Traces of Lepra in Czech Kingdom
| Authors | |
|---|---|
| Year of publication | 1999 |
| Type | Article in Proceedings |
| Conference | ICEPID 3: Past and Present of Leprosy, Abstracts |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Field | Archaeology, anthropology, ethnology |
| Keywords | leper hospital; leprosy; DNA analysis |
| Description | Historical sources quote firstly in 1280 a leper hospital (domus leprosum) near the Chapel of St.Lazarus founded outside the Prague Old Town which according to its early Gothic style could had been up to 80 year older. The chapel was dessecrated in 1788. The memory has been retained only in the name of the Lazarus street. Iconographic evidence has been currently recognized in a picture of Three Apostles from the National Gallery in Prague, dated around 1510, whose provenance is unknown. The nose of the middle apostle is fleshy and grossly enlarged, suggesting a progressed lepra. Recently a calvarium of a 20-30 year old male K 12 was found in the material 554 calvaria and calvae of adults from the ossuary at Krtiny, Moravia, dated 13th-beginning of 18th centuries AD. Its aperture piriformis, intranasal structures and alveolar processes of the maxillae show changes compatible with lepra. The DNA analysis is currently being performed. |
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