Plague of Athens (jan 1, 430 BC – jan 1, 426 BC)

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The plague of Athens occurred during the second year of the Peloponnesian war which was by most accounts, the most lethal epidemic within Ancient Greece. Reports of the plague were often from Thucydides, a survivor of the plague, who recounts symptoms that included headaches, inflammation of the eyes and throat, sneezing, violent coughing and a generalised rash. The final stages of the disease had included diarrhea, blindness and necrosis which led to death. The disease of that caused the plague is widely unknown but is theorised to be smallpox, typhoid fever or typhus. The plague had killed around 75 000 to 100 000 people within 3 years, causing the death of 25% of Athen’s population. The plague had managed to spread due to the overcrowding due to wartime conditions which led to the death of 25% of Athen’s population with the former leader of Athens, Pericles being one of its victims.

Image 1: Painting depicting the plague of Athens Source: The New Yorker

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