Black Death mass grave at Thornton Abbey

The mass grave was located within the monastic precinct, near a building believed to be the hospital chapel. [Image: University of Sheffield]

Analysis of a medieval mass grave excavated at Thornton Abbey, northern Lincolnshire, has confirmed that the people within it probably died during the Black Death in the 14th century – a discovery of national importance, offering unique insights into how the pandemic affected rural communities.

The outbreak of bubonic plague known as the Black Death killed between a third and half of England’s population between 1348 and 1349, but archaeological evidence is still relatively scarce. While a few mass graves associated with the disease have been found in urban settings, it was previously assumed that lower overall numbers of deaths in the countryside would have made it easier for rural populations to carry on using normal burial practices. The discovery at Thornton Abbey shows that this was not always the case.

Read the rest of this article...