black plague doctor :: Article Creator The Haunting History Of Plague Doctors And Their Beaked Masks The Bubonic plague, also known as the Black Death, ravaged Europe for centuries, claiming millions of lives. Believing the plague spread through miasma, or bad air, doctors wore elaborate costumes with beak-like masks filled with aromatic substances to protect themselves. Also called 'Black Death' and 'Pestilence' and 'Great Mortality', the Bubonic plague which recurred in Europe for centuries, has wiped out hundreds of millions of people. The victims suffered with painful swollen lymph nodes, blackened skin, weakness, fever and other symptoms. However, before the germ disease theory was developed, most people believed that the plague spread through noxious air, or miasma, that emanated from rotting organic matter. This theory known as the miasma theory was widely accepted in Europe and China. IF that were the case, how di...