Scientists say they’ve solved a 700-year-old mystery: Where and when Black Death began

By Max Barnhart

A woodcut from the 15th century depicts a scene from the Black Death plague, which killed an estimated 50 million people in Europe and the Mediterranean between 1346 and 1353. Scientists say they may have found the origin of this deadly disease.

For centuries, scientists and historians have wondered where the Black Death — the deadliest pandemic in recorded history — came from. New research sheds light on the ancient disease.

(Image credit: Pictures from History/Universal Images Group /Getty Images )

Source: Scientists say they’ve solved a 700-year-old mystery: Where and when Black Death began