London Bills of Mortality

E96653

London Bills of Mortality were early modern weekly mortality statistics for London, recording deaths and their causes and serving as a crucial source for understanding epidemics and public health, including the Great Plague.


Statements (49)
Predicate Object
instanceOf epidemiological data source
historical document series
mortality statistics
public health record
causeOfDeathClassification non-standardized medical terminology
symptom-based categories
compiledBy Company of Parish Clerks of London
parish clerks
country England
Kingdom of Great Britain
dataType aggregate counts
cause-specific mortality
distribution circulated among officials
sold to the public
geographicCoverage City of London
suburbs of London
historicalSignificance foundation for quantitative public health analysis
key source for studying the Great Plague of 1665–1666
influenced John Graunt
William Petty
development of demography
development of vital statistics
early actuarial science
language English
location London
medium printed broadsides
notableFor data on the Great Plague of London
early systematic mortality recording
longitudinal series of weekly death counts
producerType ecclesiastical authority
municipal record-keeping
publicationFrequency weekly
purpose informing authorities about mortality patterns
warning about plague
records causes of death
christenings
number of burials
parish of burial
sourceFor John Graunt's "Natural and Political Observations Made upon the Bills of Mortality"
temporalCoverageEnd 19th century
temporalCoverageStart 1530s
16th century
usedFor demographic analysis
historical epidemiology
monitoring epidemics
population estimates
public health surveillance
tracking plague outbreaks
urban history research

Referenced by (2)
Subject (surface form when different) Predicate
Great Plague of London
documentedIn
London Bills of Mortality ("John Graunt's "Natural and Political Observations Made upon the Bills of Mortality"")
sourceFor

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