The Bubonic Plague

Expert Talk

Join Otago Museum’s own Merryn Chynoweth for a grimly fascinating examination of the Bubonic Plague, or as it was known, The Black Death.

This horrifying pandemic was responsible for the deaths of up to one third of the total population of Europe and the Middle East in the 14th Century. This terrifying sickness had an incubation period of 2 to 8 days after the bite of an infected flea and, without treatment, resulted in the death of 30% to 90% of those infected.

Merryn will talk about the story of Eyam, a whole village that isolated from the outside world for fourteen months as the plague ravaged their population; and the plethora of Medieval theories and treatments. From the plague doctors who stuffed herbs and flowers into their beaked masks and the pomander jewellery people carried around with them, Merryn will take you back to the era of terror and the impacts on a society that was rocked by death and upheaval.

12.10pm, Tuesday 18 April
Barclay Theatre
Koha