The 1706 Abruzzo earthquake, also known as the Maiella earthquake, occurred on November 3 at 13:00

CEST CEST or cest may refer to: * Central European Summer Time (UTC+2), daylight saving time observed in the central European time zone * Cognitive-Experiential Self-Theory * Chemical Exchange Saturation Transfer, a subset of Magnetization transfer in ...

. The earthquake with a possible epicenter in the Central Apennine Mountains (

Maiella The Maiella (or Majella) is a massif in the Central Apennines, in Abruzzo, central Italy. Geography The mountain is located at the boundary between the provinces of Chieti, Pescara and L'Aquila. The highest peak is Monte Amaro at 2,793&n ...

), Abruzzo had an estimated moment magnitude of 6.6–6.84 . It was assigned a maximum

Mercalli intensity The Modified Mercalli intensity scale (MM, MMI, or MCS), developed from Giuseppe Mercalli's Mercalli intensity scale of 1902, is a seismic intensity scale used for measuring the intensity of shaking produced by an earthquake. It measures the eff ...

of XI (''Extreme''), causing tremendous destruction in

Valle Peligna The Valle Peligna, also known as ''Conca di Sulmona'', is a plateau in central Abruzzo, southern Italy, included in the province of L'Aquila. It has a surface of some 100 km². The valley takes its name from the Paeligni. In prehistoric ...

. At least 2,400 people were killed.

Tectonic setting

The central Italian Peninsula is dominated by active extensional tectonics, forming the Apennine Mountains. The mountain range formed during the

Miocene The Miocene ( ) is the first epoch (geology), geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and mea ...

and

Pliocene The Pliocene ( ; also Pleiocene) is the epoch in the geologic time scale that extends from 5.333 million to 2.58subduction of the

Adriatic Plate The Adriatic or Apulian Plate is a small tectonic plate carrying primarily continental crust that broke away from the African Plate along a large transform fault in the Cretaceous period. The name Adriatic Plate is usually used when referring ...

beneath the

Eurasian Plate The Eurasian Plate is a tectonic plate that includes most of the continent of Eurasia (a landmass consisting of the traditional continents of Europe and Asia), with the notable exceptions of the Indian subcontinent, the Arabian subcontinent and ...

. The resulting subduction formed a

fold and thrust belt A fold and thrust belt (FTB) is a series of mountainous foothills adjacent to an orogenic belt, which forms due to contractional tectonics. Fold and thrust belts commonly form in the forelands adjacent to major orogens as deformation propagates o ...

. During the Quaternary,

thrust tectonics Thrust tectonics or contractional tectonics is concerned with the structures formed by, and the tectonic processes associated with, the shortening and thickening of the crust or lithosphere. It is one of the three main types of tectonic regime, ...

gave way to extensional tectonics, with the development of a zone of normal faulting running along the crest of the mountain range. One possible explanation for the change in the tectonic regime is slab rollback occurring within the

as it subducts beneath the

Tyrrhenian Sea The Tyrrhenian Sea (; it, Mar Tirreno , french: Mer Tyrrhénienne , sc, Mare Tirrenu, co, Mari Tirrenu, scn, Mari Tirrenu, nap, Mare Tirreno) is part of the Mediterranean Sea off the western coast of Italy. It is named for the Tyrrhenian pe ...

. Another explanation is because the back-arc basin in the

is opening at a faster rate than the

African Plate The African Plate is a major tectonic plate that includes much of the continent of Africa (except for its easternmost part) and the adjacent oceanic crust to the west and south. It is bounded by the North American Plate and South American Plate ...

is colliding with the

. Extensional tectonics in the region is mainly accommodated by northwest–southeast striking

normal fault In geology, a fault is a planar fracture or discontinuity in a volume of rock across which there has been significant displacement as a result of rock-mass movements. Large faults within Earth's crust result from the action of plate tecton ...

s. In the Central Apennines, the zone of extension is about 30 km wide, closely matching the zone of observed extensional strain as shown by

GPS The Global Positioning System (GPS), originally Navstar GPS, is a satellite-based radionavigation system owned by the United States government and operated by the United States Space Force. It is one of the global navigation satellite sy ...

measurements. Recent large earthquakes in this area have been caused by movement on southwest- dipping normal faults. The

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics ( physical geography), human impact characteristics ( human geography), and the interaction of humanity an ...

has seen very destructive earthquakes in its history, including an 6.6 in the

2nd century The 2nd century is the period from 101 ( CI) through 200 ( CC) in accordance with the Julian calendar. It is considered part of the Classical era, epoch, or historical period. Early in the century, the Roman Empire attained its greatest e ...

AD, 1706, 1915, 1933 and 2009.

Earthquake

The earthquake was associated with shallow crustal faulting within the extensional zone on the Italian Peninsula, near

massif In geology, a massif ( or ) is a section of a planet's crust that is demarcated by faults or flexures. In the movement of the crust, a massif tends to retain its internal structure while being displaced as a whole. The term also refers to a ...

. This part of the tectonic zone represents the outermost

anticline In structural geology, an anticline is a type of fold that is an arch-like shape and has its oldest beds at its core, whereas a syncline is the inverse of an anticline. A typical anticline is convex up in which the hinge or crest is the ...

of the Central Apennines fold and thrust belt. Thrusting resulted in uplift and formation of the massif until the late Pliocene, when extension became dominant. The Caramanico Fault, a 30-km-long normal fault, runs the western base of the massif. Two other faults; the Palena and Porrara faults are situated at the southwestern part of the massif. The source mechanism of faulting is debated between normal or thrust faulting. A known fault commonly associated with the earthquake is the Porrara Fault; a 20-km-long, west northwest–east southeast trending normal fault located at the southwestern portion of

(Monte Porrara). The

fault scarp A fault scarp is a small step or offset on the ground surface where one side of a fault has moved vertically with respect to the other. It is the topographic expression of faulting attributed to the displacement of the land surface by movement a ...

associated with the Porrara Fault is visible for 3 km. However, modelling of the earthquake using its geological and seismic intensity information suggest rupture on a southwest dipping

thrust fault A thrust fault is a break in the Earth's crust, across which older rocks are pushed above younger rocks. Thrust geometry and nomenclature Reverse faults A thrust fault is a type of reverse fault that has a dip of 45 degrees or less. If ...

at a shallow depth of 5–10 km.

Damage

The 1706 disaster occurred just three years after a series of destructive earthquakes struck the Central Apennines. It lasted 20 seconds but caused massive destruction. A second earthquake on the night of November 4 caused additional damage and some casualties in areas less affected by the previous shock. In total, the earthquakes killed 2,400 people. The historical city of

Sulmona Sulmona ( nap, label= Abruzzese, Sulmóne; la, Sulmo; grc, Σουλμῶν, Soulmôn) is a city and ''comune'' of the province of L'Aquila in Abruzzo, Italy. It is located in the Valle Peligna, a plain once occupied by a lake that disappeared in ...

suffered heavy damage, and more than 1,000 people died. This was inferred by the presence of buildings, all built in the 18th and 19th centuries. The earthquake effectively destroyed much the city's architectural heritage. Much of the town of

Anversa degli Abruzzi Anversa degli Abruzzi ( Abruzzese: ') is a comune and town in the province of L'Aquila in the Abruzzo region of southern Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Euro ...

was destroyed, including castles and homes. Serious damage was also reported in

Chieti Chieti (, ; , nap, label= Abruzzese, Chjïétë, ; gr, Θεάτη, Theátē; lat, Theate, ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Central Italy, east by northeast of Rome. It is the capital of the province of Chieti in the Abruzzo region. ...

Lama dei Peligni Lama dei Peligni is a '' comune'' and town in the Province of Chieti in the Abruzzo region of Italy with 1,155 inhabitants. It is also part of the Aventino-Medio Sangro mountain community and the municipal territory is included in the Majella Nati ...

Manoppello Manoppello ( Abruzzese: ') is a ''comune'' in Abruzzo, in the province of Pescara, south-eastern Italy. It is famous for having a church which contains an image on a thin byssus veil, a sudarium, known as the Holy Face of Manoppello and which has ...

, Palena,

Cansano Cansano is a ''comune'' and town in the Province of L'Aquila in the Abruzzo region of central Italy. Sights include: * the Natural Archaeological Park '' Ocriticum'', with remains of two Italic/Roman temples of Jupiter and Hercuules, and a ''sac ...

, Prezza,

Raiano Raiano (locally ''Raianë'') is a town and ''comune'' of the province of L'Aquila in the Abruzzo region of Italy. Geography Raiano is located at above sea level, on the western side of the Peligna Valley. In his Naturalis Historia, Pliny the ...

, Vittorito,

Roccacasale Roccacasale (locally ''La Rocca'') is a ''comune'' in the Province of L'Aquila in the Abruzzo region of Italy. Built on the slopes of the Monte della Rocca in the central Apennine Mountains, Apennines, the village overlooks the Peligna Valley and ...

, Salle,

Tocco da Casauria Tocco da Casauria is a ''comune'' and town in the Province of Pescara in the Abruzzo region of Central Italy. The centre was known for centuries as simply Tocco, and the name "da Casauria" was added only after 1861. It rises on a hill between the ...

Rivisondoli Rivisondoli is a village and ''comune'' in the province of L'Aquila The Province of L'Aquila ( it, Provincia dell'Aquila) is the largest, most mountainous and least densely populated province of the Abruzzo region of Central Italy. It compris ...

Roccaraso Roccaraso is a town and ''comune'' in central Italy, in the province of L'Aquila in the Abruzzo region. History Founding The town of Roccaraso dates back to around 975 AD, and is located near the Rasinus stream, from which some believe it ...

, Lettopalena,

, and

Fara San Martino Fara San Martino (locally ''La Fàrë'') is a ''comune'' and town in the Province of Chieti in the Abruzzo region of Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. ...

. In Palena, out of a population of 450, 300 of its residents perished. Damage was also reported in L'Aquila. More than 100 fatalities were reported in

Gamberale Gamberale is a village and ''comune'' in the Province of Chieti in the Abruzzo region of central Italy. The village is from Chieti, the provincial capital. It lies high in the Apennine Mountains The Apennines or Apennine Mountains (; grc- ...

, and the town was destroyed. Five people were killed and 120 were injured in

. At

, the death toll was 130, while a further 120 were injured. At least 60 fatalities were recorded in Lettopalena and 100 in

Taranta Peligna Taranta Peligna (Neapolitan language, Abruzzese: ') is a ''comune'' and town in the province of Chieti in the Abruzzo region of central Italy. It is from Chieti. Located in the Aventino Valley, at the foot of the Maiella, in the past it was famo ...

. The San Liberatore a Maiella abbey and church was damage but restored successfully. Damage was also reported in the regions of

Lazio it, Laziale , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

Molise it, Molisano (man) it, Molisana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 ...

, and

Puglia it, Pugliese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographic ...

. In Cassino and

Sora, Lazio Sora () is a town and ''comune'' of Lazio, Italy, in the province of Frosinone. It is built in a plain on the banks of the Liri. This part of the valley is the seat of some important manufacturing, especially of paper mills. The area around Sora i ...

, and the Puglia region, plasters on buildings fell.

Plaster Plaster is a building material used for the protective or decorative coating of walls and ceilings and for moulding and casting decorative elements. In English, "plaster" usually means a material used for the interiors of buildings, while "re ...

s also fell off the

Monte Cassino Monte Cassino (today usually spelled Montecassino) is a rocky hill about southeast of Rome, in the Latin Valley, Italy, west of Cassino and at an elevation of . Site of the Roman town of Casinum, it is widely known for its abbey, the first ho ...

abbey. Many towns in Molise suffered minor to extensive damage, but no casualties were reported.

References

{{Earthquakes in Italy Earthquakes in Italy 1706 in Italy 1706 disasters History of Abruzzo History of Molise Sulmona

Tectonic setting

Earthquake

Damage

See also

References