Remains of Byzantine Plague Victims Studied

TAMPA, FLORIDA—According to a statement released by the University of South Florida, a mass grave containing the remains of victims of the Plague of Justinian (A.D. 541–750) has been identified at the site of Jerash in northern Jordan by a team of researchers led by Rays H.Y. Jiang of the University of South Florida. Hundreds of people were buried within several days in this mass grave dug in the city’s hippodrome. “By linking biological evidence from the bodies to the archaeological setting, we can see how disease affected real people within their social and environmental context,” Jiang said. Examination of the remains from the grave suggests that these individuals lived in different areas across the region, but had been brought together in a single burial. “Pandemics aren’t just biological events, they’re social events, and this study shows how disease intersects with daily life, movement, and vulnerability,” Jiang concluded. To read about an earlier form of the bacterium that caused the Justinian plague, go to "Bronze Age Plague," one of ARCHAEOLOGY's Top 10 Discoveries of 2018.