You have human migration, you have trade links and I mean, if you also add to that military campaigns that were happening around the same time, you have several wars that were going on in different parts of Eurasia. You end up with a perfect storm which facilitates the spread of plague. — Professor Philip Slavin
What to listen for:
This episode traces the Black Death from its origins in Central Asia to its devastating sweep across Eurasia, exploring how trade, migration, and war fueled its spread, how medieval communities responded with early quarantine measures, and what skeletal evidence reveals about who suffered most.
Guests:
- Phil Slavin: Professor of Medieval and Environmental History, University of Stirling; co-leads the Plague Synergy Project
- Sharon DeWitte: Professor, Department of Anthropology and Institute of Behavioral Science, University of Colorado Boulder; specializes in bioarchaeology and mortality crises of the medieval period