Alfred Crosby's classic history The Columbian Exchange explores how syphilis was perhaps the only major disease that went from the New World to the Old World. W

Alfred Crosby's classic history The Columbian Exchange explores how syphilis was perhaps the only major disease that went from the New World to the Old World. Well worth a read even though it's almost 50 years old at this point. Also I hadn't realized until recently that the "syphilis spread via Columbus" theory was current in the 18th century. There's a section in Voltaire's Candide where it's discussed.