142 Earthquake: Rhodes, Greece
A magnitude 7 earthquake struck Rhodes, Greece in 142. It caused a tsunami.
Map
Where it struck, with the other significant earthquakes within 200 km. Circles are sized and colored by magnitude; select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Date
- 142
- Place
- Rhodes, Greece
- Magnitude
- 7 (Mw)
- Intensity
- 8 on the Modified Mercalli scale
- Tsunami
- Yes: the tsunami it caused
- Epicenter
- 36.700° N, 28.000° E
- Country
- Greece
The toll
- Damage
- Moderate (about $1 to $5 million); Severe (about $5 to $25 million) with its tsunami and other effects
- Houses destroyed
- Some (about 51 to 100); Many (101 to 1,000) with its tsunami and other effects
Where the literature gives no number, NCEI records a description on a scale of 1 to 4, printed here in its words. Damage is in millions of US dollars of the year of the event, not adjusted for inflation.
What the record says
NCEI’s account, from the sources it cites.
142. This earthquake affected a large area in southwest Turkey and the Dodecanese Islands. Damage extended from the island of Cos and Rhodes to the Gulf of Antalya and to Cine in the north, an area of radius 90 km... Rhodes was ruined by the earthquake and the sea drew back, leaving the harbour dry... Aristides would seem to be writing about the second event [141 and 142]: he describes a seismic sea wave that destroyed Rhodes and left it ruined. This would tally with Pausania's second account, where he mentions that the cities of Rhodes were rebuilt by the emperor. (ref #9116)
142 (148). 36.7 N 28 E, magnitude 7 to 7.6, intensity VIII to X. Island of Rhodes. The town of Rhodes was destroyed by an earthquake, and its ruins were washed away by the wave that rushed in so quickly that the citizens suffering the earthquake had no time to find their relatives; the sea water penetrated deep into dry land for several miles. The towns on the islands of Kos, Symi, Serifos suffered from the earthquake and tsunami. (ref # 2130)
Pausanias reported on a strong earthquake which caused extensive
destruction in the city of Rhodes. (reference #2840)
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- October 1491, Kos, Greece
- February 23, 1653, Izmir,alasehir,denizli,aydin, Turkey
- September 20, 1899, Sultanhisar,atca,nazilli,kuyucak,denizli, Turkey
- April 22, 1863, Rhodes, Kos, Greece
- April 23, 1933, Dodecanese Islands, Greece
- March 31, 1928, Tepekoy, Torbali, Turkey
- October 30, 2020, Izmir, Samos, Turkey, Greece
- July 9, 1956, Dodecanese, Greece
- May 12, 1971, Burdur, Turkey
- July 16, 1955, Samos, Soke, Aydin, Greece, Turkey
- April 25, 1957, Fethiye (Lycia, Asia Minor), Turkey
- December 21, 1945, Denizli, Burdur, Turkey
- August 19, 1976, Denizli, Turkey
- August 11, 1904, Samos, Patmos, Greece
- December 1, 1869, Gulf of Keramos, Mentese, Turkey
More
Significant earthquakes of 142The 100sRecent earthquakes near here
Sources
Significant earthquakes from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, Global Historical Hazard Database, cited as NCEI/WDS, doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7. Public domain. Read 2026-09-24. NCEI earthquake 5883.