Physics of rare events: insights on Napoleon death
Ettore Fiorini LNGS NOW , Sept.7, 2008
First => A justification
Searches for rare events to be carried out underground and
under low environmental and “internal” radioactivity
Suppression of the background
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How to rekognize the presence of few disturbing elements
If they are radioactive => a and g ray spectroscopy, ICPMS
Neutron Activation Analysis
Could sometimes reach the best sensitivity
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Application to Roman Lead
Lead is an excellent shielding material:
 High atomic number
 Reasonable mechanical properties
 Reasonable cost
It contains however 210 Pb b active with an half lifetime of 22.3 years
Especially dangerous for searches on WIMPS. Low energy counting rates
No presence of 210 Pb < 4 m Bq/kg) , what about U and Th ?
With neutron activation analysis < 10-12 g/g
Particularly sensitive to search for Asonly stable isotope 75As
sthermal neutrons = 4.3 barns => 76As => beta t = 26.3 d and emission of a 559.1 keV g ray
The use of our powerful method to investigate the presence
of arsenic in hairs of historical origin
Arsenic, like other heavy metals concentrates in hairs
Its presence used in criminology.
Many previous measurements on Napoleon hairs
=> poor instrumentation and often inconclusive result
High school remembrance of Alessandro Manzoni
Il cinque maggio
The fifth of May
.........e i dì nell'ozio
chiuse in sì breve sponda,
segno d'immensa invidia
e di pietà profonda,
d'inestinguibil odio
e d'indomato amor.
.........and his idle days
closed in such a short site,
target of immense envy
and of deep pity,
of unchanged hate
and of untamable love
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Saint Helene
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Previous measurements
Assasination strongly substained by B.Weider and P.Hapgood initially based on
Neutron activation measurements at Harwell on suggestion of S.Forthuvud
 10 – 38 ppm of As , later
 11 – 3 ppm and time distribution (no error)
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Later negative measurements
Measurement on the tapisserie of the Longwood House
X-ray fluorescence analysis on the paper on the walls
0.08 g cm-2 a value presently non acceptable
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Other negative results
 Neutron activation (2.5 x 10 11 n cm-2 s-1 for 15 hours) with g ray
spectroscopy => 1.4 ±1.2 ppm. Assumes no poisoning
 Neutron activation with g ray spectroscopy
=> Elba Isle 1.85 ±.11 ppm.
=> Saint Helene 3.5 ± 0.18 ppm and 33.3 ± 0. 2.2 ppm (bad treatment)
 A living man and woman 32 ± 3 and 33 ± 2 ppb
Assumes no poisoning
 Neutron activation with g ray spectroscopy (Saclay, unpublished)
=> Saint Helene Two hairs with an average of 4.5 ppm
B.Weider insists
Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy (P.Kinz) => 6.99 – 58.53 ppm
FBI (neutron activation analysis on two hairs ) => 33.3 and 14 ppm
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Our experiment
(strongly suported by INFN)



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A multisciplinary research group
The same precision as in neutrino physics
Only hystorical material from certified institutions
Mainly during vacations (with the exclusion of neutron activation)
Massimiliano Clemenza, Ettore Fiorini, Laura Guerra, Costanza
Herborg, Massimo Labra, Edoardo Orvini, Adalberto Piazzoli, Ezio
Previtali, Francesco Puggioni, Angela Santagostino
-Fundamental physics – Neutron activation – Toxicologists – Hystorian
-All neutron activations carried out at the TRIGA Mark II of the
Laboratorio di Energia Nucleare Applicata of the Pavia University
-(thermal neutron flux of 1.2 1013 n cm-2 s-1
- g ray spectroscopy in Milano-Bicocca and Pavia and measurement of
the hair mass in Milano-Bicocca
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Hystorical materials used in this search
From the Napoleonic (Rome), Glauco Lombardi (Parma) and Malmaison (Paris) Museums
Capello
Massa (mg)
Odierno 1
Odierno 2
Odierno 3
Odierno 4
Odierno 5
Odierno 6
Odierno 7
Odierno 8
Odierno 9
Odierno 10
Aiglon 1812 1
Aiglon 1812 2
Aiglon 1816 1
Aiglon 1816 2
Aiglon 1821 1
Aiglon 1821 2
0,122
0,112
0,096
0,138
0,220
0,066
0,118
0.126
0,148
0,230
0,106
0,088
0,132
0,104
0,078
0,060
Capello
Massa (mg)
Aiglon 1826 1
Aiglon 1826 2
Napoleone Corsica 1
Napoleone Corsica 2
Napoleone Elba 1
Napoleone Elba 2
Napoleone S. Elena 5 maggio 1
Napoleone S. Elena 5 maggio 2
Napoleone S. Elena 5 maggio 3
Napoleone S. Elena 5 maggio 4
Napoleone S. Elena 5 maggio 5
Napoleone S. Elena 5 maggio 6
Napoleone S. Elena 6 maggio 1
Napoleone S. Elena 6 maggio 2
Josephine 1
Josephine 2
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0,138
0,108
0,180
0,274
0,232
0.188
0,126
0,166
0,090
0,130
0,224
0,148
0,254
0,328
0,268
0,294
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Certified calibrated standards have been used
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Measurements on the As content in the hairs of a living subject, and
comparison with the content in the hairs of the Aiglon and of Empress Josephine
Capello contemporaneo
As(in 10-2 ppm)
Aignon and Josephine
As (in ppm)
Odierno 1 8,6 ±,9
Odierno 2 5,6 ± 1,8
Odierno 3 11,0 ± 3,5
Odierno 4 12,4 ± 3,9
Odierno 5 2,4 ± 1,1
Odierno 6 7,1 ± 2,8
Odierno 7 5,4 ± 1,7
Odierno 8 4,0 ± 1,4
Odierno 9 4,3 ± 3,1
Odierno 10 4,8 ± 2
Aiglon 1812 - 1
Aiglon 1812 - 2
Aiglon 1816 - 1
Aiglon 1816 - 2
Aiglon 1821 - 1
Aiglon 1821 - 2
Aiglon 1826 - 1
Aiglon 1826 - 2
Josephine - 1
Josephine – 2
9,4 ± 1,0
6,1 ± 0,6
12,6 ± 1,3
9,9 ± 1,0
9,9 ± 1,1
11,2 ± 1,3
7,6 ± 0,8
8,5 ± 0,9
0,8 ± 0,4
1,2 ± 0,5
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Arsenic in the hairs of the Emperor
Capello
As (in ppm)
Corsica 1770 – 1
Corsica 1770 - 2
Elba 1814 – 1
Elba 1814 - 2
S. Elena 5 maggio 1821 - 1
S. Elena 5 maggio 1821 - 2
S. Elena 5 maggio 1821 - 3
S. Elena 5 maggio 1821 - 4
S. Elena 5 maggio 1821 - 5
S. Elena 5 maggio 1821 - 6
S. Elena 6 maggio 1821 - 1
S. Elena 6 maggio 1821 – 2
8.3± 0,9
6,3 ± 0,7
4,4 ± 0,5
3,5 ± 0,4
13,1 ± 1,3
16,7 ± 1,7
14,2 ± 1,4
17,0 ± 1,7
15,4 ± 2,3
18,9 ± 2,2
15,2 ± 2,0
9,7 ± 1,
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Change of the contamination along the hair
(the mass has decreased due to irradiation)
Frammento
2A
2B
2C
2D
2E
2F
Massa (mg) As (in ppm)
0,012
0,022
0,026
0,032
0,032
0,026
27,6 ± 3,0
22,0 ± 2,5
21,4 ± 2,5
17,5 ± 2,0
16,6 ± 1,9
20,7 ± 2,4
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Arsenic content in the water of the spring liked by the
Emperor (near his first grave)
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Aliquote campioni
As (μg/L)
N.1
1,0000
N.2
1,5000
N.3
2,0000
N.4
1,2500
N.5
1,1000
N.6
0,8000
media
1,28 ± .43
Limite attualmente accettato 10
More recently:
Napoleon strikes again!
 Large impact in the national and international press
 Recent paper on the New York Times
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Hair Analysis Deflates
Napoleon Poisoning Theories
Was Napoleon poisoned?
now, a team of scientists at Italy’s National Institute
of Nuclear Physics in Milan-Bicocca and Pavia has
uncovered strong evidence to the contrary.
Contact with many toxicologists and with prof.A.Lugli
Very precise pathological analysis
Change of the weight with time from 12 samples of trousers (checked with volunteers)
Connection of the weight with subcutaneous fat from authopsy of 270 patients
Comparison of pictures of gastric lesions and other features of patients dyying of
cancer with the very detailed authopsy of Francesco Antonmarchi (pupil of the famous
Giuseppe Macagni of Siena University)
In conclusion, we believe that the original autopsy findings and our analysis
of Napoleon’s lifetime weight changes provide strong support for the
hypothesis that Napoleon’s final defeat was caused by gastric cancer.
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Conclusions
Our measurements on hairs of presently living people indicate a presence
of arsenic two order of magnitude less than those of hystorical people
The procedure to attribute the large amount of Arsenic in Napoleon hairs
to state his poisoning is wrong
The arsenic presence in the larger sample of hairs of Napoleon after his
death ever measured is in agreement among the various components and
comparable to those measured in the King of Rome in four different
period of his life
The concentration of arsenic in Napoleon hairs in Saint Helene is larger
than he was in in the Elba Isle , but is not such to justify the criminal
hypothesis which would require a concentration of 45 ppm or larger. This
is confirmed by the concentration with time along one hair and indicate a
cronic exposure due to environmental reasons
Previous and present detailed clinical analisis strongly confirm our
results
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