The Antonine Plague was a major epidemic that spread through the Roman Empire during the reign of Marcus Aurelius, whose family name Antoninus gives it its name. It is also called the Plague of Galen, after the Greek physician who described its symptoms, which included fever, a skin eruption and diarrhea. The disease seems to have been brought back by soldiers returning from the war against the Parthians in the East, and then spread along trade and military routes. Modern scholars usually suggest smallpox, though this is uncertain. Estimates of the mortality range widely, but it hit armies and cities hard, and some historians see it as a factor in the strains that the empire faced in the later second century.
Before and after
- 142 CEOrigins of Temple of Antoninus and Faustina
- 150 CEBirth of Nagarjuna
- c. 150sPtolemy writes the Almagest
- 161 CEOrigins of Odeon of Herodes Atticus
- from 165 CE to 180 CEAntonine Plague
- from 166 CE to 180 CEMarcomannic Wars
- 170 CEDeath of Ptolemy
- 17 March 180 CEDeath of Marcus Aurelius
- from 184 CE to 205 CEYellow Turban Rebellion
More in Society, economy & sport
- c. 601 BCEThe Lydians mint the first coins
- 5th century BCERise of Cynicism
- from 8 CE to 73 CERise of Zealotry
- 245 CERise of Neoplatonism
- c. 330 CEKing Ezana converts Aksum to Christianity
- 27 February 380 CEChristianity becomes the state religion of Rome
The era
This moment belongs to the Ancient civilizations (3,200 BCE to 500 CE), writing, cities and empires. You can also browse everything in the 2nd century.