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Jean-Louis Alibert (1768-1837), Pierre-Alphée Cazenave (1802-1877) and Ferdinand von Hebra (1846-1880) are among the most famous names of the XIXth century dermatology. All were interested in hydrotherapy and mineral waters. Alibert was especially fond of sulfurous waters from the Pyrenees, for treating almost every inflammatory disease, like psoriasis, chronic eczema and even hair diseases or cheloids. He mentioned very often the use of mineral waters in his two masterpieces, Description des Maladies de la peau (1806) and Clinique de l'Hôpital Saint-Louis (1833). In case patients were not able to travel and spend times at thermal stations, he recommended artificial waters made by pharmacists in specialized places in Paris, consisting in water plus minerals, in order to obtain a composition close to natural spring waters. Around 1850, Cazenave also used mineral waters and hydrotherapy, mainly sulfurous waters. In Vienna, von Hebra was more reluctant to the use of mineral water, as he believed that the time spent in baths was more important than the composition of the water itself. Adrien Doyon (1827-1907), who translated Hebra's book in French, strongly disagreed with him, as he had a dermatology private practice in Uriage, in the French Alps. Modern hydrotherapy in dermatology is clearly in relation with this XIXth century tradition. © 2020 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Masson SAS. Tous droits réservés.)

Ernest Baudrimont is a pharmacist born in Compiègne in 1821. He is the nephew of the pharmacist chemist Alexandre Baudrimont and is from a family of Compiègne pharmacists. First prize and gold medal in 1846 of the School of Pharmacy in Paris, he obtained in 1852 his Ph D in pharmacy for a dissertation on the formation and composition of mineral waters, and in 1864 is Ph D of physical sciences for a dissertation on the chlorides and bromides of phosphorus. Hospitals Chief Pharmacist in 1854, he had his first position at the Sainte Eugénie children's Hospital, today Trousseau hospital in Paris, position he held until 1875 prior to his appointment as Director of the Paris Civilian Hospitals central Pharmacy. Member of the french Botanical Society, the Society of Medical Hydrology, secretary of the Society of Pharmacy, he was also associate professor of Pharmacy at the School of Pharmacy of Paris. His scientific publications focus on the mineral chemistry i.e he described the nature of white phosphorus; mineral waters and some plants chemistry. One of the major contributions of Ernest Baudrimont was his involvment to the successive editions of the dictionary of the alterations and falsifications of foodstuffs of A. Chevallier. Member of the french Academy of Medicine in 1881, he died in Paris in September 1885.

In the end of XIXth century, the french "Compagnie des eaux minérales de Pougues-les-Eaux" begins to exploit the spanish natural purgativ water of Carabaña. In the same way, Edouard Jéramec, director of the french compagny, decides to associate to his firm the best medicine to fight against rickets and tuberculosis. He joins the new medical theory wich recommends to give more calcium to tubercular patients, called "méthode de recalcification du Dr Ferrier". Then, with the chemist Emile Perraudin, he creates the pharmaceutical laboratory named "Produits Scientia". One of their famous patents medicines will be the "Tricalcine".

Before the First world War, many french societies exploited spanish purgatives watters. The watter was drawn in Spain, but it was bottled in France for many reasons. The authors of this article explain the beginnings of exploitation of three of the most famous purgatives watters: Rubinat source Llorach, Carabaña and Villacabras.

Mineral waters in the three provinces of the french Basque Country are investigated according to the legends linked to them, their use and their recent story.

This article presents the "Lithinés du Dr Gustin", a very popular medicine at the beginning of the XXe century. They were used as an artificial water, to treat gout. A first part of the article presents Dr Gustin, Arthur Mille, the chemist, and the "Lithinés". A second part relates an action at law between the laboratory "Lithinés du Dr Gustin " and the syndicat of operators of mineral water from La loire.

With some papers from "Société anonyme des eaux minérales du Breuil et du Broc's archives, the authors explain the difficults beginnings of Hydroxydase, by Louis Tixier, a pharmacist.

After the presentation of the history of the growing of artificial mineral waters in France, the authors explain the pharmacists' functions in the production of Soda-waters. To illustrate their purpose, they use documents deposited in the Yvelines departemental archives.

Going back to the dawn of time, we deal with two historical figures, that of Pope Bonifacio VIII, and that of the hierophant of art, Michelangelo Buonarroti. The texts and the codes of the British Museum (Department of Manuscripts), of the Biblioteca Medica Laurenziana (Archivio Buonarroti) of Florence, and the Biblioteca Apostolica of Vatican, convincing detalled evidence that both figures were urological patients. It concerns two clinical cases with especially pertain to the history of lithiasis of urinary tract. Even though, both of them--the first with nephrolithiasis or gravel, and the second with a bladder stone--were historically bound with the well-known cures of Fiuggi in Italy.

This text is the second part of a forward article about the history of minerals water's sold by chemists. It studies specially the evolution of containers and labels: they are the reflect of the application of law and technology.

In May, 1605, King Henri IV established the first national regulation of water in France. Mineral waters were considered as therapeutic, so pharmacists were expected to sell them. In 1823, pharmacists obtained a relative independence to sell mineral waters. Some of them became spring operators. In 1964, the bottling's licence obliged them to modernize their installations. Some of them abandoned. Gradually, mineral waters arrived in supermarkets and disappeared from pharmacies. Since 1980, mineral waters are not considered any more as therapeutic. They are now only good for the health.

Nicolas Larbaud was a chemist, who was qualified by the Faculty of Pharmacy of Paris. He was interested, since his installation in Vichy, in therapeutic mineral waters and in exploiting those waters by bottling them or by thermal baths. Larbaud had many proceedings with his own family, with the Vichy official company with his colleagues and with the administration. He had to defend by force Prunelle spring which was drilled in his own pharmacy. He discovered Saint-Yorre thermal spring and exploited it. He earned a great fortune, was elected mayor and district counselor. His son was Valery Larbaud, writer and translator.