Tuberculosis in the Greco-Roman World

The extent to which tuberculosis affected the lives of the ancient people of the Greek and Roman worlds has not yet been comprehensively presented. By synthesising and analysing a broad range of data across time I reveal the complex condition that was the life of the tuberculosis sufferer. As the ultimate symbol of life at the edge, consumption served as a thought-piece in the ancient world to navigate ethical, pragmatic, medical, and social issues. The paradigmatic disease of extremes, it represented the extremes of human suffering, resiliency, and perseverance. By analysing the bioarcheological data, I establish the disease’s patterns of manifestation, and the physical deformities and disabilities it created (e.g., hunchback). By establishing the reality of the disease, I corroborate this evidence to assert that the ancient medical terms phthisis / phthoē should in essence, as an agreed upon aggregate of symptoms, be understood as tuberculosis. Utilizing both medical and non-medical writings I reveal how the tuberculosis sufferer was viewed in society, e.g., the supposed causes of their illness, how society treated them, and their access to ethical medical care. By incorporating iconographic evidence, I demonstrate further how the tuberculosis sufferer was viewed as a marginal figure, emblematic of the extremes of human existence. Chapter One establishes the physical reality of tuberculosis in the past as evidenced by skeletons and provides the only comprehensive survey of published Greco-Roman cases to date. Chapter Two explores the notions of miasma and contagion in both medical and non-medical spheres, establishing that while tuberculosis was considered just punishment for transgressive actions by general society, medical authors suggested non-supernatural physiological and environmental etiologies. It investigates the extent to which medical authors and laymen perceived and understood tuberculosis’ transmissibility. Chapter Three elucidates the medical understanding of tuberculosis’ etiology (including a unique female etiology), progression, manifestation, and its link to the development of a hunchback. Chapter Four explores the tuberculosis sufferer’s (and hunchback’s) experience: their pictorial representations, stigma, and access to medical care and therapies (including pain management, climate therapy, pharmaceuticals, regimen, sanctuary healing and euthanasia).