“Ludwig van Beethoven began suffering from hearing loss in his 20s and became deaf in his 30s, but that didn’t stop him from composing some of his greatest works. However, the composer’s wish was for his health issues to be analyzed and communicated to the public. Scientists have sequenced Beethoven’s genome from strands of his hair and are now one step closer to understanding the genius’s mysterious illnesses,” CNN reports.
According to new research, high levels of lead detected in authenticated strands of hair from Ludwig van Beethoven suggest the composer suffered from lead poisoning, which may have contributed to the illnesses he suffered throughout his life, including deafness.
In addition to hearing loss, the famous composer suffered from recurring gastrointestinal problems throughout his life, had two attacks of jaundice and battled a serious liver disease.
It is believed that Beethoven died of liver and kidney disease at the age of 56. However, the process of understanding what caused his numerous health problems was a much more complicated puzzle than even Beethoven himself hoped doctors would eventually solve.
The relationship between suffering and music
Revealing the factors that led to Beethoven’s death from kidney and liver disease may also shed light on how the composer turned his grief into music.
People say, ‘Music is music, why do we need to know about all these things?’ But in Beethoven’s life there is a connection between his suffering and music.
said William Meredith, a researcher on Beethoven’s hair.
In addition to the high concentration of lead, recent discoveries have shown that arsenic and mercury remain trapped in the composer’s threads nearly 200 years after his death. These insights could provide new insights not only into understanding Beethoven’s chronic health conditions, but also into the complex nuances of his life as a composer.
READ MORE: Ode to Joy – An Ode to Polishness? Would Beethoven Have Been Satisfied with a Left-Liberal Europe?
NT/CNN
