Archeologists from the Italian Archaeological Mission to Luxor (MAIL) discovered the Egyptian remains of the ancient "Plague of Cyprian," believed to be the signal for the world's end.
The Plague of Cyprian, named after the Carthage bishop Saint Cyprian who witnessed and documented the plague, was a pandemic that might have been today's smallpox or measles. Citizens of the Roman Empire in AD 250 were affected until the larger Crisis of the Third Century. During the plague, about 5,000 people died per day.
The pieces of pottery discovered enabled researchers to calculate the date when the plague occurred. The MAIL team worked at the Funerary Complex located at Harwa and Akhimenru near the ancient city of Thebes, now known as Luxor. They discovered thick layers of lime, the kiln where the lime was produced, and a giant bonfire with human remains.
The researchers planned to extract DNA from the remains, but realized that it would be impossible.
"In a climate like Egypt, the DNA is completely destroyed," Francesco Tiradritti, lead author of the study and the director of MAIL, told LiveScience. "DNA breaks down over time, and permafrost (something not found in Egypt) is the best place to find ancient DNA samples"
Tiradritti and his colleagues also found the remains of a body disposal system sometime between 1997 and 2012. During that time, the team excavated a monument built around the seventh century B.C for a steward called Harwa. After Harwa died, the Egyptians continued to use the monument built for him in burials. Later, it was used as a body disposal system during the plague. The Egyptians eventually left the monument and stopped using it.
Tiradritti explained that the complex, which was used to dispose of infected corpses, gave the monument a bad omen. People avoided the monument at all costs and it remained abandoned until tomb raiders discovered it during the 19th century.
The findings of this study were published in the June 18 issue of Egyptian Archaeology.
