
Scientists have perhaps discovered the biggest mass grave site in Europe.
The finding led scientists to believe that the remains were interred in the early 17th century after a devastating wave of the plague had spread.
At least one thousand victims of the bubonic plague, which wiped out as much as 60% of Europe’s population, rest in Nuremberg, Germany.
Fleas infected with the Yersinia pestis bacteria are the vectors that carry the bubonic plague. In most cases, people get the plague via flea bites harboring the bacteria. According to the Mayo Clinic, although current medications are successful in treating plague, the disease may still cause severe sickness or death if not treated quickly. Handling diseased animals or touching polluted fluids or bodies of infected animals are other potential routes of plague transmission.
The eight plague pits found at Nuremberg, Germany, have significantly impacted the surrounding area. The high mortality rate from the terrible sickness is reflected in these graves, which include the remains of children, the elderly, men, and women.
Local reports show the burial sites were discovered while building a new retirement community. Bombs dropped in the region during WWII left some bones physically damaged, while the disposal of waste from a nearby copper plant turned others green.
At least two thousand bodies, according to one expert, might be concealed there. Experts found a record from 1634 outlining a plague epidemic at the location that killed more than 15,000 individuals between 1632 and 1633. Radiocarbon analysis was used to date one tomb between the end of the 1400s and early 1600s.
The new retirement home’s managing director, Ralf Schekira, is trying to make the most of a circumstance in which he was unprepared for such a significant discovery. They will try to chronicle the historical discovery and stay within the construction timeline for the retirement community. The next stage is to disassemble each skeleton and examine it for signs of the Yersinia pestis bacteria.