Egyptian Pharaoh Ramses V
The history of vaccines and inoculation begins with smallpox. The earliest believed case of smallpox was found in the mummified remains of Egyptian Pharaoh Ramses V, who died around 1145 BCE. Smallpox is transmitted from person to person, and spread along the trade routes of the Ancient World and eventually carried to the Americas by Europeans. Because smallpox was so widespread, there were many early attempts to study the disease.