Why Cohn Believes the Black Death was not

Why Cohn Believes the Black Death was not Bubonic Plague carried by rats. 1. It moved to quickly 2. There were no reports of widespread rat deaths 3. The symptoms of the Black death were not exactly the same as Bubonic Plague 4. People who survived the Black Death once never caught it again. This type of immunity is common with viruses, not with bacterial infections.

At the same time the Crusades were going on, the Mongols began conquering the center of Asia.

Cleaning up bodies after a bout of the plague…source unknown Catacombs at Milan

Pieter Bruegell, 1562 “The Triumph of Death”

European Population before and after the Black Death

The first time people realized that diseases were contagious. Plague Doctors wore masks with long “beaks” filled with flowers to cover the stench of the plague.

Anatomical studies by Leonardo Da Vinci and Michelangelo

On a Piece of scrap paper • You have three minutes to write a list of all of your most important possessions.

Art that was both anatomically realistic, and focused on death— like Donatello’s Pieta above or Raphael’s Descent from the Cross to the right

Sistene Chapel in Rome, rebuilt by Michelangelo 1475 -1480.

Effects of the Plague • Death of 50% of the population of Europe and Asia (2 nd largest population adjustment in History) • Broke up the Mongol Empire/Ended the Pax Mongolica • Made Christians Question their relationship to God • Led to new discoveries in science and medicine • Led to a more practical perspective on science and medicine • Greatly increased the average wealth of the survivors.