António Costa Simões and the beginning of forensic chemistry in Portugal

Abstract

In the journal called O Instituto it is possible to find many articles relevant to the history of science in Portugal. Many episodes which characterized the Portuguese scientific and technological evolution are reported in this journal created by the Institute of Coimbra. One of those episodes related to the forensic chemical analysis or toxicology are disclosed in this article. António Costa Simões’ pioneer work established in Coimbra the forensic science as he detected toxic substances in suspected poisonings. In an ensemble of articles that he published in O Instituto in 1855, this physician and professor at the Faculty of Medicine described in detail his applied methods for analyzing samples of real cases, demonstrating a scientific rigor unusual for that time. In 1860 Simões published a toxicology manual used in medical school in the following decades. The professors involved in the chemical analyses always tried hard to keep themselves up to date with the most recent methods and techniques at their time, especially for detecting alkaloid poisons that demanded accurate techniques.