Antonine Plague, the First Pandemic that Devastated the Roman Empire and that the Physician Galen Tried to Treat with Milk

A terrible epidemic swept through the Roman Empire in the second half of the 2nd century, between 165 and 180 AD, claiming nearly five million lives—ten percent of the population. That fifteen-year period represented the most serious public health problem in the history of Ancient Rome—with the exception of the Justinian plague—and some historians believe […]