Plague in Antiquity
Edited by A. Jamieson Edited by C.J. Tully Edited by L.A. Hitchcock
This volume came about based on the recognition that the rise and spread of Covid-19 has led contemporary scholarship to consider the possibility that there will be an increasing acceleration of new and highly transmissible plagues, viruses and other diseases linked to the mass travel and trade that characterizes hyper-globalization. As historians and archaeologists studying the civilizations of the most distant past, we felt that we had something to contribute to this conversation through providing a historical perspective, with the twin goals of relieving the social anxiety caused by pandemics and taking advantage of our present experiences to see how we might view our own research in a fresh, new light. Archaeologists and scholars of ancient history know that epidemic plagues and other environmental catastrophes are nothing new: disease and illness are clearly represented in the archaeological and historical record. The chapters in this volume focus on plague in antiquity, centred primarily on the ancient Near East. Chronologically, they span the Bronze Age to Late Antiquity, and regionally they cover Mesopotamia, Egypt, the Levant, Cyprus, Anatolia and the Indus valley. The contributors discuss a range of topics related to plague-its causes and transmission, environmental factors, responses and treatments, disruptions and social effects-drawing on ancient texts, modern sociology, archaeological evidence and cultural material remains. The variety of contributions demonstrates that rather than being anomalous, various forms of illness were normal, recurring and prevalent within the ancient world. The authors refer to the current Covid-19 pandemic, which was also inspiration in producing this work. This volume contributes to the contextualization of plague, pestilence, disease and disability within wider and deeper human history.
- Edited by A. Jamieson
- Edited by C.J. Tully
- Edited by L.A. Hitchcock
Other Titles in this Series
Across the Border: Late Bronze-Iron Age Relations between Syria and Anatolia
Proceedings of a Symposium held at the Research Center of Anatolian Studies, Koc University, Istanbul, May 31 - June 1, 2010
Volume 42
Archaeology at the North-East Anatolian Frontier, VI
An Ethnoarchaeological Study of Sos Hoyuk and Yigittasi Village
Volume 11
Anatolian Iron Ages 7
The Proceedings of the Seventh Anatolian Iron Ages Colloquium Held at Edirne, 19-24 April 2010
Volume 39
The Lure of the Antique
Essays on Malta and Mediterranean Archaeology in Honour of Anthony Bonanno
Volume 54
Yanik Tepe, Northwestern Iran
The Early Trans-Caucasian Period. Stratigraphy and Architecture
Volume 41
Punic Antiquities of Malta and Other Ancient Artefacts Held in Ecclesiastic and Private Collections
Volume 10
Alalakh and its Neighbours
Proceedings of the 15th Anniversary Symposium at the New HatayArchaeology Museum, 10-12 June 2015
Volume 55
‘What Mean these Stones?’ (Joshua 4
6, 21): Essays on Texts, Philology, and Archaeology in Honour of Anthony J. Frendo
Volume 50
Archaeozoology of the Near East X
Proceedings of the Tenth International Symposium on the Archaeozoology of South-Western Asia and Adjacent Areas
Volume 44
Old Aramaic Inscriptions and their Contexts
An Epigraphic, Archaeological, and Historical Synthesis
Volume 63
Of Vines and Wines
The Production and Consumption of Wine in Anatolian Civilizations through the Ages
Volume 51
Archaeology at the North-East Anatolian Frontier, V
Iron Technology and Iron-making Communities of the First Millennium BC
Volume 13
Unearthing the Wilderness
Studies on the History and Archaeology of the Negev and Edom in the Iron Age
Volume 45
Ancient Nomads of the Aralo-Caspian Region
The Duana Archaeological Complex. University of Sydney Central Asian Programme
Volume 25
Archaeology at the North-East Anatolian Frontier, I
An Historical Geography and a Field Survey of the Bayburt Province
Volume 14
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