This map, created by Hasaim Hussein in 2009 for the magazine Lapham's Quarterly, shows the origin and progression of smallpox, malaria and leprosy. Hussein brilliantly uses three colours in this map to show the history of three completely different diseases together on one map: malaria (yellow), leprosy (red) and smallpox (blue).
The origin of the malaria marks it in the Dominican Republic, where the earliest evidence of the disease has been found, in a mosquito trapped in amber 30 million years ago. He then marks in yellow all the regions of the world where the disease is currently endemic. The author also adds a handful of places and dates where relevant moments in the evolution of this disease took place, such as the first use of quinine in China (in 340) or the popularity of Schweppes tonic with quinine in India in the 19th century.
The origin of the leprosy took place in East Africa some 40,000 years ago. With a thick red line, the author marks how the disease spread around the world, with the first evidence in human remains 2,000 years ago in India. From there it spread to China, to the Middle East, and from there to Europe. The first European evidence is found in Pompeii, in soldiers returning from the Roman campaign in Syria.
Finally, it is believed that the origin of the smallpox occurred in the earliest agricultural settlements in north-eastern Africa, some 10,000 years ago. The oldest human remains with signs of smallpox have been found in mummies from Ancient Egypt. From there, the disease spread throughout Africa, Asia and Europe. With the arrival of Europeans in the Americas, smallpox also arrived and was a major cause of death among Native Americans.
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