Researchers confirmed that Yersinia pestis triggered the Justinian Plague, the world’s first recorded pandemic 1,500 years ago.
Scientists traced the bacterium to its epicentre for the first time, solving a centuries-old medical mystery.
Ancient DNA Links Deadly Bacterium to Outbreak
Archaeologists uncovered traces of Yersinia pestis in a mass grave beneath Jerash’s ruins in Jordan.
Researchers used DNA analysis on eight teeth from the grave, confirming the bacterium’s presence between 550 and 660 AD.
Lead author Rays HY Jiang said the findings finally provided hard biological evidence long absent from historical accounts.
Pandemic Devastated Byzantine Empire
The Justinian Plague began in 541 CE, sweeping across the eastern Mediterranean and the Byzantine Empire.
Historians estimate the disease killed 15 to 100 million people over two centuries of recurring outbreaks.
The bacterium spread through fleas on rodents, especially rats, and sometimes passed directly between humans.
Insights Into Ancient Public Health
Researchers said the Jerash hippodrome, once a grand entertainment venue, became a mass grave during the outbreak.
The findings show how cities collapsed under public health crises, overwhelmed by fast, lethal disease spread.
Jiang noted plague has plagued humans for millennia, resurfacing through animal reservoirs and still claiming lives today.
He added that, like COVID, plague keeps evolving, making complete eradication impossible despite modern containment efforts.
