Here’s what you’ll learn when you read this story:Researchers believe they’ve discovered a “plague pit” mass grave from 1350 outside of Erfurt, Germany. The deserted medieval village of Neuses was struck hard by the Black Death plague in the 14 th century. Historical records told of 11 mass burials in the area tied to 12,000 plague-related deaths, but this is the first evidence of locating one. At the time of the Black Death, pits were a common burial practice to limit the spread of the disease, keeping the infected away from the open air. While discovering a Black Death mass grave is still a rare find, doing so opens opportunities for genetic and anthropological analyses.