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To our knowledge, the bacterium that caused the Justinian Plague (Figure 1) is <i>Yersinia pestis</i>, which is still found in the mountains of Tian Shan, which sit along the modern Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, and China borders. This is a form of bubonic plague, very similar to the Black Death. While today the plague from this bacteria can be treated, periodic outbreaks would have likely devastated ancient populations without any known immunity. The spread of the plague could have had many reasons, but it could have been migrating travels from Central Asia, including possibly Huns, may have spread the plague. This was also a period of relatively cold winters and failed crops may have prompted migrations that brought the plague with travelers. The Silk Road was also an important trading network during the 6th century CE, suggesting travelers from Central Asia probably brought it to the eastern Mediterranean, where it then also spread into Europe from these Mediterranean ports. There is also evidence that the plague came through North Africa, as important trading ports connected Africa with eastern Asia. From Ethiopia, and into Egypt, the plague could have also expanded into the Middle East and into Europe. Both historical descriptions of the symptoms and excavated skeletons with evidence of the plague that date to this period suggest the plague, similar to the 14th century Black Death, was the culprit. <ref>For more on background to the plague, see: Rosen, W., 2007. <i>Justinian’s flea: plague, empire, and the birth of Europe</i>. Viking, New York. </ref>