Suspected endemic syphilis (treponarid) in sixteenth-century Norway

A study of ninety-five skeletons excavated from the later medieval and early Renaissance levels of a cemetery in Trondheim has revealed bone changes compatible with a treponemal infection which is suspected to be endemic syphilis.This is an important discovery as it is the earliest pathological evidence, so far reported, for this disease in Norway.The diagnosis is supported by X-ray findings.Figure I Location map of medieval Trondheim.The town of Trondheim, situated on the west coast of Norway (fig.1), has been, since 1971, the centre for a series of excavations directed by Clifford Long and Erik Jondell on behalf of Riksantikvaren.In June 1984, a two-year project began on the site of the medieval Franciscan (Greyfriars) church, parts of which are still visible today.