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Introduction
| Mainly composed of arsenic and sulphur, realgar is also called "Cockscomb Stone" in Chinese because of its orange-red streaks.When exposed to light for a long period of time, realgar will deteriorate into brown-yellow orpiment powders. Therefore, for specimen collection, it should be stored in an environment without direct exposure to light.Ancient Chinese had the tradition of drinking alcohols added with realgar in the belief that this special cocktail would ward off the evils. However, the realgar solution is actually toxic with arsenic and the tradition is no longer in practice nowadays. Realgar is used as a major ore of several arsenic compounds. |
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