The was a regional Japanese
earthquake
An earthquake (also known as a quake, tremor or temblor) is the shaking of the surface of the Earth resulting from a sudden release of energy in the Earth's lithosphere that creates seismic waves. Earthquakes can range in intensity, from ...
that occurred on January 18, 1586 at 23:00
local time
Local time is the time observed in a specific locality. There is no canonical definition. Originally it was mean solar time, but since the introduction of time zones it is generally the time as determined by the time zone in effect, with daylight s ...
. This earthquake had an estimated of 7.9,
and an epicenter in
Honshu
, historically called , is the largest and most populous island of Japan. It is located south of Hokkaidō across the Tsugaru Strait, north of Shikoku across the Inland Sea, and northeast of Kyūshū across the Kanmon Straits. The island separ ...
's
Chūbu region
The , Central region, or is a region in the middle of Honshu, Honshū, Japan, Japan's main island. In a wide, classical definition, it encompasses nine prefectures (''ken''): Aichi Prefecture, Aichi, Fukui Prefecture, Fukui, Gifu Prefecture ...
. It caused the deaths of at least 8,000 people and damaged 10,000 houses across the prefectures of
Toyama
Toyama may refer to:
Places and organizations
* Toyama Prefecture, a prefecture of Japan located in the Hokuriku region on the main Honshu island
* Toyama, Toyama, the capital city of Toyama Prefecture
* Toyama Station, the main station of Toyama, ...
,
Hyōgo,
Kyōto
Kyoto (; Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin metropolitan area along with Osaka and Kobe. , the ci ...
,
Osaka
is a designated city in the Kansai region of Honshu in Japan. It is the capital of and most populous city in Osaka Prefecture, and the third most populous city in Japan, following Special wards of Tokyo and Yokohama. With a population of 2. ...
,
Nara
The National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) is an " independent federal agency of the United States government within the executive branch", charged with the preservation and documentation of government and historical records. It i ...
,
Mie,
Aichi
is a prefecture of Japan located in the Chūbu region of Honshū. Aichi Prefecture has a population of 7,552,873 () and a geographic area of with a population density of . Aichi Prefecture borders Mie Prefecture to the west, Gifu Prefectu ...
,
Gifu
is a city located in the south-central portion of Gifu Prefecture, Japan, and serves as the prefectural capital. The city has played an important role in Japan's history because of its location in the middle of the country. During the Sengoku ...
,
Fukui
is a Japanese name meaning "fortunate" or sometimes "one who is from the Fukui prefecture". It may refer to:
Places
* Fukui Domain, a part of the Japanese han system during the Edo period
* Fukui Prefecture, a prefecture of Japan located in ...
,
Ishikawa and
Shizuoka
Shizuoka can refer to:
* Shizuoka Prefecture, a Japanese prefecture
* Shizuoka (city), the capital city of Shizuoka Prefecture
* Shizuoka Airport
* Shizuoka Domain, the name from 1868 to 1871 for Sunpu Domain, a predecessor of Shizuoka Prefecture
...
.
Historical documentation of this earthquake is limited because it occurred during the
Sengoku period
The was a period in History of Japan, Japanese history of near-constant civil war and social upheaval from 1467 to 1615.
The Sengoku period was initiated by the Ōnin War in 1467 which collapsed the Feudalism, feudal system of Japan under the ...
.
Tectonic setting
The island of Honshu is situated in a region of complex plate
convergence
Convergence may refer to:
Arts and media Literature
*''Convergence'' (book series), edited by Ruth Nanda Anshen
* "Convergence" (comics), two separate story lines published by DC Comics:
**A four-part crossover storyline that united the four Wei ...
between the
Pacific
The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...
,
Amurian,
Philippine Sea
The Philippine Sea is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean east of the Philippine archipelago (hence the name), the largest in the world, occupying an estimated surface area of . The Philippine Sea Plate forms the floor of the sea. Its ...
and
Okhotsk Plate
The Okhotsk Plate is a minor tectonic plate covering the Kamchatka Peninsula, Magadan Oblast, and Sakhalin Island of Russia; Hokkaido, Kantō and Tōhoku regions of Japan; the Sea of Okhotsk, as well as the disputed Kuril Islands. It was fo ...
s. While a large component of the convergence is accommodated by
subduction
Subduction is a geological process in which the oceanic lithosphere is recycled into the Earth's mantle at convergent boundaries. Where the oceanic lithosphere of a tectonic plate converges with the less dense lithosphere of a second plate, the ...
along the
Nankai and
Japan trench
The Japan Trench is an oceanic trench part of the Pacific Ring of Fire off northeast Japan. It extends from the Kuril Islands to the northern end of the Izu Islands, and is at its deepest. It links the Kuril–Kamchatka Trench to the north and t ...
es, shallow
intraplate deformation
Intraplate deformation is the folding, breaking, or flow of the Earth's crust within plates instead of at their margins. This process usually occurs in areas with especially weak crust and upper mantle, such as the Tibetan Plateau (Figure 1). Intr ...
occur as well. The
Japan Median Tectonic Line
, also Median Tectonic Line (MTL), is Japan's longest fault system. The MTL begins near Ibaraki Prefecture, where it connects with the Itoigawa-Shizuoka Tectonic Line (ISTL) and the Fossa Magna. It runs parallel to Japan's volcanic arc, passing ...
and
Itoigawa-Shizuoka Tectonic Line
, also Ito Shizu Sen (糸静線) is a major fault on Honshu island that runs from the city of Itoigawa, Niigata Prefecture, through Lake Suwa to the city of Shizuoka in Shizuoka Prefecture. It is often confused with the Fossa Magna (Great Fis ...
are two major fault zones that accommodate this deformation. These faults are associated with strike-slip and dip-slip faulting.
Earthquake
![Sarugabanbayama from Nodanisyojiyama 2010-4-18](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b5/Sarugabanbayama_from_Nodanisyojiyama_2010-4-18.JPG)
The origin of the Tenshō earthquake is not known, but
geologist
A geologist is a scientist who studies the solid, liquid, and gaseous matter that constitutes Earth and other terrestrial planets, as well as the processes that shape them. Geologists usually study geology, earth science, or geophysics, althou ...
s have presented different
faults to be the possible source. There is still debate about which fault zone caused the earthquake and even how did the earthquake unfold, through a single fault system rupture or even a multiple fault system rupture, given the massive death and destruction across wide areas of the Tōkai, Kinki, and Hokuriku regions.
An analysis of the
meizoseismal area
The meizoseismal area in an earthquake is the area of maximum damage. For example, in the Charleston, South Carolina, earthquake of 1886, the meizoseismal area was an area about twenty by thirty miles stretching northeast between Charleston and ...
suggest the source area was approximately extending north-northeast–south-southwest from Wakasa Bay to Ise Bay.
The same region was also the source area of an
1891 earthquake.
Geology
The Atera Fault System that runs through the Chūbu region is a north-northeast–south-southwest-striking left-lateral fault with a length of that
ruptured during the event.
Present data suggest seismicity on the fault is low, with long recurrence intervals between major earthquakes of ~1,800 years.
Soil surveys have found evidence that the fault ruptured in 1586. The forested area in the region showed evidence of en-echelon fractures. A nearby
sag pond
A sag pond is a body of fresh water collected in the lowest parts of a depression (geology), depression formed between two sides of an active geologic fault, strike-slip, transtensional or normal fault zone.
Formation
A sag pond is formed along ...
is also thought to have formed from the earthquake that has now been converted into a paddy field.
Paleoseismic trenching and
radiocarbon dating
Radiocarbon dating (also referred to as carbon dating or carbon-14 dating) is a method for determining the age of an object containing organic material by using the properties of radiocarbon, a radioactive isotope of carbon.
The method was dev ...
revealed that the last seismic event on the fault occurred between 1400 and 1600.
This date corresponded to the 1586 earthquake as no other reports of a severe earthquake in the region occurred at around this time.
Further surveys revealed that another structure, the Miboro Fault, a northwest strand of the Atera Fault was also involved in the earthquake, bringing the estimated rupture length to .
The suggested epicenter is located near the northwest part of Gifu Prefecture, based on analyzing the damage distribution.
Additional surveys and drilling found that the Yōrō-Kuwana-Yokkaichi Fault Zone to the west of the
Nōbi Plain
The is a large plain in Japan that stretches from the Mino area of southwest Gifu Prefecture to the Owari area of northwest Aichi Prefecture, covering an area of approximately . may have also ruptured, and corresponds to reports of severe damage in the vicinity. There is also evidence that the last earthquake on that fault zone could have happened between the 13th and 16th century, and it hence corresponds to the time of the earthquake (1586). The Yōrō-Kuwana-Yokkaichi Fault Zone is a group of three reverse faults beneath the Nōbi Plain with a total length of . Evidence of faults was further supported by the presence of
vertical displacements reflected in the sedimentary layers of the plain. The fault zone was also responsible for an earthquake in 745 AD (
ja), and ten additional events within the past 6,000 years.
The
blind Yōrō Fault located along the eastern base of the
Yōrō Mountains
The are a mountain range straddling the border between Gifu and Mie prefectures in Japan. They form part of the western border of the Nōbi Plain.
Geography
The Yōrō Mountains are approximately wide and long, running primarily from south-s ...
was also identified as a source of the quake.
Fold scarps measuring up to high formed during the event was discovered to have extended in length.
The disappearance of islands at the mouth of the Kiso River in Ise Bay was attributed to liquefaction and tsunami, caused by slip on the Ise Bay and Ise Bay Mouth Faults, located undersea.
Foreshocks and aftershocks
![Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Katō Kiyomasa](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/85/Toyotomi_Hideyoshi_and_Kat%C5%8D_Kiyomasa.jpg)
A
foreshock
A foreshock is an earthquake that occurs before a larger seismic event (the mainshock) and is related to it in both time and space. The designation of an earthquake as ''foreshock'', ''mainshock'' or aftershock is only possible after the full sequ ...
occurred on November 27, 1585 and is thought to have triggered the mainshock two months later.
The foreshock had an estimated magnitude of 6.6.
The earthquake caused
aftershock
In seismology, an aftershock is a smaller earthquake that follows a larger earthquake, in the same area of the main shock, caused as the displaced crust adjusts to the effects of the main shock. Large earthquakes can have hundreds to thousand ...
s that were felt in Kyoto every day for two months. Two strong earthquakes rocked the region in 1589 and
1596
Events
January–June
* January 6– 20 – An English attempt led by Francis Drake to cross the Isthmus of Panama ends in defeat.
* January 28 – Francis Drake dies of dysentery off Portobelo.
* February 14 – Archbishop John Whitg ...
(
ja), but were less destructive.
The latter event had a magnitude of 7.5 and resulted in at least 1,100 fatalities in Kyoto and Sakai.
Tsunami
A tsunami was reported in
Lake Biwa
is the largest freshwater lake in Japan, located entirely within Shiga Prefecture (west-central Honshu), northeast of the former capital city of Kyoto. Lake Biwa is an ancient lake, over 4 million years old. It is estimated to be the 13th ol ...
,
Wakasa Bay
is a bay located in the Chūbu region of Japan, and spans the coasts of Kyoto Prefecture, and Fukui Prefecture.
Geography
Wakasa Bay is the area south of the straight line from Cape Kyoga on the west of Tango Peninsula to Cape Echizen on the ...
and
Ise Bay
is a bay located at the mouth of the Kiso Three Rivers between Mie and Aichi Prefectures in Japan. Ise Bay has an average depth of and a maximum depth of . The mouth of the bay is and is connected to the smaller Mikawa Bay by two channels: th ...
,
however these may have been
seiche
A seiche ( ) is a standing wave in an enclosed or partially enclosed body of water. Seiches and seiche-related phenomena have been observed on lakes, reservoirs, swimming pools, bays, harbors, caves and seas. The key requirement for formation o ...
s as the rupture did not extend offshore.
A run-up height of was recorded at Ise Bay, while at Wakasa Bay, the tsunami was estimated to be .
A wave was reported along the coast of Lake Biwa, slamming into homes and washing away many residents in
Nagahama. The wave destroyed much of the city and flooded the
Nagahama Castle
is a ''hirashiro'' (castle on a plain) located in Nagahama, Shiga Prefecture, Japan.
History
Nagahama Castle was built in 1575-1576 by Hashiba Hideyoshi (later known as Toyotomi Hideyoshi) in the village then called Imahama, renaming the area ...
. Reports of 8,000 fatalities in Ise Bay due to the tsunami are now considered unreliable,
but deaths from drowning was reported. Multiple fatalities was recorded in
Toyama Bay
is a bay located on the northern shores of the Hokuriku region of Honshu, Japan on the Sea of Japan. The bay borders Toyama and Ishikawa prefectures. The bay is known for the mirages on the horizon during the winter months and for being a spaw ...
and along the
Shō River
The has its source in Mount Eboshi (烏帽子岳 ''Eboshigatake'') in the Shōkawa-chō area of Takayama, Gifu Prefecture, Japan. After flowing for through the northern part of Gifu Prefecture and the western part of Toyama Prefecture, it empt ...
. Analysis of the
sediment
Sediment is a naturally occurring material that is broken down by processes of weathering and erosion, and is subsequently transported by the action of wind, water, or ice or by the force of gravity acting on the particles. For example, sand an ...
ary layers at
Lake Suigetsu
is a lake in the Hokuriku region of Honshu, Japan, which is one of the Mikata Five Lakes located in Mihama and Wakasa, Fukui Prefecture (west-central Honshu), close to the coast of the Wakasa Bay in the Sea of Japan. Since 1993, it has been a ...
found no evidence of seawater entering the lake.
A 2015 study found
tsunami deposit
A tsunami deposit (the term tsunamiite is also sometimes used) is a sedimentary unit deposited as the result of a tsunami. Such deposits may be left onshore during the inundation phase or offshore during the 'backwash' phase. Such deposits are us ...
s in a paddy field in
Ōi District, Fukui
is a district located in Fukui Prefecture, Japan.
As of 2003, the district had an estimated population of 18,680 and a density
Density (volumetric mass density or specific mass) is the substance's mass per unit of volume. The symbol most o ...
Prefecture dating to between the 14th and 16th centuries which corresponds to the event.
Records of the tsunami are sparse and it was misattributed to a destructive wave along the
Sanriku
, sometimes known as , lies on the northeastern side of the island of Honshu, corresponding to today's Aomori, Iwate and parts of Miyagi Prefecture and has a long history.
The 36 bays of this irregular coastline tend to amplify the destructivenes ...
coast in a tsunami catalog. The 1586 Sanriku tsunami has been regarded as a false event as there were no historical documentation of such an event in 1586.
The tsunami was also misattributed to a
Peruvian earthquake the same year.
Historical records of supports the occurrence of a tsunami along the Sanriku coast in June 1585,
which has been attributed to a
large earthquake in the
Aleutian Islands
The Aleutian Islands (; ; ale, Unangam Tanangin,”Land of the Aleuts", possibly from Chukchi language, Chukchi ''aliat'', "island"), also called the Aleut Islands or Aleutic Islands and known before 1867 as the Catherine Archipelago, are a cha ...
.
Damage
![Monument of Kaerikumo Castle Ruins 001](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/66/Monument_of_Kaerikumo_Castle_Ruins_001.JPG)
The earthquake had a maximum
JMA intensity of ''Shindo'' 6–7 extending from the
Noto Peninsula
The Noto Peninsula (能登半島, ''Noto-hantō'') is a peninsula that projects north into the Sea of Japan from the coast of Ishikawa Prefecture in central Honshū, the main island of Japan. The main industries of the peninsula are agricultur ...
to Lake Biwa.
Extreme damage was reported between Nara, Osaka, Toyama and Shizouka. Large
conflagration
A conflagration is a large fire. Conflagrations often damage human life, animal life, health, and/or property. A conflagration can begin accidentally, be naturally caused (wildfire), or intentionally created (arson). A very large fire can produc ...
s broke out as a result. Large-scale landslides occurred in the northern part of the damage zone which was dominated by mountains. A fortress was completely wiped out by one of these landslides, while another collapsed during the tremors.
A triggered landslide on Kaerikumoyama buried the Kaerikumo Castle and 300 houses, killing 500 people. The
Ōgaki Castle
270px, Ōgaki Castle in 1933
270px, Edo period layout map of Ōgaki Castle
is a flatlands-style Japanese castle located in the city of Ōgaki, Gifu Prefecture, Japan. During the Sengoku period, Ōgaki Castle was home to several of Toyotomi Hid ...
was destroyed by a fire.
The only daughter of
Yamauchi Kazutoyo
, also spelled Yamanouchi (1545/1546? – November 1, 1605). He was retainer of Oda Nobunaga and later Toyotomi Hideyoshi. His father Yamauchi Moritoyo, was a descendant of Fujiwara no Hidesato, a senior retainer of the Iwakura Oda clan (op ...
was killed in Nagahama.
There were reports that a few small islands in the
Kiso River
The is a river in the Chubu region of Japan roughly long, flowing through the prefectures of Nagano, Gifu, Aichi, and Mie before emptying into Ise Bay a short distance away from the city of Nagoya.Nussbaum, Louis Frédéric ''et al.'' (2005) ...
vanished as a result of soil
liquefaction
In materials science, liquefaction is a process that generates a liquid from a solid or a gas or that generates a non-liquid phase which behaves in accordance with fluid dynamics.
It occurs both naturally and artificially. As an example of the ...
and subsequent subsidence which caused water to submerge the islands while a tsunami was generated in Ise Bay, drowning thousands.
At the location of present-day Nagoya, extensive soil liquefaction took place. Sand volcanoes and dykes were recorded and discovered at locations in the plain.
Significant destruction was reported in Kyoto, but its temples sustained minor damage.
The
Tō-ji
, also known as is a Shingon Buddhist temple in the Minami-ku ward of Kyoto, Japan.
Founded in 796, it was one of the only three Buddhist temples allowed in the city at the time it became the capital of Japan. As such it has a long history, ho ...
temple in the city was seriously damaged and over 600 Buddha statues in
Sanjūsangen-dō
is a Buddhist temple of the Tendai sect in the Higashiyama district of Kyoto, Japan.
The temple was founded in 1164 by Taira no Kiyomori for the cloistered Emperor Go-Shirakawa. It is officially known as and belongs to the Myōhō-in temple ...
were destroyed.
A Christian missionary in the region reported that 60 homes were destroyed at
Sakai
is a city located in Osaka Prefecture, Japan. It has been one of the largest and most important seaports of Japan since the medieval era. Sakai is known for its keyhole-shaped burial mounds, or kofun, which date from the fifth century and incl ...
.
Movement of faults and shaking severely deformed the
Kiso Three Rivers
The refers to the three major rivers that make up the alluvial plain area of the Nōbi Plain of Japan. The three rivers are the Kiso River, the Ibi River and the Nagara River. Given their location, they are sometimes referred to as the Nōbi Th ...
, resulting in a drastic change in its course.
See also
*
List of earthquakes in Japan
This is a list of earthquakes in Japan with either a magnitude greater than or equal to 7.0 or which caused significant damage or casualties. As indicated below, magnitude is measured on the Richter magnitude scale (''ML'') or the moment magnitud ...
*
List of historical earthquakes
Historical earthquakes is a list of significant earthquakes known to have occurred prior to the beginning of the 20th century. As the events listed here occurred before routine Seismometer, instrumental recordings, they rely mainly on the analys ...
References
{{Earthquakes in Japan
16th-century earthquakes
1586 in science
1586 in Japan
1586 in Asia
Earthquakes in Japan
Tsunamis in Japan
History of the Chubu region
History of Gifu Prefecture
Disasters in Kyoto Prefecture
History of Kyoto Prefecture
History of Shiga Prefecture
Sengoku period
Sea of Japan
History of Shizuoka Prefecture
History of Ishikawa Prefecture
History of Fukui Prefecture
Landslides in Japan
Hokuriku region
Azuchi–Momoyama period
Buried rupture earthquakes
16th-century floods