The Antonine Plague, sometimes referred to as the Plague of Galen, erupted in 165 CE, at the height of Roman power throughout the Mediterranean world during the reign of the last of the Five Good Emperors, Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (161-180 CE). The first phase of the outbreak would last until 180 CE affecting the entirety of the Roman Empire, while a second outbreak occurred in 251-266 CE, compounding the effects of the earlier outbreak. It has been suggested by some historians that the plague represents a useful starting point for understanding the beginning of the decline of the Roman Empire in the West but also the underpinning to its ultimate fall.

? ? ? ? ? 安東尼大瘟疫，有時(shí)也被稱為蓋倫瘟疫，爆發(fā)于公元165年。這一時(shí)期，是五位好皇帝中的最后一位——馬可·奧理略·安東尼（公元161-180年）統(tǒng)治期間；此時(shí)，羅馬權(quán)力在整個(gè)地中海世界達(dá)到了頂峰。第一階段的疫情爆發(fā)將持續(xù)到公元180年，影響逐漸擴(kuò)散到整個(gè)羅馬帝國(guó)，而第二次疫情爆發(fā)發(fā)生在公元251-266年，加劇了早期疫情爆發(fā)的影響。一些歷史學(xué)家認(rèn)為，瘟疫是理解羅馬帝國(guó)在西方開(kāi)始衰落的一個(gè)有效起點(diǎn)，也是羅馬帝國(guó)最終衰落的基礎(chǔ)。

癥狀描述

Galen (129 - c. 216 CE), a Greek physician and author of Methodus Medendi, not only witnessed the outbreak but described its symptoms and course. Among the more common symptoms were fever, diarrhea, vomiting, thirstiness, swollen throat, and coughing. More specifically, Galen noted that the diarrhea appeared blackish which suggested gastrointestinal bleeding. The coughing produced a foul odor on the breath and an exanthema, skin eruptions or rash, over the entirety of the body distinguished by red and black papules or eruptions:

? ? ? ? ? Of some of theses which had become ulcerated, that part of the surface called the scab fell away and then the remaining part nearby was healthy and after one or two days became scarred over. In those places where it was not ulcerated, the exanthem was rough and scabby and fell away like some husk and hence all became healthy. (Littman & Littman, p. 246)

? ? ? ? ? 希臘醫(yī)生、《Methodus Medendi》的作者蓋倫（公元129年-約216年）不僅目睹了疫情的爆發(fā)，而且記載了其癥狀和過(guò)程。其中比較常見(jiàn)的癥狀是發(fā)燒、腹瀉、嘔吐、口渴、喉嚨腫脹和咳嗽。蓋倫指出，腹瀉呈黑色，表明胃腸道出血?？人詴?huì)產(chǎn)生呼吸中的惡臭，并出現(xiàn)外感，即皮膚糜爛或皮疹，遍布全身，以紅色和黑色的丘疹或糜爛為特征：

? ? ? ? ? 在一些已經(jīng)潰爛的地方，表面被稱為痂皮的部分脫落了，附近剩余的部分是健康的，一兩天后變成了疤痕。在那些沒(méi)有潰爛的地方，外皮是粗糙的、結(jié)痂的，像皮殼一樣脫落，因此都變得健康。(Littman & Littman, p. 246)

Those infected suffered from the illness for roughly two weeks. Not all who caught the disease died, and those who survived developed immunity from further outbreaks. Based on Galen's description, modern researchers have concluded that the disease affecting the empire was most likely smallpox.

? ? ? ? ? 被感染的人患這種疾病的時(shí)間大約為兩個(gè)星期。并非所有染上這種疾病的人都會(huì)死亡，那些活下來(lái)的人在進(jìn)一步的疫情中產(chǎn)生了免疫力。根據(jù)蓋倫的描述，現(xiàn)代研究人員得出結(jié)論，影響帝國(guó)命運(yùn)的疾病很可能是天花。

病因與疾病傳播

The epidemic most likely emerged in China shortly before 166 CE spreading westward along the Silk Road and by trading ships headed for Rome. Sometime between late 165 to early 166 CE, the Roman military came into contact with the disease during the siege of Seleucia (a major city on the Tigris River). Troops returning from the wars in the East spread the disease northward to Gaul and among troops stationed along the Rhine River.

? ? ? ? ? 這種流行病很可能是在公元166年之前不久在中國(guó)出現(xiàn)的，沿著絲綢之路和前往羅馬的商船向西傳播。在公元165年末至166年初的某個(gè)時(shí)候，羅馬軍隊(duì)在圍攻塞琉西亞（底格里斯河上的一個(gè)主要城市）時(shí)接觸到了這種疾病。從東方戰(zhàn)爭(zhēng)中返回的軍隊(duì)將這種疾病向北傳播到高盧和駐扎在萊茵河沿岸的軍隊(duì)中。

Two different legends arose discussing the exact origins of how the plague was released into the human population. In the first story, the Roman general, and later co-emperor, Lucius Verus opened a closed tomb in Seleucia during the subsequent sacking of the city thus releasing the disease. The tale suggests that the epidemic was a punishment as the Romans violated an oath to the gods not to pillage the city. In the second story, a Roman soldier opened a golden casket in the temple of Apollo in Babylon allowing the plague to escape. Two different 4th-century CE sources, Res Gestae by Ammianus Marcellinus (c. 330-391 – 400 CE) and the biographies of Lucius Verus & Marcus Aurelius, ascribe the outbreak to participating in a sacrilege, violating the sanctuary of a god and breaking the oath. Other Romans blamed Christians for making the gods angry precipitating the outbreak.

? ? ? ? ? 關(guān)于瘟疫是如何被釋放到人類(lèi)世界中的，民間出現(xiàn)了兩種不同的傳說(shuō)。在第一個(gè)傳說(shuō)中，羅馬將軍，也就是后來(lái)的聯(lián)合皇帝，盧基烏斯·維魯斯在隨后對(duì)塞琉西亞的洗劫中打開(kāi)了一座封閉的墳?zāi)?，從而釋放了疾病。這個(gè)傳說(shuō)表明，這種流行病是一種懲罰，因?yàn)榱_馬人違反了對(duì)眾神的誓言，掠奪了該城市。在第二個(gè)傳說(shuō)中，一名羅馬士兵打開(kāi)了巴比倫阿波羅神廟中的一個(gè)金匣子，使瘟疫得以逃脫。兩個(gè)不同的公元4世紀(jì)的資料，即阿米阿努斯·馬爾切利努斯?（Ammianus Marcellinus，約公元330-391-400年）的Res Gestae和盧基烏斯·維魯斯和馬可·奧理略·安東尼的傳記，將瘟疫的爆發(fā)歸咎于參與褻瀆，侵犯神的圣地和違背誓言。其他羅馬人指責(zé)基督教徒使神靈發(fā)怒，導(dǎo)致了這次瘟疫的爆發(fā)。

死亡率與經(jīng)濟(jì)影響

There is much ongoing debate amongst scholars regarding the effects and consequences of the epidemic on the Roman Empire. This debate is focused on the methodology used to compute the actual number of people who died. The Roman historian Dio Cassius (155-235 CE) estimated 2,000 deaths per day in Rome at the height of the outbreak. In the second outbreak, the estimate of the rate of death was much higher, upwards of 5,000 per day. It is most probable that the extreme death toll was due to this disease exposure being new to people living around the Mediterranean. Mortality rises when infectious diseases are introduced into a 'virgin population', that is a population which lacks acquired or inherited immunity to a specific disease. All told it has been suggested that a quarter to a third of the entire population perished, estimated at 60-70 million throughout the empire. What is undisputed is that Lucius Verus, co-emperor with Marcus Aurelius, died from the illness in 169 CE; Marcus Aurelius died 11 years later from the same illness. Ironically, it was Verus' soldiers who contributed to spreading the disease from the Near East to the rest of the empire.

? ? ? ? ? 學(xué)者們對(duì)這一流行病對(duì)羅馬帝國(guó)的影響和后果有許多爭(zhēng)議。這場(chǎng)爭(zhēng)論的焦點(diǎn)是用于計(jì)算實(shí)際死亡人數(shù)的方法。羅馬歷史學(xué)家卡西烏斯·狄?jiàn)W（Dio Cassius，公元155-235年）估計(jì)，在疫情最嚴(yán)重的時(shí)候，羅馬每天有2000人死亡。在第二次瘟疫爆發(fā)時(shí)，對(duì)死亡率的估計(jì)要高得多，每天高達(dá)5000人以上。最有可能的是，極端的死亡人數(shù)是由于這種疾病的暴露對(duì)生活在地中海周?chē)娜藗儊?lái)說(shuō)是新的。當(dāng)傳染病傳染到"處女人口"，即缺乏對(duì)某種特定疾病的獲得性或遺傳性免疫力的人口時(shí)，死亡率會(huì)上升。有人認(rèn)為，整個(gè)帝國(guó)有四分之一到三分之一的人口死亡，估計(jì)當(dāng)時(shí)整個(gè)帝國(guó)有6-7千萬(wàn)人。毋庸置疑的是，與馬可·奧勒留共同執(zhí)政的盧基烏斯·維魯斯于公元169年死于這種疾病；馬可·奧勒留11年后死于這種疾病。具有諷刺意味的是，正是盧基烏斯·維魯斯的士兵促成了這種疾病從近東向帝國(guó)其他地區(qū)的傳播。

At the outbreak of the plague, Rome's military consisted of 28 legions totaling approximately 150,000 men. The legions were well-trained, well-armed, and well-prepared, none of which prevented them from catching the disease, falling ill, and dying. Regardless of their posts, the legionaries contracted the disease from fellow soldiers who had been on leave returning to active duty. The ill and dying caused manpower shortages especially along the German frontiers thus weakening the Romans' abilities to defend the empire. The lack of available soldiers caused Marcus Aurelius to recruit any able-bodied man who could fight: freed slaves, Germans, criminals, and gladiators. Depleting the supply of gladiators resulted in fewer games at home, which upset the Roman people who demanded more, not less, entertainment during a time of intense stress. The patchwork army failed in its duty: in 167 CE, Germanic tribes crossed the Rhine River for the first time in more than 200 years. The success of the external attacks, especially by the Germans, facilitated the decline of the Roman military, which, along with the economic disruptions, contributed ultimately to the decline and fall of the Empire.

? ? ? ? ? 瘟疫爆發(fā)時(shí)，羅馬的軍隊(duì)由28個(gè)軍團(tuán)組成，共約15萬(wàn)人。這些軍團(tuán)訓(xùn)練有素，裝備精良，準(zhǔn)備充分，但這些都不能阻止他們感染疾病，生病和死亡。不管他們?cè)谑裁磵徫簧?，軍團(tuán)成員都從休假返回現(xiàn)役的士兵那里感染了這種疾病。生病和死亡造成了人力短缺，特別是在日耳曼邊境，從而削弱了羅馬人保衛(wèi)帝國(guó)的能力。由于缺乏可用的士兵，馬可·奧勒留招募了任何能夠戰(zhàn)斗的健壯男子：被釋放的奴隸、日耳曼人、罪犯和角斗士。角斗士的征召導(dǎo)致國(guó)內(nèi)的比賽減少，這使羅馬人民感到不安，他們?cè)趬毫薮蟮臅r(shí)期要求更多而不是更少的娛樂(lè)。拼湊起來(lái)的軍隊(duì)未能履行職責(zé)：公元167年，日耳曼部落200多年來(lái)首次渡過(guò)萊茵河。外部攻擊的成功，特別是日耳曼人的攻擊，使羅馬軍隊(duì)進(jìn)一步衰落，這與帝國(guó)經(jīng)濟(jì)上的混亂一起，最終導(dǎo)致了帝國(guó)的衰落與滅亡。

In more general terms, the horrific death toll reduced the number of taxpayers, recruits for the army, candidates for public office, businessmen, and farmers. At a time of increasing expenses for maintaining the empire and the necessary military forces to ensure the empire's security, government revenues declined. The decrease in tax revenues was attributable to less production on the farms as fewer farmers meant too much land left uncultivated. The scarcity of crops caused steep price increases along with decreasing food supplies. The plague's effect on the economy was not limited to the agricultural sector. Fewer craftsmen meant fewer things being made which stymied local economies. The shortage of workforce also led to higher wages for those who survived the epidemic and the lack of businessmen, merchants, traders, and financiers caused profound interruptions in domestic and international trade. All of these downturns meant fewer taxes for the state, which was already sorely pressed to meet its financial obligations.

? ? ? ? ? 從更普遍的角度來(lái)看，可怕的死亡人數(shù)減少了納稅人、軍隊(duì)的新兵、公職候選人、商人和農(nóng)民的數(shù)量。在維持帝國(guó)和確保帝國(guó)安全的必要軍事力量的開(kāi)支不斷增加的時(shí)候，政府的收入下降了。稅收的減少可歸因于農(nóng)場(chǎng)生產(chǎn)的減少，因?yàn)檗r(nóng)民的減少意味著太多的土地沒(méi)人來(lái)耕種。糧食稀缺導(dǎo)致了糧食價(jià)格急劇上升，同時(shí)食品供應(yīng)也在減少。瘟疫對(duì)經(jīng)濟(jì)的影響并不限于農(nóng)業(yè)部門(mén)。工匠數(shù)量的減少意味著貨物產(chǎn)量的減少，這阻礙了地方經(jīng)濟(jì)。勞動(dòng)力的短缺也導(dǎo)致那些在疫情中幸存下來(lái)的人的工資提高，而商人、商家、貿(mào)易商與金融家的缺乏則導(dǎo)致國(guó)內(nèi)和國(guó)際貿(mào)易的嚴(yán)重中斷。經(jīng)濟(jì)不景氣意味著國(guó)家稅收的減少，而國(guó)家在履行其財(cái)政義務(wù)方面已經(jīng)承受著很大的壓力。

對(duì)宗教的影響

The effect of the illness was not confined to the military and economy. Marcus Aurelius launched persecutions against Christians who refused to pay homage to the gods which, the emperor believed, in turn angered the gods whose wrath made itself known in the form of a devastating epidemic. Ironically the anti-Christian attacks produced the opposite effect amongst the general population.

? ? ? ? ? 疾病的影響并不局限于軍事和經(jīng)濟(jì)領(lǐng)域。馬可·奧勒留對(duì)拒絕向神明致敬的基督徒進(jìn)行了迫害，皇帝認(rèn)為這反過(guò)來(lái)又激怒了神明，神明的憤怒以毀滅性的流行病的形式表現(xiàn)出來(lái)。具有諷刺意味的是，反基督教的攻擊在普通民眾中產(chǎn)生了相反的效果。

Unlike adherents to the Roman polytheistic system, Christians believed in an obligation to assist others in a time of need, including illness. Christians were willing to provide the most basic needs, food and water, for those too ill to fend for themselves. This simple level of nursing care produced good feelings between Christians and their pagan neighbors. Christians often stayed to provide assistance while pagans fled. Furthermore, Christianity provided meaning to life and death in times of crisis. Those who survived gained comfort in knowing that loved ones, who died as Christians, could receive the reward of heaven. The Christian promise of salvation in the afterlife attracted additional followers, thus expanding the growth of monotheism within a polytheistic culture. The gaining of adherents established the context in which Christianity would emerge as the sole, official religion of the empire.

? ? ? ? ? 與羅馬多神教系統(tǒng)的信徒不同，基督徒相信有義務(wù)在別人需要的時(shí)候幫助他們，包括疾病?；酵皆敢鉃槟切┥o(wú)法自理的人提供最基本的需求，即食物和水。這種簡(jiǎn)單的護(hù)理水平在基督徒與他們的異教徒鄰居之間產(chǎn)生了良好的感情。當(dāng)異教徒逃離時(shí)，基督徒常常留下來(lái)提供幫助。此外，基督教在危機(jī)時(shí)刻為生命和死亡提供了意義。那些幸存下來(lái)的人因?yàn)橹雷鳛榛酵剿廊サ挠H人可以得到天堂的獎(jiǎng)賞而獲得安慰。基督教對(duì)來(lái)世救贖的承諾吸引了更多的追隨者，從而擴(kuò)大了多神教文化中一神教的發(fā)展。信徒的增加為基督教成為帝國(guó)唯一的官方宗教創(chuàng)造了條件。

More recently, researchers and historians, such as A. E. R. Boak, suggest that the Antonine Plague, along with a series of other outbreaks, represents a useful starting point for understanding the beginning of the decline of the Roman Empire in the West. In Manpower Shortage and the Fall of the Roman Empire, Boak argues that the outbreak of plague in 166 CE contributed to a decline in population growth, leading the military to draft more peasants and local officials into its ranks resulting in lower food production and a lack of support for day-to-day affairs in administering the towns and cities, thus weakening Rome's abilities to fend off the barbarian invasions.

? ? ? ? ? 最近，研究人員和歷史學(xué)家，如阿瑟·愛(ài)德華·羅米莉·?？耍J(rèn)為安東尼大瘟疫以及其他一系列瘟疫的爆發(fā)，代表了理解羅馬帝國(guó)在西方開(kāi)始衰退的一個(gè)有效起點(diǎn)。在《人力短缺與羅馬帝國(guó)的衰落》中，?？苏J(rèn)為，公元166年爆發(fā)的瘟疫導(dǎo)致人口增長(zhǎng)的下降，從而促使軍隊(duì)征召更多的農(nóng)民和地方官員加入其隊(duì)伍，又導(dǎo)致了糧食產(chǎn)量的下降，管理城鎮(zhèn)的日常事務(wù)缺乏支持，從而削弱了羅馬抵御野蠻人入侵的能力。

Eriny Hanna, in The Route to Crisis: Cities, Trade and Epidemics of the Roman Empire, argues that “Roman culture, urbanism, and the interdependence between cities and provinces” facilitated the spread of infectious disease thus creating the underpinnings for the collapse of the empire (Hanna, 1). Overcrowded cities, poor diets leading to malnutrition, and a lack of sanitary measures made Roman cities epicenters for disease transmission. The contagions easily spread along the land and sea trade routes which connected the cities to the outlying provinces.

? ? ? ? ? Eriny Hanna在《危機(jī)之路：羅馬帝國(guó)的城市、貿(mào)易和流行病》中說(shuō)，“羅馬文化、城市主義以及城市和省份之間的相互依存關(guān)系”促進(jìn)了傳染病的傳播，從而為帝國(guó)的崩潰打下了基礎(chǔ)（Hanna，1）。擁擠的城市、營(yíng)養(yǎng)不良的飲食，以及缺乏衛(wèi)生措施，使羅馬城市成為疾病傳播的中心地帶。傳染病很容易沿著連接城市和外圍省份的陸地和海上貿(mào)易路線傳播。

Most recently, Kyle Harper suggests that "the paradoxes of social development and the inherent unpredictability of nature, worked in concert to bring about Rome's demise" (Harper, 2). In other words, climate change provided the environmental context for the introduction of new, more catastrophic diseases including the Antonine Plague which arrived at the end of a most favorable climate period and introduced the world to smallpox. Harper argues that the Antonine Plague was the first of three devasting pandemics, including the Plague of Cyprian (249-262 CE) and the Justinian Plague (541-542 CE), which rocked the foundations of the Roman Empire largely due to the high mortality rates. The very strengths which often characterize flattering descriptions of Rome's empire - the Roman army, the extent of the empire, the extensive trade networks, the size and number of Roman cities - ultimately provided the basis for devastating disease transmissions leading to the fall of the empire.

? ? ? ? ? 最近，凱爾·哈珀提出，“社會(huì)發(fā)展的悖論和大自然固有的不可預(yù)測(cè)性，共同作用于羅馬的滅亡”（Harper，2）。換句話說(shuō)，氣候變化為引入新的、更具災(zāi)難性的疾病提供了環(huán)境背景，包括在一個(gè)最有利的氣候時(shí)期結(jié)束時(shí)到來(lái)的安東尼大瘟疫，并將天花引入世界。哈珀認(rèn)為，安東尼大瘟疫是三次毀滅性大流行病中的第一次，包括塞浦路斯瘟疫（公元249-262年）和查士丁尼瘟疫（公元541-542年），它們主要由于高死亡率而撼動(dòng)了羅馬帝國(guó)的基礎(chǔ)。對(duì)羅馬帝國(guó)的諂媚描述中經(jīng)常出現(xiàn)的優(yōu)勢(shì)——羅馬軍隊(duì)、帝國(guó)的范圍、廣泛的貿(mào)易網(wǎng)絡(luò)、羅馬城市的規(guī)模和數(shù)量——最終為毀滅性的疾病傳播提供了基礎(chǔ)，導(dǎo)致帝國(guó)的衰落。

參考書(shū)目：

Boak, A. E. R. Manpower Shortage and the Fall Of the Roman Empire in the West. Univ of Michigan Pr, 2019.

Bray, R. S. Armies of Pestilence. Barnes and Nobel, 2019.

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原文作者：John Horgan

? ? ? ? ? 目前是美國(guó)威斯康星州康科迪亞大學(xué)的歷史助理教授。他正在進(jìn)行研究的項(xiàng)目包括瘟疫和疾病以及世界歷史中的食物。

原文網(wǎng)址：https://www.worldhistory.org/Antonine_Plague/