Plague blessings. 14th-century manuscript illustration of monks who have been disfigured by a plague being blessed by a priest. The term plague can refer to several diseases, such as smallpox (the 'red plague') and the Black Death. Outbreaks of the latter affected Europe from the 1340s to the 1700s. Millions died and survivors were often left disfigured. The text is in Latin. This illustration is from the encyclopedia 'Omne Bonum', compiled in London in the period 1360-1375.