Uncovering a nineteenth-century typhoid epidemic at the Koffiefontein Mine, South Africa

Thirty-six skeletons were excavated in a mine dump at the Koffiefontein Mine in South Africa. Archival documents revealed that these individuals had been mine workers who died during a typhoid epidemic in 1896. Archaeological evidence for an epidemic was noted in the place and mode of burial, which suggested haste and uncoordinated efforts. Various pathologies were noted on the skeletal remains, the most common of which were vertebral osteophytosis, intervertebral osteochondrosis, schmorl nodes, and enamel hypoplasias. Unusual lesions were noted on the lumbar vertebrae of three individuals but the aetiology behind these lesions is not known.