Medieval plague pit discovered in central London

[Blackleaf]

Workmen building a new 73 mile railway have come across a plague pit filled with the victims of the Black Death in one of the busiest areas of London:

They have lain unseen for centuries – a carefully arranged group of skeletons deep beneath what became one of the busiest areas of London.​

Millions of feet have tramped unwittingly above them through the years; thousands of tons of earth and rubble concealed their grave.​

But yesterday it was hoped that the DNA within the nine sets of remains would unlock a mystery that has baffled and divided medical minds for generations: what caused the Black Death in 1348?​

Carefully laid out skeletons thought to be from a 14th century burial ground that have been discovered in London during work on the £14.8billion Crossrail project​

Don Walker, an osteologist from the Museum of London's Archaeology department, inspects a skeleton​

They were discovered during excavation work for the £14.8billion Crossrail project, currently carving a subterranean path across London. ​

They were more than 8ft below a road between Farringdon and Barbican Tube stations, leading internet wags to suggest they probably died waiting for a Circle Line train.​

In fact the bodies are believed to have been among the 1.5million Britons who died when the plague swept through Europe.​

Emergency mass graves were dug, but the corpses were not simply thrown in. Men and women were placed side by side in uniform rows, often with hands folded across the torso.​

A similar skeleton formation was found in the 1980s at nearby Smithfield, and as many as 50,000 might have been buried in the area over three years.​

Crossrail lead archaeologist Jay Carver said: 'This is a highly significant discovery and at the moment we are left with many questions that we hope to answer.​

'We will be undertaking scientific tests on the skeletons to establish their cause of death, whether they were plague victims from the 14th century or later residents, how old they were and perhaps evidence of who they were.​

'However, at this early stage all points towards this being part of the 14th-century emergency burial ground.'​

Around a third of the population of Britain died in the Black Death. Estimates of how many perished in Europe and elsewhere vary between 25million and 200million, making it the grimmest and most destructive pandemic in human history.​

DNA analysis of European victims has suggested that the Yersinia pestis bacterium was responsible, but many scientists believe the infection was a rapidly-spreading virus.​

Now DNA experts are working with archaeologists at the Farringdon site to try to identify the exact cause from bone samples.​

Once analysis is complete, the skeletons will be reburied on the site or at a cemetery​

​

Sizing things up: The skeletons were carefully laid out in rows eight feet beneath the surface

The skeletons were more than 8ft below a road between Farringdon and Barbican Tube stations​

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DNA experts are working with archaeologists at the Farringdon site to try to identify the exact cause from bone samples

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Delicate operation: Archaeologist and site supervisor Sam Pfizenmaier from the Museum of London's Archaeology department working in a grout shaft

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Locator: The skeletons were discovered buried underneath a road in Charterhouse Square in London

Medieval graves that could solve mystery of the Black Death: Twelve skeletons discovered under London street | Mail Online​

 

[Sal]

Fascinating. And I thought the Black Plague was due to rats being infested with fleas which carried the plague. Hm. Now they don't know.

 

[karrie]

Fascinating. And I thought the Black Plague was due to rats being infested with fleas which carried the plague. Hm. Now they don't know.

That's not what they mean.

They know how diseases were spread, they're trying to establish through DNA testing what disease it was that was spread. They're not sure if the Black Plague was bacterial or viral, and which strain was responsible.

 

[Sal]

That's not what they mean.

They know how diseases were spread, they're trying to establish through DNA testing what disease it was that was spread. They're not sure if the Black Plague was bacterial or viral, and which strain was responsible.

oh, thanks Karrie...I missed that part.

It's still fascinating none the less and that they were buried with dignity and care at a time when people where dying by the thousands

 

[karrie]

oh, thanks Karrie...it's still fascinating none the less and that they were buried with dignity and care at a time when people where dying by the thousands

We'll see what comes out in the results. They looked too widely spaced to be a 'plague pit' burial. They may have simply been an old cemetery from the time, and have died of different causes. But, I am just a housewife

 

[Sal]

We'll see what comes out in the results. They looked too widely spaced to be a 'plague pit' burial. They may have simply been an old cemetery from the time, and have died of different causes. But, I am just a housewife

lol well I find the spacing of the bodies a tad suspicious... who would have had the time but maybe.

 

[#juan]

lol well I find the spacing of the bodies a tad suspicious... who would have had the time but maybe.

I remember reading that during the plague pandemic the mass graves were so full of bodies there wasn't room to put the
dirt back in the hole.

 

[Sal]

I remember reading that during the plague pandemic the mass graves were so full of bodies there wasn't room to put the
dirt back in the hole.

That would seem likely. They didn't have back hoes. Can you imagine trying bury all of those bodies? The odor too would have been horrendous.

 

[Cliffy]

We'll see what comes out in the results. They looked too widely spaced to be a 'plague pit' burial. They may have simply been an old cemetery from the time, and have died of different causes. But, I am just a housewife

My first thought was, I hope they have not unleashed another plague uncovering these bones, but then I thought the same as you, too neatly buried to be a plague pit.

 

[Spade]

You mean Britain did not go to hell in a handcart?

 

[Cliffy]

You mean Britain did not go to hell in a handcart?

We all make our own hell. Britain certainly has theirs. Hundreds of years of colonialism can do that.

 

[Spade]

And a rigid caste system.

 

[Cliffy]

And a rigid caste system.

Caste them into the plague pit!

I come from the lower caste on my father's side and Welsh upper caste on my mother's side (she inherited Llywelyn's castle). I guess that makes me a mutt.

 

[Nuggler]

8O............Realllly.............a caste system...........surely you jest old chap. Whilst riding to hounds just the other day we were discussing this..............thing. We decided you people were full of it. haw haw tosh tosh, and all that.

That would seem likely. They didn't have back hoes. Can you imagine trying bury all of those bodies? The odor too would have been horrendous.

What's wrong with black hoes ??

.............................oh........................woops.

 

[Sal]

8O............Realllly.............a caste system...........surely you jest old chap. Whilst riding to hounds just the other day we were discussing this..............thing. We decided you people were full of it. haw haw tosh tosh, and all that.




What's wrong with black hoes ??

.............................oh........................woops.

toffee nose...

 

[Cliffy]

What's wrong with black hoes ??

What? You prefer them on their knees?

 

[Spade]

Taffy was a Welshman, Taffy was a thief;
Taffy came to my house and stole a piece of beef;
I went to Taffy's house, Taffy wasn't in;
I jumped upon his Sunday hat and poked it with a pin.

Taffy was a Welshman, Taffy was a sham;
Taffy came to my house and stole a piece of lamb;
I went to Taffy's house, Taffy was away,
I stuffed his socks with sawdust and filled his shoes with clay.

Taffy was a Welshman, Taffy was a cheat,
Taffy came to my house, and stole a piece of meat;
I went to Taffy's house, Taffy was not there,
I hung his coat and trousers to roast before a fire.

 

[Blackleaf]

It was the most devastating pandemic in human history.​

But 25 skeletons discovered by railway engineers beneath London suggest the Black Death was even more lethal than previously thought.​

After analysing the teeth of the corpses, scientists believe the bubonic plague – spread by the bites of infected fleas living on black rats – mutated into a more virulent strain that passed easily from human to human.​

The outbreak claimed the lives of around 75million people in the 14th century. ​

The researchers say only the more contagious strain can explain why so many died.​

Among the victims was Edward III's daughter, Joan, who sailed to Europe to marry the heir to the Spanish throne of Castile. She died of the plague within ten days of arriving.

The new findings, revealed in Channel 4 documentary Secret History: Return of the Black Death, which will air on Sunday, emerged after engineers working on the Crossrail project discovered 25 skeletons in Clerkenwell, in the London Borough of Islington, while digging 26 miles of tunnels beneath the capital for a new railway.

The discovery also solves the mystery of where the huge burial pit for Black Death victims is situated in London. Archaeologists now believe it is under Charterhouse Square near the Barbican.​

Skeletons give up the secrets of Black Death: Humans, not rats, spread the plague​

Scientists have been examining skeletons of plague victims unearthed in Clerkenwell, London

They compared DNA taken from bones with samples from a recent outbreak in Madagascar which killed 60 people

The two samples were an almost perfect match, meaning the plague was no more virulent than it is today

They now believe that the disease was airborne and had to have been spread by coughs and sneezes

By Arthur Martin
30 March 2014
Daily Mail​

It was the most devastating pandemic in human history.​

But 25 skeletons discovered by railway engineers beneath London suggest the Black Death was even more lethal than previously thought.​

After analysing the teeth of the corpses, scientists believe the bubonic plague – spread by the bites of infected fleas living on black rats – mutated into a more virulent strain that passed easily from human to human.​

​

New theory: Analysis of skeletons discovered in London believed to be victims of the Black Death suggests the disease was not spread by rat fleas, but was in fact airborne

​

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DNA of plague bacteria taken from the 25 skeletons discovered in Clerkenwell was compared to samples from a recent outbreak in Madagascar which killed 60 people

​

The remains were discovered during excavations of Charterhouse Square in Farringdon, London, an area of the capital left largely undisturbed for years

This 'pneumonic' form of plague infected the lungs of sufferers, meaning they could spread the disease simply by coughing – fatal in medieval Europe's crowded cities. It also had a much lower survival rate and could kill within 24 hours.​

The outbreak claimed the lives of around 75million people in the 14th century. The researchers say only the more contagious strain can explain why so many died.​

Among the victims was Edward III's daughter, Joan, who sailed to Europe to marry the heir to the Spanish throne of Castile. She died of the plague within ten days of arriving.​

The new findings, revealed in Channel 4 documentary Secret History: Return of the Black Death, which will air on Sunday, emerged after engineers working on the Crossrail project discovered 25 skeletons while digging 26 miles of tunnels beneath the capital.​

They were found close to Smithfield Market last year, in neat rows on two levels sealed under a layer of clay. Thousands of bodies are thought to have been interred at an emergency burial site there. ​

Teeth from 12 of the skeletons were sent for analysis and four tested positive for Yersinia pestis. The deadly bacterium is responsible for both bubonic and pneumonic plague. But the researchers concluded that the bubonic strain could not have had the devastating impact seen during the Black Death. ​

Dr Tim Brooks, an expert in infectious diseases at Public Health England, said: 'As an explanation for the Black Death in its own right, [bubonic plague is] simply not good enough.​

The researchers were shocked to discover that the two samples were an almost perfect match, meaning the 14th century plague was no more virulent than it is today​

The DNA samples, which were extracted from the molar teeth of the skeletons, have also revealed intriguing details of the victims' lives​

Don Walker, an osteologist with the Museum of London with one of the 25 skeletons found by construction workers under central London's Charterhouse Square last year​

'It cannot spread fast enough from one household to the next to cause the huge number of cases that we saw during the Black Death epidemics.' ​

He added: 'In a small number of people … the organism will spread to their lungs and they will then develop a pneumonia. It is that critical switch, that if there were enough people in contact with them, that allows it to spread as a pneumonic plague.' ​

Fellow researcher Don Walker, of the Museum of London Archaeology, said the pneumonic form was 'more lethal', adding: 'There was no chance of recovery.'​

Bring out your dead: The Black Death decimated the population of Britain in the mid 14th century killing an estimated six of 10 Londoners​

The new finding have come from comparing DNA from teeth of the skeletons to samples from a recent plague outbreak in Madagascar​

The excavation work was being carried out in order to make way for the new Crossrail train line​

Six out of 10 bodies analysed were born and bred in London. But four had come from further afield - presumably seeking work - from the South East of England, central England or the East of England and one from northern England or Scotland​

The remains also revealed that one of the bodies could have been that of a monk - after showing signs of vegetarianism in later life, which is something a Carthusian monk would have done during the 14th century​

Archaeologist Jay Carver said: 'Analysis of the Crossrail find has revealed an extraordinary amount of information allowing us to solve a 660-year mystery'​

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Crossrail's lead archeologist Jay Carver inspecting one of the 25 skeletons, left. Research has shown that the burial ground was established in 1348​

Read more: Skeletons give up the secrets of Black Death: Humans, not rats, spread the plague | Mail Online
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook​

 

[EagleSmack]

Brit archeologists at work...

 

[Nuggler]

GOOD ONE EAGLE:


From the way the bodies are laid out I doubt very much if it's a plague PIT.

BUTTTEYE could be wrong.

If I was chuckin plague victims------------BIG HOLE---------HEAVEM------COVER AND RUN. Or just run.

That would seem likely. They didn't have back hoes. Can you imagine trying bury all of those bodies? The odor too would have been horrendous.

nothing wrong with black hoes...........er.............so they say

OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH !!

.........Thanks Christ they didn't find arrowheads, or they'd have to start a new line.