<p>Scientists studying a 2000 year-old Roman shipwreck off the coast of Tuscany believe that the <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&zu=http://metals.about.com/od/metalproperties/a/What-Is-Zinc.htm">zinc</a> tablets <img style="float: right; margin-top: 4px; margin-left: 2px; margin-bottom: 1px; border: 1px solid white;" src="http://i.livescience.com/images/i/000/035/256/original/shipwreck-pills.jpg?1357659008" alt="Image of a round tin box holding 2,000-year-old zinc tablets from the Roman shipwreck Relitto del Pozzino. (Right: contents of the tin box.) CREDIT: Giachi et al., PNAS. Courtesy of www.livescience.com. " width="180" height="90" />found aboard were used for medicinal purposes.</p>
<p>Six flat grey tablets (see photo), measuring approximately 1.6 inches (4 centimeters) in diameter and 0.4 inches (1 cm) thick were found in a round <a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&zu=http://metals.about.com/od/properties/a/Metal-Profile-Tin.htm">tin</a> box, and are believed to have been used for treating eye and skin ailments.</p>...<p><a href="http://clk.about.com/?zi=1/1hc&zu=http://metals.about.com/b/2013/01/13/2000-year-old-zinc-tablets.htm">Read Full Post</a></p>