Archaeological Insights to Modern Pandemics: Contemporary Inferences from the Antonine Plague

The COVID-19 pandemic highlights the lack of preparatory measures in place for mass disease events. The lack of hospital beds, overflow of bodies from morgues, closure of businesses and subsequent job loss demonstrates the failure of the government and medical officials to develop effective pandemic preparations. However, analyzing past pandemics, like the Antonine Plague, through archaeology can better inform experts for disaster protocol development.The archaeological analysis of the Antonine Plague, arguably the first pandemic experienced by humanity, demonstratesmacro phenomena contingent to human pandemic experience. The spread of infection, mass death and breakdown offunerary practices, humanity’s response to pandemics, mobility due to disease, economic effects and reemergence of the disease are all consistencies prevalent within pandemic experience of the Antonine and Covid-19 Pandemics that occur through micro variations dependent on present culture. Archaeology offers pandemic insight to modern society furthering knowledge of humanity’s contemporary relationship with disease.