Visualizing the History of Pandemics

As humans have spread across the world, so have infectious diseases. Even in this modern era, outbreaks are nearly constant, though not every outbreak reaches pandemic level as the Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) has.

Today’s visualization outlines some of history’s most deadly pandemics, from the Antonine Plague to the current COVID-19 event.

Disease and illnesses have plagued humanity since the earliest days, our mortal flaw. However, it was not until the marked shift to agrarian communities that the scale and spread of these diseases increased dramatically.

Widespread trade created new opportunities for human and animal interactions that sped up such epidemics. Malaria, tuberculosis, leprosy, influenza, smallpox, and others first appeared during these early years.

The more civilized humans became – with larger cities, more exotic trade routes, and increased contact with different populations of people, animals, and ecosystems – the more likely pandemics would occur.

For those who want a literary distraction, might want to read Manzoni’s “The Betrothed” ( Promessi Sposi) In this classic Italian novel written in the 18th century, the great plague that occurred in Italy in the 17th century is the backdrop. Human behavior, personalities, opinions and reasoning in the 21st century are not much different than that of the 17th century.

More proof that there are lies, damn lies and statistics.

It is clear this guy is a leftist since he compared a virus that has spread over 40 years (AIDS) to a virus that spread all in one year and used bigger and smaller pictures to represent them. Why not then just add the yearly “Flu” to that list and make the years from 5,000 B.C. to today? That would be a vert large graphic.

JoMa

Also please add Albert Camus’s “The Plague” (1947). Set in Oran [Algeria] in a post WW2 setting, discussions of “Good v Evil” and how to react against the vissitudes of disaster.

One of my reading projects for this solitude is Dennis Prager’s “Rational Bible” - Genesis & Exodus.

The “Black Death” Plague of 1347-52 is probably the most impactful of all with the “Plague of Justinian” running second as far as Western Civilization / Europe is concerned. Feudalism, as a government structure, and the semi-dominance of the Roman Catholic Church were both greatly damaged from the Black Death. The land-bound serfs of feudalism were essentially freed by the resultant labor shortages. The CHURCH, already damaged by the Avignon relocation, lost even more of its spiritual & political capital with its decreased and sporadic ability to help the sick and dying. Could the after-effects of this disaster be the Renaissance and much of the subsequent benefits? Many have made this argument!

On the “Plague of Justinian” (541-2) significance, Justinian was an able ruler and had a chance to reunite large portions of the former Western Roman Empire. Even with his problems, Byzantium did conquer portions of Italy and much of the Adriatic coast. Wherever you see a Romanesque Cathedral adorned with beautiful mosaics in Southern Europe, it was probably part of his efforts. A reinvigorated Empire then might have given the Islamic Conquests of 80 years later a run for their money. The fact that the Persian Sassanid Empire was also struck by the same plague and that both Byzantium and Persia were at war with each other for most of the previous century exacerbated the plague’s damage and led to the weaknesses that Islam benefitted from.

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