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Seismogenic Origin of the Ancient Avdat Ruins, Negev Desert, Israel
Natural Hazards
Abstract and Figures
The present communication addresses the potential use of damage features, observed in the ancient ruins of the Avdat archeological
site (Negev Desert, Israel) as a tool to identify the seismic origin of the destruction there and roughly to determine the
direction of seismic wave propagation.
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... Последние три десятка лет мы изучали окаменевшие сейсмоскопы во многих странах мира: Израиле и Иордании, Киргизии, Узбекистане и Казахстане, Армении и Грузии, Болгарии, Германии и России [Korjenkov, Mazor, 1998;Korjenkov et al., , 2005Korjenkov, Schmidt, 2009;Корженков и др., 2012, 20152016, 20172019и мн. др.]. ...
... Расстояние отлета обломков на север от башни достигает 8 м, что является аномальным значением. В обычных условиях расстояние упавших обломков или кирпичей не превышает 1/3 высоты сооружения [Korjenkov, Mazor, 1998]. Даже если предположить высоту башни равной 10 м, отлет обломков на почти такое же расстояние весьма необычен. ...
The data collected and described in the article on the deformations of ancient
buildings in the Dallagkau village on the Fiagdon River in North Ossetia clearly indicate the
seismic cause of their damage and destruction. The systematic nature of building collapses and
tilts indicates at least two seismic events and the propagation of seismic movements along the
WNW–ESE axis during both earthquakes. Local seismic intensity was I0 = VIII–IX points. It was
found that the earliest human development of the area in the Dallagkau village took place in the
6th–8th centuries AD. Evidence of this conclusion is the materials of the settlement and the burial
ground in the area of Fardygdon, excavated by Countess P.S. Uvarova. However, we were unable
to identify the buildings of that time and possible deformations in them. The second chronological
period of existence in the Dallagkau village dates from the pre-Mongol era, probably from the end
of the 12th century, maybe from the 13th century, until the 19th century This is a burial ground
in the Tauzit area, a number of materials from the Fardygdon burial ground were identified by
P.S. Uvarova, residential and combat towers, ground and semi-underground crypts. It is in them
that we managed to identify traces of two seismic events. Judging by the results obtained by us
earlier, in the nearby of Dzivgis village, the age of these seismic events of the XV–XVI centuries
and XIX century. Additional field and cameral studies are needed in other ancient settlements of the
region for a more complete parameterization of ancient seismic events, as well as the localization
of ancient epicentral zones in certain structures of the Earth’s crust in the region. More precise
determination of the age of historical seismic catastrophes is also needed.
... Oriented fallen columns or their imbricated fallen drums are common damage related to earthquakes (e.g., Nur and Ron, 1996;Stiros, 1996;Guidoboni et al., 2002;Korjenkov and Mazor, 1999;Al-Tarazi and Korjenkov, 2007;Kumsar et al., 2016;Fandi, 2018), especially if they fell aligned all with the same orientation (Fig. 1c). Fallen columns related to earthquakes are described, for example, at Byzantine Bishop's Cathedral at Sussita (Stiros, 1996), at Hierapolis and Laodikeia in Turkey (Kumsar et al., 2016), at the Lagina sacred area in Anatolia (Turkey) (Karabacak, 2016) or at Umm Qais in Gadara (Fandi, 2018). ...
... generate ED having equal distance and densities from the fault trace, the greater amount occurs closer to the fault. (b) In the case of reverse faults generates EDs at great distances from the fault trace and mainly in the hanging wall. In both cases, the ground motion pulse and the earthquake damage orientation (EDO) is normal to the fault trace.Mazor, 1999Mazor, , 2013Yerli et al., 2010;Korjenkov et al., 2019; Figs. 3a, 3e) ...
The information and seismic parameters gained from pre-instrumental earthquakes are essential to improve the seismic catalogs and hazard studies. The earthquake damage (ED) that affected architectonic elements during earthquakes (e.g. fallen walls, conjugated fractures in walls, dropped keystones in arches), and when this earthquake damage is orientated (EDO), can be used to infer seismic parameters of pre-instrumental earthquakes such as epicenter location, seismogenic source or ground motion. However, there is not a common methodology to measure this orientation damage. For example, tilting and fallen walls are some of the most used elements to infer the horizontal ground motion in non-instrumental earthquakes. Nevertheless, according to the shape of the architectonic element (a wall in this case), it has only two degrees of freedom to fall, and therefore, its azimuth does not necessarily fit with the ground motion pulse orientation. In this work, a review of the earthquake damage (ED) and effects described in pre-instrumental earthquakes is carried out. A method is also proposed, considering not only the frequency of damage orientations but also considering the uncertainty angle of each element to be damage. The ED has been classified into five groups according to the angle of uncertainty to record the pulse orientation. This method has been checked taking advantage of recent earthquakes with a good instrumental record of the ground motion pulse, and also tested modeling different scenarios with different pulse orientations. This method, that takes into account the uncertainty angles, is a reliable method to calculate the EDO and back-calculate the ground motion pulse orientation in pre-instrumental earthquakes in absence of more accurate modern instrumental records. This method can also be useful for seismic risk assessment and restoration and protection of historical heritage.
... For this reason, a normal procedure adopted in archaeoseismology is the exclusion of possible causes of destruction other than those associated with seismic solicitation (e.g., Stiros, 1996;Galadini et al., 2006;Marco, 2008;Hinzen et al., 2010;Stiros and Pytharouli, 2014). Looking for maximum consistency with earthquake damage/destruction, most archaeoseismological works are based on: 1) the evidence of geological co-seismic effects in archaeological sites, mainly surface faulting and sudden areal vertical motion (e.g., Pirazzoli et al., 1992;1996;Hancock and Altunel, 1997;Galadini and Galli, 1999;Akyüz and Altunel, 2001;Stiros and Papageorgiou, 2001;Marco et al., 2003;Galli and Naso, 2009;Altunel et al., 2009;Schweppe et al., 2021); 2) the areal approach based on the correlation of destruction layers, i.e., horizons in the archaeological stratigraphy showing evidence of sudden destruction caused by human and/or natural agents (Galadini et al., 2006;Sintubin, 2013), throughout a territory or an archaeological area (e.g., Guidoboni et al., 2000;Stiros and Papageorgiou, 2001;Galli and Bosi, 2002;Galadini and Galli, 2004;Ceccaroni et al., 2009;Galadini et al., 2022); 3) the estimation of the consistency of the damage by seismic actions through structural evaluations or modelling ground motion and structural response (e.g., Korjenkov and Mazor, 1999a;1999b;Hinzen, 2005;Rodrìguez-Pascua et al., 2011;Hinzen et al., 2013;Kázmér and Major, 2015). In some cases, the different approaches have also benefitted from attempts to quantify the reliability of the seismic hypothesis by using a plausibility matrix or summarizing the consistency of alternative causes of destruction (e.g., Hinzen et al., 2013;Galadini et al., 2018;Albrecht and Döring-Williams, 2023). ...
The ancient city of Pompeii, destroyed by the 79 CE Plinian eruption of Vesuvius, is one of the most famous archaeological sites worldwide and an open-air laboratory for many disciplines. The destruction of Pompeii has so far been reconstructed in terms of a succession of volcanic phenomena and related effects, identified as the accumulation of pumice lapilli on roofs and dynamic pressure exerted by pyroclastic currents on buildings, and neglecting the potential effects of the syn-eruptive seismicity, the occurrence of which is beautifully described by an erudite eyewitness to the catastrophe, Pliny the Younger. During a recent excavation in the Insula dei Casti Amanti, in the central part of Pompeii, the peculiar evidence of building collapses, that overwhelmed two individuals, has been uncovered. The multidisciplinary investigation, involving archaeology, volcanology, and anthropology, gathered information on the construction technique of the masonry structures, the volcanological stratigraphy, the traumatic pattern of bone fractures of the skeletons, along with the detection of the wall displacements, that led to archaeoseismological considerations. The merging of the data has highlighted the need of an updated perspective in the assessment of the damage at Pompeii during the 79 CE eruption, by considering the syn-eruptive seismicity as a factor contributing to the destruction of the city and death of the inhabitants. By comparing the attitude and characteristics of different types of damage, and after ruling out any other possible damaging event, our conclusions point to the occurrence of syn-eruptive earthquake-induced failures of masonry structures. The structural collapses, based on our stratigraphic and volcanological data, are chronologically consistent with the beginning of the caldera-forming phase of the eruption which was accompanied by strong seismic shocks. The crush injuries of the skeletons of the two individuals are consistent with severe compression traumas and analogous to those shown by individuals involved in modern earthquakes testifying that, apart from other volcanic phenomena, the effects of syn-eruptive seismicity may be relevant. These outcomes lay the foundation for a more extensive study concerning the assessment of the contribution of the syn-eruptive seismic destruction at Pompeii and open new perspectives for volcanological, archaeoseismological and paleopathological studies.
... Последние три десятка лет мы изучали окаменевшие сейсмоскопы во многих странах мира: Израиле и Иордании, Киргизии, Узбекистане и Казахстане, Армении и Грузии, Болгарии, Германии и России [Korjenkov, Mazor, 1998;Korjenkov et al., , 2005Korjenkov, Schmidt, 2009;Корженков и др., 2012, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019и мн. др.]. ...
In recent years, we have conducted archaeological and archaeoseismological complex
studies in the Fergana Valley, which have provided very interesting materials telling about the
socio-economic life and natural cataclysm of this historical and geographical region. In particular,
in 2023, research was continued on the Balandtepa monument and new materials were obtained
clarifying the historical topography of the city. At the same time, a number of characteristic
destructions and damages in the city walls of the citadel were revealed, indicating their seismogenic
origin. As we noted earlier, the early medieval city of Bab (Pap) mentioned by the early Arab
historian At-Tabari was located on the territory of the Balandtepa monument and consisted of
three parts: the citadel, the inner city (Shahristan), the outer city (Rabad). It was possible to
establish that during the entire time of the functioning of the Balandtepa citadel wall, three fairly
clearly distinguished periods took place. In the first two periods, the defense of the citadel was
mainly carried out from the intra-wall corridor, and in the third period from the parapet. In the
first period (V–VI centuries), the aforementioned intra-wall corridor connects with the passage
going inside the citadel. At the end of the VI – beginning of the VII century, the double wall of the
citadel suddenly collapses as a result of strong earthquakes. After that, the city is being restored,
in particular, the aforementioned double wall of the citadel is being overhauled, i.e. almost being
built anew. Thus, the second period of the citadel’s functioning begins and lasted for more than
a hundred years, approximately at the beginning or the first quarter of the VIII century, when the
fortress walls are destroyed for the second time. Now, the destroyed wall is completely leveled
and used as the foundation of a new wall. After that, the width of the fortress wall of the citadel
is 6.10 m, and the defense of the citadel is carried out from the parapet. In the last quarter of the
VIII century, there is some kind of natural cataclysm. As a result, the owner of the citadel and the
residents of Shahristan relocated to Rabad. Their places are occupied by artisans who worked here
until the IX century, inclusive.
... , Kamh et al. (2008), Karakhanian et al. (2008), and Grützner et al. (2012) 2 Miklós Kázmér 3 Korjenkov and Mazor (2003), Kamai and Hatzor (2008), Marco (2008) and Pau andVestroni (2008) Korjenkov and Mazor (1999), Meghraoui et al. (2003), Similox-Tohon et al. (2006), and Rodríguez-Pascua et al.(2011) ...
Atlas of Structural Geology edited by Soumyajit Mukherjee is translated to Persan by an Iranian geologist
... This provides sufficient safety in most parts of the world. However, earthquakes cause horizontal loading of vertical structures, among others, which can be recognized by displaced masonry blocks, walls, and columns (Karcz and Kafri, 1978;Korjenkov and Mazor, 1998;Marco, 2008;Rodríguez-Pascua et al., 2011;Kázmér, 2015). Displacement is recognized either directly (e.g. a column is standing significantly off its foundation: Kázmér, 2021; a wall is bent or tilted: Fig. 11, or collapsed: Fig. 12) or indirectly (a wall was repaired by adding an unusual, often oversized buttress: Tassios, 2010). ...
A brief review of the main results of a study into the statistics of damage from natural disasters, in particular from strong earthquakes, is given. Attention is drawn to a certain discrepancy between the statistics of catastrophes indicating the possibility of rare earthquakes with especially heavy damage values and the practice of underestimating this factor in historical research. Examples of the decisive impact of strong seismic catastrophes of the past on the history of a number of human societies are given. In combination with other factors, these catastrophes even changed the nature of land use from irrigated agriculture to nomadic animal husbandry. It is also noted that the level of damage from natural disasters can characterize not only the strength of the natural impacts, but also the increase in vulnerability of human societies to strong external impacts characteristic of crisis periods.
A brief review of the main results of the study of the statistics of damage from natural disasters, in
particular, from strong earthquakes, is given. Attention is drawn to a certain discrepancy between the statistics
of catastrophes, indicating the possibility of the occurrence of rare earthquakes with especially heavy damage
values, and the practice of underestimating this factor in historical research. Examples of the decisive impact
of strong seismic catastrophes of the past on the history of a number of human societies are given. In combination
with other factors these catastrophes had caused even a change in the nature of land use from irrigated
agriculture to nomadic animal husbandry. It is also noted that the level of damage from natural disasters can
characterize not only the strength of natural impacts, but also the increase in vulnerability of human societies
to strong external impacts, that is characteristic of crisis periods.
We studied historical and paleoseismic deformations in the southern Issyk-Kul depression-on the territory of adyrs (piedmonts) of the Terskey Ala-Too ridge: 1) along the southern foot of the Kokonadyr-Tegerek mountains in the Ala-Bash-Konur-Olen intermountain depression; 2) in the Tossor river basin; 3) in the Chon-Kyzyl-Suu river valley; and 4) on the northern slope of the intradepression adyr uplift of Bir-Bash. We used 21 results of radiocarbon dating of samples taken in the walls of paleoseismological trenches or cleared natural outcrops. These studies in the south of the Issyk-Kul depression revealed 10 strong seismic events during the Holocene. We found that they had migrated from the west-from the Ala-Bash-Konur-Olen depression in the early Holocene eastward-to Mount Bir-Bash (by the beginning of Anno Domini) and then again back-westward to the Kokonadyr-Tegerek foothills (by the end of the Late Middle Ages). Some of the discovered seismic catastrophes may have been the beginning or the end of the evolution of some civilizations in the region (the Andronovo culture and the Karakhanids). The obtained data can be used to make the New Map of Seismic Zoning for the Issyk-Kul Region of the Kyrgyz Republic.
On March 30, 1986, an earthquake of surface-wave magnitude (Ms) 5.8 generated about 13 km of surface ruptures in the remote northern part of South Australia. This earthquake is significant because it occurred in the interior of the tectonically stable Precambrian shield (craton) of the Australian plate, about 2000 km from the nearest plate margin. The source parameters of the earthquake are described and their implications discussed. Investigations of the historical faulting at Marryat Creek, Tennant Creek, and Meckering in Australia and palaeoseismologic data from the Meers fault in the United States all suggest that intraplate faults may have long repeat times for surface rupturing. Based on these observations, it is suggested that the concept of recurrence intervals may not be appropriate for faults in stable continental interiors. -from Authors
The Ms = 7.3 Suusamyr earthquake of 19 August 1992 was a large, thrust-type earthquake in the northern Tien Shan of Kyrgyzstan, an intracontinental mountain belt in central Asia. Focal mechanisms of both the mainshock and 13 moderate-sized aftershocks are consistent with a seismotectonic setting that is dom-inated by NNW-SSE horizontal compression, which manifests itself in reverse fault-ing along roughly east-west trending, steeply dipping fault planes. The earthquake produced surface faulting at two widely separated locations, along two different fault segments, the total length of which was less than 4 km. Detailed measurements at one of the locations indicate a net slip of at least 4.2 ___ 0.4 m. A wide variety of secondary surface effects was observed in the macroseismic zone that extended over an area of 2500 km 2. The lack of extensive surface rupture from such a large event can be explained by a combination of (1) redistribution of the net slip at depth among the secondary splays that branches out from the main fault near the surface and (2) variable surface slip over the fault length. The active deformation associated with this event documents a structural style that involves steeply dipping, reverse faults extending from mid-crustal depths to the surface at nearly uniform dip, accommo-dating crustal shortening in the interior of the Tien Shan.
Over 700 joint spacings were measured along a 190-m scanline within a single limestone bed of the Turonian Gerofit Formation, southern Israel. By investigating joints belonging to a single systematic set confined to a bed of uniform thickness, one can factor out the major influences of bed thickness, lithology and mechanical properties on joint set development. Joint spacing distributions and fracture spacing ratios (FSR) vary dramatically along the length of the scanline, and correlate directly with throughgoing fracture zones belonging to the same tectonic stress regime. Regions cross-cut by fracture zones display narrower median joint spacings, FSR of ∼ 1.3, and unimodal joint spacing distributions. Where fracture zones are absent, joint spacings have wider medians, FSR of ∼ 0.8, and multimodal distributions. Because fracture zones most likely represent areas of high strain, and laboratory experiments demonstrate a systematic decrease in fracture spacing with increasing strain, regions of the bed cross-cut by fracture zones are likely at a more advanced stage of joint set development, and hence closer to saturation, than other regions. Joint saturation in the Gerofit Formation may be achieved by a shift in scale from single-layer to multi-layer jointing, as the development of throughgoing joints prevents the formation of additional bedding-confined joints.
Studies of ancient seismicity in the Levant are based on the interpretation of biblical, ecclesiastic and historic chronicles, all of which are plagued by exaggeration and misinterpretation. To verify the occurrence of such ancient earth-tremors, archaeological archives in Israel were searched for reports and evidence of ancient catastrophic damage, attributable to earthquakes. Literature and response to questionnaires revealed about 20 sites at which features of ancient destruction were assigned a seismic origin. The actual field evidence included horizons of total destruction, and mainly features of fracturing (joints, fissures, cracks and faults), tilting and subsidence, directed collapse and parallel alignments of fallen columns and masonry. About 75% of these sites lie within or near to the Dead Sea-Jordan Rift, confirming the seismogenic nature of this zone. In spite of their significance and usefulness, the archaeoseismic data cannot be employed as an entirely independent technique for the verification of ancient chronicles and the study of past seismicity. In addition to problems of operator's bias, and bias due to historic information, the critical examination of field evidence cited in support of ancient seismicity has shown that the individual features are difficult to distinguish from features of damage due to poor construction and adverse geotechnical effects. It is essential therefore, in the description of ancient damage and of consideration of its origin, to maintain a proper balance between geological, geomorphological and geotechnical factors on one hand, and historic, anthropogeographic and archaeological factors on the other.
The northern piedmont of the Tianshan Mountains consists of three rows of Cenozoic EW-striking fold and reverse fault zones, with en échelon right-lateral steps. The southernmost row involves sediments as young as lower Pleistocene, but there is no evidence of activity along this row during the last 30,000 years. The central row is composed of three linear anticlines (Houerguos, Manas, and Tugulu) and associated reverse faults. The northernmost row includes the Dushanzi, Halaande, and Anjihai anticlines and their associated reverse faults. Abundant fault scarps and folds of late Pleistocene to Holocene river terraces across the anticlines within the central and the northernmost rows indicate recent folding and reverse faulting. We divide the northern piedmont into the Dushanzi and Manas fold and reverse fault zone. In the Dushanzi zone, we excavated 15 trenches across scarps controlled by reverse faults and back thrusts. By comparing 11 trench logs among the 15 trenches, we identify three paleoearthquakes since 13,000 years B.P. The first event occurred between 11,300 and 13,300 years B.P., and the second and the third events occurred 6300-8400 and 3000-5000 years B.P., respectively. Considering the uncertainties of the data, the average recurrence interval for large earthquakes in the Dushanzi zone is about 4000 years. A large earthquake along this zone is expected in the near future because the elapsed time since the last surface-rupturing event is already 3000-4000 years. Three large trenches and several small trenches excavated across the fault scarps along the Manas fold and reverse fault zone reveal four events. The first, second, and third events occurred at 18,000-13,000 years B.P., 11,300-10,500 years B.P., and 6900-3600 years B.P., respectively. The fourth, the latest one, is the 1906 M=7.7 Manas earthquake. Field investigation suggests that the 1906 Manas earthquake occurred along a blind thrust fault. This earthquake formed three discontinuous zones of fresh surface ruptures, the longest of which is only 8 km long along the eastern segment of the Tugulu reverse fault, and was associated with a zone of uplift 130 km long related to the Manas earthquake. The average recurrence interval along this zone is probably 5000-6000 years. Therefore it is unlikely that a large earthquake will occur along this zone in the near future because the Manas earthquake occurred only 89 years ago.
Antithetically rotated lozenge-shaped shale pull-aparts are quite common in the shallow domains of the evaporite shear zones of the Jura in northern Switzerland. The pull-aparts are formed by synthetic shear fractures related to a transpressive strain field that also induces the antithetic rotation of the pull-aparts immediately after their formation. A simple analytical model shows that the acute angle of fracture, α, and the antithetic rotation, δ, are determined by structural and rheological parameters and the direction of maximum compressive stress. The pull-aparts are commonly separated by sulphate veins, as the elongation resulting from antithetic rotation does not compensate for the bulk elongation. Despite this, some pull-aparts are bordered by synthetic drag zones.Antithetically rotated pull-aparts are indicative either of compression normal to shear zone boundaries in décollement-type shear zones or, in shear zones deformed by simple shear, of an initial obliquity of the dismembered layers relative to the shear zone boundary. Resemblance of the shale pull-aparts to type 1 asymmetric pull-aparts and book-shelf structures, both of which rotate synthetically, demonstrates that rotated and asymmetric pull-aparts may be ambiguous kinematic indicators.