Origin of ancient ‘plasters’

The modern plaster was invented in the US, in 1920 by Earle Dickson, who worked for Johnson & Johnson.

The modern plaster was invented in the US, in 1920 by Earle Dickson, who worked for Johnson & Johnson.

Published Sep 16, 2014

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London - Archaeologists believe people who formed early communities in the Orkney Islands off the Scottish mainland, in about 30 000BC, used a fungi called a puffball to absorb blood and act as an early type of dressing.

About 2 000 years later, ancient Greeks made pastes of olive oil, honey and water to cover cuts. Roman doctors used spider’s webs to mimic our natural clotting process in which tiny fibres of protein form a web over the wound area.

The Victorians tried to create bandages which stuck on the skin, using silk, held in place with glycerine.

The modern plaster was invented in the US, in 1920 by Earle Dickson, who worked for Johnson & Johnson. When his wife sliced open her finger, he covered the cut with gauze and sticky tape.

His company soon began to mass produce sterilised, sealed bandage strips – they create a glue-like layer on the wound to keep out bacteria, dissolving as skin re-grows. - Daily Mail

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