The Antonine Plague overturned the status quo in the second century, C.E. Did this lead to the spread of Christianity?
The year was 166 C.E., and the Roman Empire was at the zenith of its power. The triumphant Roman legions, under the command of Emperor Lucius Verrus, returned to Rome victorious after having defeated their Parthian enemies on the eastern border of the Roman Empire. As they marched west toward Rome, they carried with them more than the spoils of plundered Parthian temples; they also carried an epidemic that would ravage the Roman Empire over the course of the next two decades, an event that would inexorably alter the landscape of the Roman world. The Antonine Plague, as it came to be known, would reach every corner of the empire and is what most likely claimed the life of Lucius Verrus himself in 169—and possibly that of his co-emperor Marcus Aurelius in 180.1
The pestilential that swept through the Roman Empire following the return of Lucius Verrus’s army is attested to in the works of several contemporary observers.2 The famous physician Galen found himself in the middle of an outbreak not once, but twice. Present in Rome during the initial outbreak in 166, Galen’s sense of self-preservation evidently overcame his scientific curiosity, and he retreated to his home city of Pergamon. His respite didn’t last long; with the epidemic still raging, the emperors called him back to Rome in 168.
The effect on Rome’s armies was apparently devastating. Close proximity to sick fellow soldiers and less-than-optimal living conditions made it possible for the outbreak to spread rapidly throughout the legions, such as those stationed along the northern frontier at Aquileia. Both emperors and their attendant physician Galen were present with the legions in Aquileia when the plague swept through the winter barracks, prompting the emperors to flee to Rome and leave Galen behind to attend to the troops. Legions elsewhere in the empire were similarly stricken; military recruitment in Egypt drew upon the sons of soldiers to augment their shrinking ranks, and army discharge certificates from the Balkan region suggest that there was a significant decrease in the number of soldiers who were allowed to retire from military service during the period of the plague.3
The effect on the civilian population was evidently no less severe. In his letter to Athens in 174/175, Marcus Aurelius loosened the requirements for membership to the Areopagus (the ruling council of Athens), as there were now too few surviving upper-class Athenians who met the requirements he had introduced prior to the outbreak.4 Egyptian tax documents in the form of papyri from Oxyrhynchus and Fayum attest to significant population decreases in Egyptian cities; it did not escape the attention of the cities’ administrators that mortality and the subsequent flight of fearful survivors substantially impacted their tax revenues.5 In Rome itself a beleaguered Marcus Aurelius (who, after the death of Lucius Verrus, became the empire’s sole ruler) was simultaneously contending with a Marcomannic invasion on the empire’s northern frontier, a Sarmatian invasion on its eastern frontier and an empire-wide pandemic. Epigraphic and architectural evidence in Rome indicate that civic building projects—a significant feature of second-century Rome’s robust economy—came to an effective halt between 166 and 180.6 A similar pause in civic building projects shows up in London during the same period.7
Archaeological and textual evidence help us paint a picture of the impact of the Antonine Plague in various regions of the Roman Empire, but what was it?
Galen’s surviving case notes describe a virulent and dangerous disease, the symptoms and progression of which point to at least one—if not two—strains of the smallpox virus.8 Dio Cassius describes the deaths of up to 2,000 people per day in Rome alone during a particularly lethal outbreak in 189.9 It has been estimated that the mortality rate over the 23-year period of the Antonine Plague was 7–10 percent of the population; among the armies and the inhabitants of more densely populated cities, the rate could have been as high as 13–15 percent.10 Aside from the practical consequences of the outbreak, such as the destabilization of the Roman military and economy, the psychological impact on the populations must have been substantial. It is easy to imagine the sense of fear and helplessness ancient Romans must have felt in the face of such a ruthless, painful, disfiguring and frequently fatal disease.
It is not difficult to understand, then, the apparent shifts in religious practices that came about as a result of the Antonine Plague. While civic architectural projects were put on hold, the building of sacred sites and ceremonial ways intensified.11 Marcus Aurelius is said to have invested heavily in restoring the temples and shrines of Roman deities, and one wonders whether it was in part due to the plague that Christianity coalesced and spread so rapidly throughout the empire at the end of the second century. Human beings, both ancient and modern, tend to be more open to considerations of the divine in times of fear and in the face of imminent mortality. Even today in modern America, while a place of worship is rare inside an office building, there is one in almost every hospital. It seems that the ancient Romans, in the face of an inexplicable and incurable epidemic, turned to the divine. But the gods moved slowly—it would be another 1,800 years before the smallpox virus was finally eradicated.
“Classical Corner: The Antonine Plague and the Spread of Christianity” by Sarah K. Yeomans originally appeared in the March/April 2017 issue of Biblical Archaeology Review.
Sarah K. Yeomans was the Director of Educational Programs at the Biblical Archaeology Society. She is currently pursuing her doctorate at the University of Southern California and specializes in the Imperial period of the Roman Empire with a particular emphasis on religions and ancient science. She is also a lecturer in the Department of Religious Studies at West Virginia University.
1. This modern term for the second-century plague in Rome comes from the dynastic name of the emperors at the time. Marcus Aurelius and his co-emperor Lucius Verrus were both members of the Antonine family. Because of Galen’s surviving case notes that documented the symptoms of the disease, the epidemic is sometimes referred to as the “Plague of Galen.”
2. Galen, Aelius Aristides, Lucian and Cassius Dio were all first-hand witnesses to the epidemic.
3. Richard P. Duncan-Jones, Structure and Scale in the Roman Economy (Cambridge: Cambridge Univ. Press, 1990), p. 72; Richard P. Duncan-Jones, “The Impact of the Antonine Plague,” Journal of Roman Archaeology 9 (1996), p. 124.
4. James H. Oliver, Greek Constitutions of Early Roman Emperors from Inscriptions to Papyri (Philadelphia: American Philosophical Society, 1989), pp. 366–388.
5. For further discussions of papyrological evidence, see R.J. Littman and M.L. Littman, “Galen and the Antonine Plague,” American Journal of Philology 94 (1973), pp. 243–255; Duncan-Jones, “Antonine Plague”; R.S Bagnall, “Oxy. 4527 and the Antonine Plague in Egypt: Death or Flight?” Journal of Roman Archaeology 13 (2000), pp. 288–292.
6. The same cessation of construction is not, however, evident in Spain or in the North African provinces outside of Egypt, possibly indicating that certain areas of the empire were more affected than others. See Duncan-Jones, “Antonine Plague.”
7. Dominic Perring, “Two Studies on Roman London. A: London’s Military Origins; B: Population Decline and Ritual Landscapes in Antonine London,” Journal of Roman Archaeology 24 (2011), pp. 249–268.
8. Until recently it was thought that the Antonine Plague could possibly have been a measles epidemic. However, recent scientific data have eliminated this possibility. See Y. Furuse, A. Suzuki and H. Oshitani, “Origin of the Measles Virus: Divergence from Rinderpest Virus Between the 11th and 12th Centuries,” Virology 7 (2010), pp. 52–55.
9. Dio Cassius 73.14.3–4; for a discussion of the smallpox pathologies, see Littman and Littman, “Galen.”
10. Littman and Littman, “Galen,” p. 255.
11. Perring, “Two Studies.”
Doctors, Diseases and Deities: Epidemic Crises and Medicine in Ancient Rome
Ancient Pergamon: City of science … and satan?
Justinian Plague Linked to the Black Death
Classical Corner: A Comet Gives Birth to an Empire
This Bible History Daily feature was originally published on March 13, 2017.
The world of the Bible is knowable. We can learn about the society where the ancient Israelites, and later Jesus and the Apostles, lived through the modern discoveries that provide us clues.
Biblical Archaeology Review is the guide on that fascinating journey. Here is your ticket to join us as we discover more and more about the biblical world and its people.
Each issue of Biblical Archaeology Review features lavishly illustrated and easy-to-understand articles such as:
• Fascinating finds from the Hebrew Bible and New Testament periods
• The latest scholarship by the world's greatest archaeologists and distinguished scholars
• Stunning color photographs, informative maps, and diagrams
• BAR's unique departments
• Reviews of the latest books on biblical archaeology
The BAS Digital Library includes:
• 45+ years of Biblical Archaeology Review
• 20+ years of Bible Review online, providing critical interpretations of biblical texts
• 8 years of Archaeology Odyssey online, exploring the ancient roots of the Western world in a scholarly and entertaining way,
• The New Encyclopedia of Archaeological Excavations in the Holy Land
• Video lectures from world-renowned experts.
• Access to 50+ curated Special Collections,
• Four highly acclaimed books, published in conjunction with the Smithsonian Institution: Aspects of Monotheism, Feminist Approaches to the Bible, The Rise of Ancient Israel and The Search for Jesus.
The All-Access membership pass is the way to get to know the Bible through biblical archaeology.
Sign up to receive our email newsletter and never miss an update.
Dig into the illuminating world of the Bible with a BAS All-Access Membership. Get your print subscription to BAR and your online access to the BAS Library—as well as FREE online talks and Travel/Study discounts. Start your journey into the biblical past today!
See the book by Rodney Stark entitled The Rise of Christianity: How the Obscure, Marginal Jesus Movement Became the Dominant Religious Force in the Western World in a Few Centuries (HarperOne, 1997). Stark, the Distinguished Professor of the Social Sciences and co-director of the Institute for Studies of Religion at Baylor University, documents a number of reasons for the rise of Christianity during the first three centuries of the current era, among which was the tending of the sick by Christians when others, like the famous physician Galen, fled from Rome for the countryside during the plague described by Sarah Yeomans. Many in the pagan population responded to the compassionate care extended to them by joining the church. Another reason for the growth of the church, according to Stark, had to do with the improved prospects of women than was the case in pagan society. This book is endorsed by the likes of Wayne Meeks of Yale University and Andrew Greeley of the University of Chicago. Greeley’s summary of Stark’s conclusions are “that Christianity was a success because it proved those who joined it with a more appealing, more assuring, happier, and perhaps longer life.”
Wasn’t it Constantine who bureaucratized the 2nd century Jesus followers and made Jesus, so to speak, in his image? I’m thinking of the huge statue he erected in Byzantium after capturing the city-state and renaming it after himself. That Constantine was a follower of Sol Invictus until just before his death seems to me that being baptized was just an added insurance policy for the unknowable great-beyond.
Respectfully, there is no indication here of the growth of Christianity. In point of fact the literature points to the Antonines doubling down on the Magna Mater and Mithra worship (Cumont, Mysteries of Mithra, 86-88, 188-89). Marcus Aurelius criticized the Christians for “stage theatrics” (Meditations 11:3) which he did not view as reasoned. The Antonine emperors felt, as Romans, the Christians ought to be more socially conscious, committed to the state and less secretive (Meditations 1:6; 3:16; 7:68; 8:48,51). The irony came when his son, Commodus, became an initiate of Mithra, a secretive cult that dominated Rome until the time of Aurelius and Galerius (Cumont, Mysteries, 87, 199-200). Cumont notes in these references the adherents of Mithra likely outnumbered the Christians into the 4th Century.
I live in Wiesbaden, just across the river from Mainz, which was an important military outpost on the Rhein River. In the year 2000, while digging an underground parking lot, a temple to Isis – “All Godess Queen” and Mater Magna – the great Mother, was uncovered, along with statues of Mater Magna, almost exact replicas of Mother Mary with baby Jesus at her breast. The temple, built in the 1st century c.e., was likely in use until the 3rd century c.e. but the worship of Isis and Mater Magna seem to be extant at least by the 3rd. century b.c.e. Here’s a Wiki link if anyone is interested: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sanctuary_of_Isis_and_the_Magna_Mater,_Mainz
Christianity is one of the most fear-based religions known to man. As we all know, this is around the time the “gospels” were written. I see this time as the “foot in the door” plague for Christianity with the, later, Justinian plaque being the clincher.
Interesting- except I fail to find the link to the spread of Christianity explained or mentioned below the heading.
Pax Christi Mrs.Sarah:
Your conclussion:”Human beings, both ancient and modern, tend to be more open considerations of the divine in times of fear and in the face of imminent mortality.”does not follow logically from the assumption because there can by plenty other factors determining the spread of Christianity like the evolution (natural) in understanding through migration and contacts with other cultures, spread of written texts (Bible, Greek philosophers) that were a perfect contradictions to fancy of rival religions and ideologies.The main reason was Christianity taught contrary to Rome (nad East): Cesar or King is not God! Simple!.Consequently, one has not bow down at him/her! The risen Jesus is the Lord to worship (Phil2: 10). Acts 17:16nn: St.Paul’s arguments contra Stoics and Epicureans is the intellectual reason the superiority of Chrsitianity contra the rest. The first martyrs and for the martyrex. Boethius were the elite able not to be a slave to State and Ruler. Sure it take centuries for the plain to do it like for ex. also to understand Aristotle’s perfet argument contra Plato’s Ideas the main fancy of any parascience or any maybe-science=guessing! Library is still open
Interesting article, but really I think we’re not giving ancient folks enough credit if we try to attribute the success of early Christianity simply to fears about imminent mortality in the midst of a pandemic. It’s possible that that the plague could have given it a boost, but as mentioned with Marcus Aurelius’ efforts in restoring shrines and temples, other religions got a boost also.
To me it’s more plausible that, in addition to the belief of converts at the time that Christianity was a real life thing that actually happened, it was also readily apparent to the sensibities of enough observant people that ethical monotheism was offering a far superior moral paradigm to anything else available then… or, for that matter, now.
Thanks, Ms Yeomans, for your fine work in this informative
piece of biblical history. I look forward to more of your posts.