The first set of statistical evidence that I wanted to examine was at what age group was affected most by the Black Death. Finding completely accurate information is going to be nearly impossible as accurate records have either been lost, destroyed, or not created at all. What I did find was a study on age of patterns of mortality during the Black Death in London from 1349-1350. The results from this study were what I had expected to find.
As of right now I am not fully convinced that this makes a difference in the images that are depicted in the illustrated manuscripts both during and after the Black Death. The reason for this conclusion is because as DeWitte mentioned in her abstract of the Age patterns of mortality during the Black Death in London, the patterns of death hadn't changed; the old were still the ones who were dying as they were more susceptible to the plague.Analyses were done using a sample of 337 individuals excavated from the East Smithfield cemetery in London, which contains only individuals who died during the Black Death in London in 1349–1350. The age patterns from East Smithfield were compared to a sample of 207 individuals who died from non-epidemic causes of mortality. Ages were estimated using the method of transition analysis, and age-specific mortality was evaluated using a hazards model. The results indicate that the risk of mortality during the Black Death increased with adult age, and therefore that age had an effect on risk of death during the epidemic. The age patterns in the Black Death cemetery were similar to those from the non-epidemic mortality sample. The results from this study are consistent with previous findings suggesting that despite the devastating nature of the Black Death, the 14th-century disease had general patterns of selectivity that were similar to those associated with normal medieval mortality. [1]
After looking into the importance of age in relation to how the plague affect medieval Europe, I felt that it was necessary to follow up this study with a study that associated the mortality rates with preexisting conditions and whether or not it was a factor in the spread of the plague. Just as before, even though it doesn't show a clear impact on the illustrated manuscripts, I am questioning whether it made a difference at all.
Many researchers have assumed that the Black Death was so virulent, and the European population so immunologically naïve, that the epidemic killed indiscriminately, irrespective of age, sex, or frailty. If this were true,Black Death cemeteries would provide unbiased cross-sections of demographic and epidemiological conditions in 14th-century Europe. Using skeletal remains from medieval England and Denmark, new methods of paleodemographic age estimation, and a recent multistate model of selective mortality, we test the assumption that the mid-14th-century Black Death killed indiscriminately. Skeletons from the East Smithfield Black Death cemetery in London are compared with normal, nonepidemic cemetery samples from two medieval Danish towns (Viborg and Odense). The results suggest that the Black Death did not kill indiscriminately-that it was, in fact, selective with respect to frailty, although probably not as strongly selective as normal mortality. [2]Surprisingly, the fact that it was selective in respect to frailty should have a impact on the images that are displayed in the illustrated manuscripts. Although noted in my previous blogs, the manuscripts didn't exempt individuals based on social standing since the death killed regardless if you were powerful or a peasant; however, perhaps the images of the individuals within the paintings show more feeble characters? This is something that I haven't noticed as of yet, but then again I haven't really been looking into that. The next few blogs are going to start trying to tie some loose ends and make further observations about how the illustrated manuscripts reflect societies outlook on death and dying during the Black Plague.
[1] DeWitte, Sharon N. "Age patterns of mortality during the Black Death in London, A.D. 1349–1350." Journal Of Archaeological Science 37, no. 12 (December 2010): 3394-3400. Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost (accessed October 6, 2013).
[2] deWitte, Sharon N., and James W. Wood. 2008. "Selectivity of Black Death mortality with respect to preexisting health."Proceedings Of The National Academy Of Sciences Of The United States Of America 105, no. 5: 1436-1441. Academic Search Complete, EBSCOhost (accessed October 6, 2013).
This whole post was very informational. I wonder if the depictions of death and the black plague reflect these things, or if they used children and the young as a shock factor.
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