Jean Pierre Joseph d'Arcet
Jean Pierre Joseph d'Arcet (31 August 1777 – 2 August 1844) was a French chemist. He was a son of the chemist Jean Darcet. He was among the first to efficiently extract gelatin from bones.[1] He suggested its use as a nutritional supplement for the poor. His son Felix (1807–1846) also became a chemist.
Life and work
D'Arcet was born in Paris, the son of Jean Darcet. Educated initially at the Collège de France where his father worked, he then became a student of Louis-Nicolas Vauquelin. He worked in the mint and was involved in metallurgical experiments. He also began to conduct private research and found a way to efficiently extract gelatin from bones.[2] He received a patent in 1814 for the manufacture of bone glue and broth. His gelatine supplement was introduced as a diet in the Saint-Antoine Hospital by the Duke of La Rouchefoucald-Liancourt. It was also introduced for army troops. By 1831, several physicians opposed the merits of food gelatin.[3] He also worked on bronze alloy compositions.[4] He served as master of the Paris mint until his death.[5][6]
D'Arcet married Claire Choron and they had three children, Félix, Louise and Pauline.[7] Felix became a chemist[8] and Louise (1814–1885) married the sculptor James Pradier (1792–1852) and was a model for Gustave Flaubert's character Emma in Madame Bovary.[3]
References
- ^ D'Arcet, JPJ (1814). "Rapport sur un travail ayant pour objet l'extraction de la gélatine des os, et son application aux différents usages économiques". J. méd. chirurg. pharm. 31: 352–359.
- ^ Leroux; Dubois; Pelletan; Dumeril; Vauquelin (1815). "VIII. Report on M. D'A rcet 's method of extracting gelatine from bones, and on its application to various œconomical purposes". The Philosophical Magazine. 46 (207): 17–21. doi:10.1080/14786441508638487. ISSN 1941-5796.
- ^ a b Sueur, Nicolas (2017-08-01). "La gélatine alimentaire de Darcet (1777-1844) : controverse autour d'un produit". Revue d'histoire du XIXe siècle. Société d'histoire de la révolution de 1848 et des révolutions du XIXe siècle (in French) (54): 181–197. doi:10.4000/rh19.5199. ISSN 1265-1354.
- ^ D'Arcet, J.P.J (1818). Mémoire sur l'art de dorer le bronze. Paris.
- ^ Pollard, A.M. (2013). "From Bells to Cannon – The Beginnings of Archaeological Chemistry in the Eighteenth Century". Oxford Journal of Archaeology. 32 (3): 335–341. doi:10.1111/ojoa.12018. ISSN 0262-5253.
- ^ "Report Made to the Academy of Sciences in Paris by the Gelatine Commission". The British and Foreign Medical Review. 13 (26): 486–497. 1842. PMC 5597396. PMID 30161975.
- ^ "Cimetière du Père Lachaise - APPL - ARCET Jean-Pierre Joseph d' (1777-1844)". Cimetière du Père Lachaise - APPL. 2021-05-02. Retrieved 2026-01-02.
- ^ Petroianu, G. A. (2012). "History of arsenic ethers: who was Felix D'Arcet?". Pharmazie. 67 (11): 951–953. doi:10.1691/ph.2012.2052. ISSN 0031-7144.