Parkesine
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Parkesine is the trademark for the first man-made plastic. It was invented by Alexander Parkes in 1862. In 1866 Parkes formed the Parkesine Company to mass produce the material. The company, however, failed due to poor product quality as Parkes tried to reduce costs. Parkesine's successor was xylonite, produced by Daniel Spill (an associate of Parkes). Parkesine was made from cellulose treated with nitric acid and a solvent. The generic name of Parkesine is pyroxlin, or celluloid . Parkesine is often synthetic ivory. The Parkesine company ceased trading in 1868. Examples of Parkesine are held by the Plastics Historical Society of London.
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