The French doctor and chemist Pierre-Joseph Macquer (1718-1784) practised as a doctor for the poor for several years. He also studied chemistry and soon began to carry out chemical research on his own. Together with the chemist Antoine Baumé (1728-1804), he founded a pharmaceutical-chemical school. He was the author of several textbooks such as "Eléments de chimie-théorique and Dictionnaire de chymie", the first ever chemical encyclopaedic dictionary. He was particularly interested in the application of chemical knowledge in medicine. He is regarded as the discoverer of arsenic acid and was the first to produce a solution of yellow blood lye salt in 1752. He was also involved in experiments on the addition of sugar to grape must for the purpose of enriching (increasing the alcohol content) of wine. His ideas and findings were later taken up by the chemist Jean-Antoine Claude Chaptal (1756-1832).
![]()
As honorary chairman of the Domäne Wachau, it is the easiest and quickest way for me to access the wein.plus encyclopaedia when I have questions. The certainty of receiving well-founded and up-to-date information here makes it an indispensable guide.
Hans-Georg Schwarz
Ehrenobmann der Domäne Wachau (Wachau)