Bodies of 120 Black Death victims found in Spain

Excavations under the Basilica of Sant Just i Pastor in Barcelona has led to the discovery of a mass grave containing the remains of 120 victims of the plague.

The excavation took place over the course of 2012, and shows that the burials were carefully carried out. The corpses were unclothed, and wrapped only in linen shrouds, lined up in rows, 11 bodies deep, and were then covered with quicklime dissolved in water to attempt to stop the disease spreading and mask the smell of the rotting bodies. Dominique Castex of the University of Bordeaux, who is coordinating the excavation as part of a broader investigation the institution is leading into the Black Death in Europe, says the find is unique and of great historical value: “This is the first such site we have found in Spain, and we believe it can tell us a great deal.”

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Story: José Ángel Montañés, El Pais | Photo: Irene Gibrat