A new study has produced what researchers describe as the first genetic proof that Europeans brought smallpox to the Americas. The findings come from analysis of two individuals buried in northern Chile during the colonial period, where scientists recovered DNA from the variola virus, the pathogen that causes smallpox.
The research, published in Science, adds biological evidence to a long-standing historical understanding of how Old World diseases spread after European arrival in the Western Hemisphere. For years, historians have linked colonization to devastating epidemics, but direct genetic confirmation has been limited.
The report centers on northern Chile, where the remains of mummified individuals offered a rare chance to test for ancient viral material. By identifying variola virus DNA in those burials, the study strengthens the case that smallpox was introduced during the colonial era rather than originating in the Americas.
The findings also fit the broader story of the Spanish conquest roughly five centuries ago, when conquistadors arrived with military power, animals and other tools of empire. Alongside that expansion came infectious diseases, and this study provides a clearer genetic record of smallpox as part of that history.
