

In the late 1800s American mother of pearl buttons accounted for nearly half of the total world output of button manufacture, sourced from China, Australia, Ceylon, and the South Seas, as well as abalone from California and freshwater shells from the Mississippi. They were carved into elegant buttons that were beautiful and cherished, reflecting a respect for things that came before two-thirds of the world’s buttons were produced in a single city in China, and one’s plastic cuff buttons cracked in half before a fine shirt wore out.

Two British Pearly Kings in Traditional Suits, courtesy of Pearly King of Peckham

By the 1960s, B. Schwanda & Sons of New York, one of the leading pearl-button firms in America, was caught squarely in the crosshairs of the cheap, plastic future. The directors of the company remained loyal to the beauty and quality of pearl buttons, and refused to succumb to the economic pressures driving other button makers to turn to plastic. As a result, the company went bankrupt and liquidated in 1969, and we marched another step forward to the fate of our own making.

FURTHER READING:

Lue Diver Barndollar. What Really Happened on October 5, 1892: An Attempt at an Accurate Account of the Dalton Gang and Coffeyville, Coffeyville Historical Society, 2001.

32.15 Ounces of .9999 Fine Gold (24k), Today's Value: $ 35,898

So exactly what is it about gold, outside of its relative monetization, that holds such sway over us? It’s simple really. Gold is magic in its most tactile state.

Gold Panning, 1918

Useless as a metal for most practical purposes, gold has always been more endemic to creative pursuits and abstract principles. After being minted and used as coins by the Lydians in 635 BC, it eventually proved to be the touchstone that helped define our current model of fiat currency. It still hedges any hiccups our burgeoning new economy may suffer, but this is nothing compared to the effect it has had on the collective imagination of mankind.

Lyidan 'Gold Stater', One of the World's First Coin's, Courtesy of Money Museum

In hermetic mysticism, as well as the basic Italian tarot, gold coins represent the best things this earthly plane has to offer (distinct from the planes of intellect, compassion and intuition). In the Bible it was Jehovah’s material of choice for his first tabernacle: “Though shalt overlay it with pure gold,” He instructs Moses on Mount Sinai, “within and without shalt though overlay it, and shalt make upon it a crown of gold round about.” Even Columbus’ trip to the Americas was primarily a gold prospect in order to buy back the Holy Sepulchre from the Muslims. Allah seems to like a little bling-bling himself.

Fabergé Egg 'Romanov Tercentenary', 1913

As the metal of the muses, nothing sings more in the hands of a gifted artist. More than any other medium, its physical properties seem to dictate the content of the work produced. Soft, lustrous and gleaming, the character of goldwork always seems to lean toward the glorious. Indeed the House of Fabergé was primarily a house of goldsmiths. Even scampish young British artists forgo their usual fecal forms and vivisected invective when they get their hands on a chunk. In 2008, the British artist Marc Quinn veered away from his usual grotesque fare when given the opportunity to work with £1.5 million worth of solid gold, opting instead to make the most beautiful thing possible: Kate Moss with her legs pinned behind her head.

Kate Moss in Gold: 'Siren', by Marc Quinn

Gold is a noble metal—it does not react with most elements. That means it is usually found in its native form and nearly lasts forever. 4,500-year-old Egyptian dental work is said to be good enough for today’s mouths. There is no colloquial accounting for the style and quality of pure gold as could be applied to salt, cheese or rap music. 24k gold is 24k gold. Its only real measure of luxury outside of the ebb and flow of demand is what is done with it.

California Gold Rush Handbill, 1849

FURTHER READING:

Peter L. Bernstein. The Power of Gold: History of an Obsession, John Riley & Sons, Inc. 2000.

]]> http://kaufmann-mercantile.com/the-power-of-gold/feed/ http://kaufmann-mercantile.com/the-history-of-olive-oil/ http://kaufmann-mercantile.com/the-history-of-olive-oil/#comments Fri, 26 Feb 2010 08:20:05 +0000 David Vega http://kaufmann-mercantile.com/?p=3602 Olive oil has long been considered one of the greatest natural assets of the ancient world (and sometimes worth its weight in gold). It has consistently offered humanity the gifts of health and wealth, and is as complex and delicious as wine. Since antiquity, olive branches have been a symbol of peace –  perhaps because olive trees were an agricultural offering bestowed to the colonies after they were subjugated in battle. Wherever disseminated, olive trees were lauded for their myriad everyday uses, from the culinary to the corporal.

Fratelli Carli, Italian Olive Oil

MYSTICAL ELIXIR FROM GOD HERSELF

According to legend, the olive tree was a gift from Athena, the wise warrior-deity who also recognized the power of peace. Gray-eyed Athena competed with Poseidon for the affections of the Greeks, and had offered the versatile olive in response to the sea god’s gift of a saltwater well. The olive proved the better gift, offering refuge from the harsh sun, crowning the heads of champions, anointing warriors and athletes with its splendid golden tone.

Athena Holding an Olive Branch, by Tavik František Šimon

To the Greeks, this was no mere tale to tell small children. When athletes rubbed it over their bodies before competition, it protected their skin from abrasions and the elements. According to Hippocrates, the ‘father of medicine’, olive oil could heal numerous ailments, among them mental illness, and what Hippocrates charmingly referred to as “the diseases of women”. It offered light when burned and was used by priests to consecrate the dead. The trees were so sacred that those who cut one down were condemned to death.

Oil Vendor from Portugal

Though it’s difficult to pinpoint the beginning of man’s relationship with the pitted fruit, popular use most likely began in the southwest Mediterranean. Olive pits and wood fragments have been found in tombs throughout this area, some dating as far back as 5000 years.

Olive Branch, by Franz Eugen Köhler

OLIVE OIL ARRIVES IN ITALY

Brought to Southern Italy by the Greeks, the Romans aped their predecessors in admiration for the oil. The Roman Empire’s prodigious growth and colonial expansion brought trees to Spain and other colonies in the Iberian Peninsula, and was already in use by the Berber of North Africa when the Romans arrived. Today, Italy and Spain remain the epicenter of olive oil production and appreciation.

With the fall of the Roman Empire in the 5th century, olive cultivation declined for a thousand years. Olive oil steadily regained its role in the Middle Ages, however, when the Roman Catholic Church used it in rituals and anointings, namely the Oil of the Catechumens and Oil of the Sick, and to consecrate priests. The name Christ comes from the Greek word Kristos — the anointed one.

Roman Gold Coin from 36 A.D. with Pax Holding an Olive Branch

In the 16th century, Spanish explorers and missionaries introduced the olive to the New World, planting trees in Mexico, Argentina, and California, where it continues to grow today. Its real success in the New World, however, has been in Americans’ consumption of olive oil, which has increased dramatically in the past decades and made America the second largest market outside of Europe. Nearly all the olive oil consumed is imported from Europe, as America only produces 0.5% of world olive oil demands. The industry in America is gaining more attention, with California growing particularly delicious and complex varieties.

Cheap Oil: Olive Oil Extraction with Hexane. Thanks Shell!

COPY FROM THE 1947 SHELL ADVERTISING:

“Like other sources of edible oils and fats, olives now play in “the Majors”. Every drop of olive oil is in demand. How many drops can an olive produce? That chemical symbol making the put-out represents a Hexane - which extracts more oil from the olive. When Shell scientists first got Hexane from petroleum, there was little reason to think that as an “extraction solvent” it might add directly to the food supply… But that day has arrived. Shell is principal supplier of Hexanes for olive oil extraction. (…)”

FURTHER READING:

Tom Mueller. “Slippery Business: The trade in adulterated olive oil”, The New Yorker, August 18, 2007.

Peter Garnsey. Food and Society in Classical Antiquity, Cambridge University Press, 1999.

]]> http://kaufmann-mercantile.com/the-history-of-olive-oil/feed/ http://kaufmann-mercantile.com/yacon/ http://kaufmann-mercantile.com/yacon/#comments Wed, 24 Feb 2010 07:55:38 +0000 Brion Paul http://kaufmann-mercantile.com/?p=3578 It goes without saying, but before rampant industrialization and commercialization of food, there was only the people and their land, with the former scouring the latter in search of sustained sustenance and equanimus equilibrium. At the same time that technology is shrinking the world, cultural nostalgia and fetishization of the past imbues new interest in foods of yore, more and lesser-known items appear on the shelves of stores with increasing frequency.

Yacón Chip

Of particular intrigue to health food shoppers are the quasi-comically named subcategories of “superfoods”, foods not simply content with being edible and delicious, but ones that go above and beyond the call of duty: valiantly fighting off ferocious free radical foes, miraculously moderating malicious moods and boldly beautifying badly blemished skin.

A sort of native-chic and indigenous aura exists around these, as they often originate far back, from the native inhabitants of the land. But once that level of artifice is peeled away and the foods are examined for what they actually offer, it is remarkable to see the interaction of nature and nutrition achieved.

Yacón Tuber

One of the more exciting and effective superfoods to have been revisited and revised to modern needs is the Yacón root. While native to Peru and stretching back in history to the Moche era (100 – 700 AD), its caught on and currently cultivated through North America, from Maine to New Mexico and even Oregon, to the rejoicing of diabetics worldwide. Why? Let’s not get ahead of ourselves.

The yacón is a distant relative of the sunflower. But while sunflowers are known for their seeds, it is instead the delicate yacón tubers that are prized. Hiding beneath the ground, these engorged white storage organs look a bit like an ugly albino potato, a homely exterior that belies their tasty sweet flesh. Crisp and juicy, the longer they stay in the ground, the sweeter they get. With texture like an apple and a full flavor redolent of melon, legend places their origin high in the Andes with uses ranging from the ceremonial, linked both to Day of the Dead and winter solstice Inti Raymi, Festival of the Sun, to thirst quenchers, dug from the ground during long bouts of travel for refreshment.

Yacón Chips

Early gastro anthropologists wrote the root off as merely a lump of sugary nothingness, but in recent years, examinations of the chemical compounds making up these sugars have lead to exciting new low-glycemic uses.

While other roots and tubers store their carbohydrates in the form of glucose, yacón stores them as inulin. The human body lacks the enzymes to process inulin, so it simply passes through the body un-metabolized, with almost no calories, of particular interest to diabetics. This type of sugar also feeds the healthy pre-biotic bacteria in the large intestine, leading to increased absorption of a number of vitamins and foods, elimination of toxic compounds and clinical studies have even shown increased bone density, of particular interest to almost everyone.

Dried yacón slices are perhaps the most delectable preparation, the sweetness is diminished through dehydration and they serve as a nice snacking alternative to chips. A tea is also made and works to moderate blood sugars and, in the same vein, yacón syrup is a low-glycemic sweetener a bit like molasses.

The indigenous people of Peru have proven a prodigious source for foods in the past, namely myriad varietals of potatoes, and the recent utilization and supply of superfoods from there, Maca, Camu Camu, Sacha Inchi, provide an valuable case study in the integration of indigenous foods to the modern menu.

Colgate Advertising with Brooke Shields, 1975

The Chinese, circa 500 BC, chose more palatable ingredients such as sea salt, ginseng, and mint. Many of these ingredients are still used in toothpaste today. Until 1945 toothpastes contained soap and abrasives to clean teeth; after 1945 they replaced soap with controversial and potentially toxic ingredients like triclosan, sodium laureth sulfate, artificial sweeteners and colors.

Calox Tooth Powder Advertising

Tooth powders made the transition into the soft paste we’re so accustomed to in 1850 when a 23-year old dental surgeon and chemist named Dr. Washington Wentworth Sheffield began to market his home brew paste under the enticing name of “Creme Dentifrice.”

Dr. Sheffield's Creme Dentifrice Advertising, 1886

Originally packed in jars, Dr. Washington’s son Lucius had his light bulb moment in 1892, while studying in Paris and saw artists painting with tubes of paint. There the idea of a creamy toothpaste gel in a collapsible tube was born. Soon after, the big boys at Colgate followed suit and began to manufacture toothpaste in a tube in 1896, heralding a product that shows no sign of extinction anytime soon.

While still vulnerable to marketing whims and consumer fads, few have successfully ventured to tinker with this now classic form. Does anyone past the age of 12 really use the Colgate pump?

"Bad Breath Separates", Gemany Advertising

There is a highly controversial issue, however, residing in these seemingly benign tubes. The industrial waste product Fluoride was introduced into toothpastes in 1914, as a way to reduce tooth decay. Within five minutes of eating sugar or carbohydrate foods like potato chips, the acids in your saliva begin to start working away at the enamel on your teeth, beginning the process of demineralization that leads to tooth decay. Fluoride acts to slow this process.

Sher-Pira Tooth Powder, Shapria's Pharmacy in San Anselmo, CA, 1917

There is growing research into both the toxic effects of Fluoride as well as its sinister role in the Cold War, including its association with the Manhattan Project and the development of the Atom bomb. Safety concerns have been growing on the possible adverse effects of so much Fluoride intake on the human body’s other functions and there is a wealth of information available online detailing this controversial practice.

America is the only country that performs widespread fluoridation of it’s water supply. 97% of Western Europe no longer fluoridates their water. Interestingly, the supposed need for fluoridating the water supply is actually a result of our mineral-poor diet of fast food and high intake of processed sugar. A diet low in processed sugar and high in mineral-rich foods such as fresh greens will make the need for Fluoride irrelevant. And more natural substance such as green tea has a similar effect as Fluoride in reducing the process of tooth decay.

Myrrh

Despite the ubiquity of Colgate, Crest, and other multinational brands, there is a considerable toothpaste underground easily discovered in any natural food store. These natural products ditch the Fluoride so widely touted in mainstream toothpastes, instead favoring non-toxic herbal healing ingredients such as echinacea, tea tree, myrrh, clove, peppermint oil, sea salt, and food-grade hydrogen peroxide. Many also reject the convenience of the modern paste altogether, uneasy with the binders and other non-essential ingredients required to transform powder to a thick gooey gel.

Colgate Advertising, 1921

Like many modern products, toothpaste doesn’t have to be so complicated. You can even make your own homemade tooth powders and epicurean toothpaste recipes by adding food-grade baking soda and your choice of natural herbal oils or tinctures to sea salt, a natural antibacterial cleanser.

If that’s a little too survivalist for your tastes, there are many exciting natural toothpastes at your health food store. Mint is always first rate for freshening breath, but there are also interesting and exotic choices like anise, fennel, cinnamon or ginger. There’s a whole world beyond supermarket toothpaste to explore.

Frozen Fried Shrimp Dinner with Tangy Cocktail Sauce for Extra "Home Style" Touch

Soda cans, furniture, cookware, structural building supports - the number of products made with the ubiquitous material is endless. Incredibly light, non-rusting, fully recyclable, cheap, and in seemingly limitless supply, it is the metallic element of choice for an extraordinary number of everyday goods. It cannot be denied that aluminum is a miraculous metal whose industrial and commercial applications have revolutionized the modern world. Yet it is most common in products we use in our everyday personal life, and its positive aspects, especially in regards to its contact with the foods we consume, is more questionable.

Aluminum is found in buffered aspirin, most antiperspirants (as aluminum chlorhydrate), antacids, and in shampoo (as aluminum lauryl sulfate or magnesium aluminum silicate). The “miracle” metal is also found in many foods: cake mixes, self-rising flour, prepared doughs, nondairy creamers, pickles, some baking powders, and many processed cheeses. We seem to be either rubbing it on our bodies or ingesting it or pouring it on something on a daily basis, and have been doing so for years, and concern is steadily on the rise.

Secret Anti-Perspirant Advertising, 1969

HISTORY OF ALUMINUM

Aluminum is the third most abundant element of the Earth’s crust, behind that of oxygen and silicon, and of all metals, the foremost - 7.3% by mass of the total crust. Aluminum is still a rather “young” metal (it has only been produced for commercial purposes for 146 years) but its use by humans in its natural form dates back much further. 7,000 years ago, Persians made their strongest pottery out of clay containing aluminum oxide. Three millennia later, ancient Egyptians were using  aluminum compounds in medicines, dyes, and cosmetics.  The Romans used various aluminum compounds as astringents; they called these alum, or the Latin alumen, giving the metal the origin of its modern name.

Bauxite: Aluminum Ore

Aluminum does not naturally occur in its elemental state. In 1821 Pierre Berthier discovered a clay-like material that contained 52 per cent aluminum oxide outside the small village of Les Baux in the south of France. In reference to the place of this most significant of discoveries, he gave the material the name bauxite. He did not realize it at the time, but he had discovered the most commonly found ore of aluminum.

The first commercial process of extracting aluminum was created in 1854 by Henri Sainte-Claire Deville of France, and by 1855 he was able to create enough aluminum for display at the Paris Exposition of that year. Billed as “silver from clay,” aluminum bars were shown alongside France’s crown jewels. The juxtaposition was fitting: rubies, emeralds and sapphires consist mainly of crystalline aluminum oxide. At that time, pure aluminum was valued at $115 per pound - more expensive than gold. Napoleon III proudly displayed aluminum cutlery at his state banquets, commissioned aluminum equipment for his military and even had an aluminum and gold baby rattle made for his son.

B-24 Assembly Hall, 1943 / Courtesy of Shorpy

In 1886, after years of experimentation by many scientists and industrialists, Charles Martin Hall of the United States and Paul L.T. Héroult of France - both age 22 - independently discovered the way to produce aluminum economically. Hall developed a method for “reducing” aluminum oxide, called alumina, to pure aluminum by electrolysis. In the electrolytic cell, alumina is dissolved in molten cryolite. A strong electric current passes through the solution and removes the oxygen, leaving deposits of nearly pure aluminum on the bottom of the bath. This method - Hall-Heroult process - is still used today.

Club Aluminum Advertising, 1946

Two years later, Hall founded the Pittsburgh Reduction Company (which would in 1907, be renamed Aluminum Company of America - Alcoa,  the largest producer of aluminum in America). Before the end of 1888, Hall had produced the first commercial aluminum. As Hall improved his process, the price of aluminum ingots dropped from $4.86 per pound in 1888 to 78 cents per pound in 1893. Because manufacturers were reluctant to use an unfamiliar metal, the company developed prototype products such as the first cast aluminum tea kettle for use as sales tools.

Business grew as manufacturers grasped the benefits of this light yet strong metal. In the mid-1930s, industrial designer Henry Dreyfuss predicted that “aluminum will play a large and significant part” in the “greatest period of redesign the world has known.” By the late 1930s, a pound of aluminum cost just 20 cents; its uses numbered more than 2,000.

As is often the case (and almost always for the winning side), war was very good for business. During World War II, demand doubled as the cheap, durable material spawned a new generation of aircraft, automobiles, cooking utensils, foil, electric wire and cable. There has been no going back since. Aluminum is ubiquitous in our modern world. Other metals, such as copper, lead, and tin have been mined and used by humans for millennia, but nothing compares to the exploitation of aluminum. Today more aluminum is produced today than all other non-ferrous metals put together.

The Aluminum Association Advertising, 1967 (Click on Image for Details)

ALUMINUM HEALTH CONCERNS

The bulk of the health discussion centers around whether there is a link between the absorption of aluminum and Alzheimer’s disease. The idea was first introduced in the early 1960s, when neurologist Igor Klatzo at the National Institutes of Health led a study of the workings of the immune system in the brain. When Klatzo injected various solutions into the brains of rabbits to observe immune response, the animals went into severe convulsions. Investigating further, Klatzo learned that it was not active ingredients in the solutions that caused this response, but aluminum added to the solution to aid in their action. Klatzo also observed that brain cells appeared to have suffered a kind of microscopic degeneration in the form of ‘plaques’ and ‘tangles’ which were also characteristic of Alzheimer’s patients.

Neuropathologist Alois Alzheimer (1864 - 1915)

A few years later, researchers at the University of Toronto set out to look for aluminum in the brains of Alzheimer’s subjects. Using autopsy samples, they measured aluminum levels in various parts of the brain and compared levels in Alzheimer’s patients with those in patients who died of unrelated health conditions. The Alzheimer’s patients had aluminum levels two to three times higher.

Aluminum Clad Fire Fighter, Kaiser Aluminum Advertising, 1950s

A number of studies were conducted shortly after, each one discounting the last, some claiming no correlation, others an obvious one. Critics of the supposed link say that association does not prove causation. The buildup, they argue, may be a consequence of Alzheimer’s, which may cause changes in the brain that cause the metal to accumulate in brain tissue. While the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services states that exposure to high levels of aluminum may result in respiratory problems, it does not state that exposure to very small levels is harmful. The current view of the Alzheimer’s Association is that “the findings (… ) do not convincingly demonstrate a causal relationship between aluminum and Alzheimer’s disease, and that no useful medical or public health recommendations can be made, at least at present.”

Pepsi Advertising, 1980s

Another issue directly connected to the aluminum health debate is that of BPA. BPA is found in the epoxy lining used in aluminum cans and bottles to prevent the leaching of potentially harmful properties from the metal into the food or drink contained within. The doubly dangerous (in that aluminum even NEEDS something to prevent it from coming into contact with your food or drink) and ironic problem with this “solution” is that BPA has long been known to have even worse health implications than what it’s put in place to protect you from! Bisphenol A is a chemical which can mimic human estrogen and which is linked to breast cancer and early puberty in women.

According to a study conducted by the Environmental Working Group (EWG), a wide variety of canned food was bought and tested and found to have in more than half of the test items “200 times the government’s traditional safe level of exposure for industrial chemicals.” There are no standards for BPA; it is allowed to be put in anything, and billions of pounds are produced each year. According to EWG: “Of all foods tested, chicken soup, infant formula, and ravioli had BPA levels of highest concern. Just one to three servings of foods with these concentrations could expose a woman or child to BPA at levels that caused serious adverse effects in animal tests.”

Reynolds Aluminum Advertising

CONTROVERSY AND ITS EFFECTS

Many cookware manufacturers have heeded the call of careful consumers, offering them pots and pans made of anodized aluminum. Anodizing involves thickening the naturally-oxidized surface of the metal through the passing of a direct current as it sits in an electrolytic solution (usually sulfuric acid). Afterward, the surface is sealed to fill in pores that form during the process and to prevent degradation. The result is a coating that is highly-resistant to corrosion, much harder, and can accept dyes readily. The leaching of aluminum residue is considerably lowered with this process. Socially responsible food manufacturers are also switching to canned goods with non BPA linings due to growing public concerns over the obvious health issues.

Most studies seem to agree that low-level exposure to aluminum from food, air, and water, is not harmful. However there are clearly enough legitimate questions concerning its use in a number of important everyday applications to continue the debate and cause us to think twice before buying many aluminum products. Whatever the case, it seems likely that this very valuable material will continue to be used until solid evidence shows us that without a doubt, it may be best not to chase your Rolaids with a can of tomato juice.

Naugahyde Advertising, 1967 (Read Full Copy at Bottom of Article)

While countless hours and word counts could be amassed in dirtily detailing and decrying the toxic waste generating production practices of the vinyl manufacturing process, the Naugahyde story boasts far more fascinating aspects, namely the advertising coup d’état from the medium’s first and foremost svengali that inadvertently established it as the defining material of mid century kitsch culture.

To this day, the word “Naugahyde”, rather than invoking a still extant company that still manufacturers a popular, versatile, widely used, water resistant textile that is rich with history and remains Made in the USA, instead summons up the ultimate imitation and fraudulence, forever ingrained in the popular lexicon as a punch-line signifying ersatz second-rate quality.

U.S. Naugahyde and U.S. Koylon Advertising, 1956

And yet it wasn’t always this way. Named after the town in Connecticut where the Uniroyal Engineered Products that developed it was based, Naugatuck was the epicenter of American rubber production, dating back to 1847 and the birthplace of Keds sneakers and the rubber vulcanization process. The term “Naugahyde” was first used in 1936, much earlier than the mid-century lore would have led one to believe. But the term wasn’t ultimately necessary until then.

Naugahyde Advertising, 1967

Post war America was deeply in love with vinyl coated fabrics. With rampantly expanding industry, the need for flexible, versatile industrial materials and the plastic industry’s willingness and desperation to provide just this, Naugahyde was the innovator in the field; Buckminster Fuller used it to cover chairs in his Dymaxion House, the United Nations used it for their chairs as well.

By the mid 1960s, America was producing 142 million yards per year of vinyl-coated fabrics, but not all of it used was actual Naugahyde. The originators had numerous competitors and lookalikes crowding the market.

Naugahyde Advertising, 1956

To combat their weak brand image, they turned to Madison Avenue advertising guru George Lois, the man responsible for successfully selling the Volkswagen to America. Playing up the cruelty-free, vegetarian-chic elements of Naugahyde, Lois conceived what might be one of the most simple, yet devastatingly effective, advertising campaigns of the 20th century.

The Nauga was, and is, a mythical creature with a toothy grin, narrow set but wide eyes and a skin (s)he sheds once a year, resulting in Naugahyde. Alarmingly cute dolls were made and a complex origin story and mythology was launched in advertisements featuring drawings of “prehistoric” Nauga in their native Sumatra from “30,012 B.C.”, emigrating through Ellis Island and even donating their “hydes” to the War Effort in 1944.

Naugahyde Advertising, 1967

The concept stuck like a sweaty leg to a Naugahyde couch. A Nauga appeared opposite Johnny Carson on the Tonight Show, Nauga dolls were made available in showrooms – and the brilliant print advertisements continued. “The Nauga is ugly, but his vinyl hide is beautiful.” By drawing attention to the essential imitation and fakery of the material and essentially celebrating it with a fake narrative wrapped in a knowing, wry, winking humor, Naugahyde was vaulted into the collective consumer consciousness – the ultimate triumph of advertising achieved.

Unfortunately, time has not been so kind to the mid century fetishization of the faux to the level of luxury, and with modern ecological concerns, these materials look even worse. To this day, though, Nauga dolls are collectible items, kitschy reminders from a naively Utopian yesteryear. And the affecting aftertaste of George Lois’ ads lingers heavily over urban folklore with younger generations wondering precisely just where the hyde in Naugahyde comes from. Beware, beware the noble Nauga.

COPY FROM ADVERTISING “THE GREAT IMPOSTOR”:

“That’s him. The one that doesn’t moo. The Nauga. But: His vinyl hide - Naugahyde - can give you the most gratifying feeling known to man: Getting away with something. Naugahyde can look, amazingly, like anything. Cow’s hide? Beautiful. Horsehide? Beautiful. Aligator? Beautiful. (Only your taxidermist will know.) But unlike leather, Naugahyde won’t crack or stain.

If you don’t want it leather-like, you can get Naugahyde that looks like linen. Wool. Silk. Tweed. Brocade. Burlap. Bamboo, for heaven’s sake. It fools all the people all the time. In 500 different colors and textures.

They never guess it’s Naugahyde vinyl fabric. A picture of the imaginary Nauga hangs on every piece of Naugahyde furniture. Look for him when you’re looking for beautiful indestructible furniture, or luggage, handbags and accessories. (If you can’t fine the Nauga, find another store).”

COPY FROM ADVERTISING “INVITE A NAUGA TO YOUR PARTY”:

“Make the Nauga feel welcome. Punch him in the nose the minute he comes through the door. Spill a Bloody Mary on him. Get him with a pie in the face. Smear chocolate on his chest. Kick him around. His vinyl hide is Naugahyde vinyl fabric. It’s indestructible. Any soapy sponge, and Naugahyde comes clean. Same thing when Naugahyde is on furniture. The Nauga’s hide is a great deceiver. (…)”

COPY FROM ADVERTISING “THE INDESTRUCTIBLE NAUGA”:

Sadder but wiser mothers pray for permanent furniture. The Nauga answers those prayers. With the hide off his back. Naugahyde vinyl fabric. Naugahyde is so rough, it breaks a kid’s spirit. So comfortable, it gets overused. So durable, the kids are old before it is. With Naugahyde you can sail past the Jones’s. It can look like the most expensive fabrics. Linen. Tween. Silk. Leather. Wood. Brocade. Burlap! Bamboo! 500 bewildering varieties and every single one is Naugahyde. Look for the imaginary Nauga and find beautiful indestructible furniture. (…)”

Bascal Aluminum Tumbler, 1950s

The two main manufacturers of aluminum tumblers were Sunburst and the Italian company Bascal. The cups came in bright colors - purple, pink, red, blue, silver and a variety of other hues. The aluminum was anodized - a process that protects aluminum from oxidation, increases wear resistance, and promotes color retention. Still, these cups are not recommended for dishwashers, as their colors will fade faster than with hand washing.

Bascal

With their humble size, these cups are a bit out-dated for today’s soda lovers. They hold a mere 11 oz of liquid. The current 7-11 Super Gulp measures a mammoth 64 fluid oz.

Since last week’s article on aluminum ice cube trays, I’ve done a fair amount of additional research on the health concerns of aluminum. Just type in “aluminum health” or “aluminum kitchenware health” into Google, Yahoo, or one of the other search engines, and you’ll get thousands of results. The main objects of attack are deodorants, baking soda, cheap cheese (as used in cheeseburgers), and of course, cookware.

The discussions are very emotional (which is understandable, considering  the possible consequence of Alzheimer’s), but are also unfortunately rarely based on scientific studies. It seems studies backing up either side are hard to come by, or don’t appear to exist at all. What a pickle. We actually have an article devoted to the discussion of health issues concerning aluminum. Since I now own both an aluminum ice cube tray and this green tumbler, I really wanted to know if they’re safe for my tequila gimlet at this year’s first cookout.

Gilette Safety Razor Catalog, 1909 / Razor Archive

My dad told me his father used one of those classic steel razors rarely seen in bathrooms today. It was a Gillette safety razor, the kind that used inexpensive double-edged blades and had been around in some form or another since the beginning of the 20th century. I can still remember seeing it sitting on the sink: beautiful, simple, and functional in the way mechanical objects often are, with its two hinged doors that opened like some mechanical flower to reveal the razor.

Combination Set, Gillette Catalog, 1914 / Razor Archive

When he first bought it, it took carbon steel blades (that had to be cleaned with alcohol so that they wouldn’t rust), but eventually switched to stainless steel blades in the ’60s.  Though few improvements were introduced in the coming years, the basic design left little to be desired in the hands of one as capable and as patient as my grandfather. For over 40 years, he spent a good 25 minutes a day shaving with that razor, making sure his skin was properly lubricated, holding it at just the right angle so as not to cut himself, and cleaning it thoroughly.  As far as I can remember, I never saw a nick on his chin.

Gillette Knack C, 1968 / Mr. Razor

My father, the scientist in the family, was much more willing to try different technologies (he was also the one with the bits of toilet paper sticking to his face). Back in the mid ’70s he used a Schick Injector, a razor that had been introduced to market 50 years earlier by U.S. Army Lieutenant Colonel Jacob Schick (1878 – 1937).

Jacob Schick

The Schick razor was made popular by a clever engineering feat that allowed the user to load a fresh blade by inserting the end of a clip into the head. It was also something that appealed to my mechanical-minded father and many fathers like him. Though his razor was nowhere near as aesthetically interesting as Grandpa’s old double-edged blade version, it was still made of steel and looked much better than the plastic multi-blade razors that would come a few years later.

Schick Injector Mechanism, 1961

Nowadays razor blades have almost been replaced entirely by cartridges, and the competition between the giants (still Schick and Gillette) is fiercer than ever. Before I grew out my beard I invested a tiny fortune in one of these, a Gillette Mach 3, a razor whose name alone promised a close shave in record time. I forked over twenty bucks every few months for cartridges (eight, to be precise, three blades each, replete with rubber fins and lubricating strip). The Mach 3 did shave amazingly well, but it also created a measurable amount of trash in the form of spent cartridges and packaging.

Cheaper Blades: PAL Razor Blade Advertising

There are many theories why companies like Gillette and Schick made the jump to the cartridge-type razor; one explanation was that the transition gave each company control over the blades that were used. In the ’60s, a plethora of manufacturers around the world were making blades that could fit Gillette’s razors, creating intense competition, driving prices, and consequently, profits down. Today, most brands use proprietary cartridges, each cartridge only fitting the razor of the same brand, ensuring profits would remain high.

Gillette Blue Blades, 1962 / Mr. Razor

Still, the classic safety razor found a loyal following. Various companies continue to make very affordable versions that use double-edged blades which can still be bought for about a quarter each. But will this type of razor outlive nostalgia? Is it inferior to the modern version, with all its fancy bells and whistles? Does it simply lack practicality?

According to a number of blogs on the subject, it’s about the modern man getting reacquainted with the daily ceremonies of his masculinity, with the tools of these ceremonies, and with his own face. My grandfather seems to think as much. He, like thousands of other men throughout the world, have become the practitioners of patience in the bathroom and are more than willing to show us how to “do it right.”

Gillette Thin Blade (B1), 1956 / Mr. Razor

Gillette Safety Razor, Instruction Booklet, 1907 / Mr. Razor

Gillette Razor Catalog, 1914 / Razor Archive

Find more information and great images at mr-razor.com and razorarchive.com.

Chemical Formula of Oxidative Fermentation: Making Acetic Acid

Apples, rice, and honey all produce distinctive vinegars. Used as a condiment and cooking liquid - vinegar is the base for multiple marinades, vinaigrettes and pickling.

Heinz Advertising, 1972

Kimchi, Sauerkraut and Kosher dill pickles are only a few of the tasty vinegar-preserved treats developed all around the globe. Apple cider vinegar is used in natural healing, its ability to break down fats, mucous and phlegm makes it particular suited to detoxifying. Those same acidic properties make vinegar efficient for household cleaning as well, dissolving soap scum and stains and combined with baking soda - makes a powerful unclogging agent.

Fruit Vinegar Label / Museum Port Huron, MI

Some of the most popular types of vinegar are white wine, rice, malt and Balsamic vinegar. True balsamics are produced only in Modena Italy, where a particular grape, the Trebbiano, has been harvested for generations to create this distinct and very rare vinegar. Look for the real deal “Modena Balsamic” in specialty shops – as most supermarket labels reading “balsamic” are merely less-nuanced reproductions.

Books for Collectors: Speas Vinegar Bottles, Jugs, Jars, Etc. / D.G. Hollandsworth

Modern distilleries produce vinegar through both a slow or fast fermentation – the longer “slow” process allows for a non-toxic ‘mother’ to form, a sort of slimy residue comprised of acetic acid bacteria and cellulose. That ‘mother’ is also used as a kind of ‘kick start’ in the formation of ‘fast’ process vinegar, as well as for kombucha - which uses yeast and bacteria to produce a drinking vinegar rich in nutrients.

Urgoyne's Universal Concentrated Vinegar Essence

Vinegar, with all its many uses, has a long and fascinating history. During the Black Plague thieves used vinegar to protect them from germs as they stole from the dead. During the Civil War, vinegar - a natural antibiotic, was used to heal wounds. Roman Legionaries drank it before going into battle. It was used by sailors to preserve foods for long voyages and also for swabbing the decks.

Confucius, Buddha and Lao Zi Tasting Vinegar, Here Meaning "The Essence Of Life"

Cleopatra - after making a bet that she could “consume a fortune in a single meal” - dissolved a pearl in a glass of vinegar and drank it. Clever girl!

Love Gone Sour: Vinegar Valentine Card, "Greetings from the Devil"

Manufacture of Vinegar: Theoretical and Practical, H. Dussauce, 1871

1950s Aluminum Ice Cube Tray with Lever

And aluminum doesn’t just conduct the cold air in the freezer faster, it also makes the cubes melt faster and their removal easier.

Redi-Cube Ice Cube Tray

However, unfortunately, things become a little more complex when taking a closer look. For decades there has been discussion about possible link between Alzheimer’s and the use of aluminum kitchen utensils. The discussion came up in the 1960s when autopsies found unusual high amounts of aluminum in the brains of Alzheimer patients. But most scientist believe that the high aluminum concentrations are a result of the Alzheimer’s and not the other way around. To this date, no proof has been found for a link between aluminum and Alzheimer. (More at our article devoted to the subject of aluminum and health concerns)