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Story summary
- Irish scientists at University College Dublin detected ancient sheeppox DNA in the 1,000-year-old York Gospels.
- The study screened 754 Eurasian samples and assembled 22 ancient sheeppox genomes.
- Bronze Age sheep teeth date the virus emergence to 1875–1645 BCE.
- Outbreaks from July 2025 to February 2026 affected five countries.
- Greece reported 1,549 cases and culled over 417,000 sheep and goats by December 2025, paying €132–220 each.
