Look back at the chronicle of global pandemics, and the flu pandemic of 1918 stands out as an anomaly for one reason: According to the history books, it struck healthy adults in their prime just as often, if not more so, ...
Archaeology
Oct 9, 2023
2
60
Black Death, mid-fourteenth century plague, is undoubtedly the most famous historical pandemic. Within only five years it killed 30-50% of the European population. Unfortunately it didn't stop there. Plague resurged throughout ...
Cell & Microbiology
Jan 22, 2016
18
2544
A study of more than 1,400 protein-coding genes of fleas has resolved one of the longest standing mysteries in the evolution of insects, reordering their placement in the tree of life and pinpointing who their closest relatives ...
Plants & Animals
Dec 21, 2020
11
3142
As the COVID-19 pandemic redefines what we think of as "normal," archaeology and ancient history can provide some consolation about the great adaptability of our species.
Archaeology
May 5, 2020
0
1524
Before the infamous Black Death, the first great plague epidemic was the Justinian plague, which, over the course of two centuries, wiped out up to an estimated 50 million (15 percent) of the world's population throughout ...
Archaeology
Aug 30, 2016
1
983
In the mid-14th century Europe was devastated by a major pandemic—the Black Death—which killed between 40 and 60 per cent of the population. Later waves of plague then continued to strike regularly over several centuries.
Archaeology
Jun 17, 2021
0
220
Europe's Great Famine of 1315–1317 is considered one of the worst population collapses in the continent's history. Historical records tell of unrelenting rain accompanied by mass crop failure, skyrocketing food prices, ...
Earth Sciences
Dec 13, 2019
20
536
A team of researchers with the University of Oslo has found evidence that suggests human fleas and lice, not rodents, were behind the spread of the plague that killed millions of people over the course of several centuries. ...
Cats had a bad reputation in the middle ages. Their presumed links with paganism and witchcraft meant they were often treated with suspicion. But despite their association with the supernatural, medieval manuscripts showcase ...
Archaeology
Dec 23, 2022
2
220
Workers digging a new railway line in London have uncovered what they believe is a burial ground containing victims of the Black Death—a plague that wiped out as much as half of London's inhabitants when it swept the city ...
Archaeology
Mar 15, 2013
0
1
