3000 BCE

Tin

• Tin was discovered
• as an impurity in copper ore
• that made copper stronger
• and easier to cast
• into something useful
• and beautiful.
• Arsenic, also an impurity
• in copper ore,
• seemed just as good
• but turned out to be toxic,
• so pretty soon people
• were mining tin to make bronze.

Atomic number 50

• Cassiterite, stannite, cylindrite,
• franckeite, canfieldite, and teallite,
• are the ores found in granite and purple placer deposits.
• Halide compounds such as stannous chloride,
• organotin hydrides such as tributyltin hydride,
• organotin compounds such as diethyltin diiodide
• are the useful and toxic chemicals.
• Tributyltin oxide used as a wood preservative
• and antifouling paint for ships
• are banned for toxicity to marine life,
• but by itself tin is totally non-toxic.
• Tin solder, tinsmith, cookie tins,
• tin plating, tin cans, tin badges,
• pewter is mostly tin, bronze a fifth tin,
• organ pipes of tin or tin alloy,
• terne, lead and zinc alloyed with tin, for steel plating,
• stannous fluoride used for dental fillings,
• are the cultural artifacts.
• If you put a tin farthing in my tin cup,
• I’ll shine up my tin talisman
• and invoke the tintinnabulation of the bells—

Tin mistakes

• They said that Napoleon’s army froze in Russia
• because their buttons were reduced to powder from tin pest,
• but no survivors told of problems with buttons.
• They said that Buddhist singing bowls
• are made of the five Buddhas or the seven metals,
• but really they contain only copper and tin.
• They said that the goat on the garbage heap
• ate tin cans but he was really
• chewing the labels glued with something tasty.
• and they said tin soldiers had no hearts
• but they died the same as any other soldiers
• with just as much pain and blood.