Infectious Diseases in Prehistory: Various Case Studies

Abstract

Infectious diseases were widespread in Prehistory, as the archaeological record sometimes reveals. Most infectious processes leave no trace in the skeletal apparatus, but the exceptions that allow us to learn more about one of the main causes of death in Antiquity. Traditionally, many of today's diseases have been considered to have originated in the Neolithic period, but evidence shows that some of them are as old as human evolution itself. It seems clear that, on the one hand, with the adoption of agriculture and livestock, human populations grew exponentially in number, enabling greater transmission of virus, bacteria and parasites; and, on the other hand, they acquired new micro-organisms from livestock following the so-called secondary products revolution. This would be the origin of some potentially dangerous diseases for humans.