Reactions | How Lead (Maybe?) Caused the Downfall of the Roman Empire | Season 7 | Episode 12 | PBS

Ancient Rome’s emperors did some pretty bizarre stuff—bursting into uncontrollable fits of laughter, appointing a horse as a priest, dressing in animal skins and attacking people… the list goes on. Why did they act this way? Possibly… lead poisoning. In this week’s episode, we unwrap the possibility that lead caused the Roman Empire’s collapse.