POISONS IN CONAN DOYLE’S ADVENTURES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES
POISONS IN CONAN DOYLE’S ADVENTURES OF SHERLOCK HOLMES

Summary/Abstract: Sir Arthur Conan Doyle was not simply the creator of Sherlock Holmes; he was a trained medical doctor, with a ten-year-experience in the practice of medicine. This fact is easily recognized in all his writings, particularly in the adventures of the famous detective he bestowed life on. The paper focuses on one of the elements present in the Adventures that are closely linked with Conan Doyle’s medical expertise – the poisons used mainly as a murder weapon in the stories untangled by Sherlock Holmes. The most important toxic substances mentioned in these stories are presented – their source, characteristics, effects, fictionality – based on past and present medical knowledge, and conclusions are drawn as to the motivation and relevance of the manner in which such substances are depicted in the widely-read adventures of Sherlcok Holmes.

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