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In July 1518, the city of Strasbourg was struck by one of history's strangest events, now known as the Dancing Plague of 1518. It reportedly began when a woman named Frau Troffea stepped into the street and started dancing uncontrollably. She continued for hours and, according to some accounts, for several days without stopping. Soon, other people joined her. Within weeks, dozens and possibly hundreds of residents were dancing in the streets, unable to control their movements despite exhaustion and pain. Witnesses described people collapsing from fatigue, suffering injuries to their feet, and continuing to dance even when they desperately wanted to stop. Believing that the afflicted needed to dance the illness out of their systems, local authorities hired musicians and opened public spaces for dancing. Instead of helping, the number of dancers appeared to increase. The true cause of the Dancing Plague remains unknown. Some historians believe it was a case of mass psychogenic illness, in which extreme stress and fear spread physical symptoms through a community. Others have suggested ergot poisoning from contaminated rye, although many experts consider this explanation less likely. More than 500 years later, the Dancing Plague of 1518 remains one of the most mysterious and fascinating events in recorded history.