Thursday, March 9, 2017

Wright's Coal Tar Soap, 1973

Woman's Weekly, January 1973

William Valentine Wright was a wholesale druggist and chemist in London, England.  He initially made his name with a recipe for non-alcoholic communion wine, taking some of the fun out of that religious ceremony.  In 1860 he created a soap using coal tar, marketing it as an antiseptic skin cleanser.  Initially called  by the jaw-breaking name of Sapo Carbonis Detergens, it eventually sold under his name.  It's still sold today, but is now made in Turkey and contains no coal tar, which has been banned from cosmetics by the European Union.

1 comment:

Steve said...

Many years ago, I remember using an anti-dandruff shampoo that used coal tar as an active ingredient. It worked well but it really stunk (sounds like a Buckley's commercial eh?). I eventually switched to a more mainstream shampoo that was a little easier on the nose.