Pandemic | smithsonianmag.comhttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/rss/tag/pandemic/RSS feed for PandemicenFri, 01 May 2026 15:29:01 +0000Dead Bodies Filled a Mass Grave When the First Plague Pandemic Struck This Early Medieval City. New Research Explores the Identity of the Victimshttps://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/dead-bodies-filled-a-mass-grave-when-the-first-pandemic-struck-this-early-medieval-city-new-research-explores-the-identity-of-the-victims-180988652/Researchers analyzed isotopes and DNA in the teeth of remains found in a mass grave from the Plague of Justinian, which swept through the Byzantine EmpireFri, 01 May 2026 15:29:01 +0000https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/dead-bodies-filled-a-mass-grave-when-the-first-pandemic-struck-this-early-medieval-city-new-research-explores-the-identity-of-the-victims-180988652/