Astronomer Tycho Brahe died of burst bladder, not poisoning



Two years after Tycho Brahe was exhumed from his grave in Prague, chemical analyses of his corpse show that mercury poisoning did not kill the prolific 16th-century astronomer. The results should put to bed rumors that Brahe was murdered when he most likely died of a burst bladder.

Separately, tests revealed that Brahe’s famously “silver” prosthetic nose was actually made out of brass.

Born in Denmark in 1546, Brahe served as an astronomer for the Danish king before settling in Prague in the court of Holy Roman Emperor Rudolph II.

Brahe is known for making the most accurate measurements of stars and planets without the aid of a telescope, proving that comets are objects in space and not in Earth’s atmosphere, and hiring the not-yet-famous German astronomer Johannes Kepler as his assistant.

Tycho Brahe died from pee, not poison - Technology & science - Science - LiveScience | NBC News