May 1566 Earthquake: Antigua, Guatemala
An earthquake struck Antigua, Guatemala in May 1566.
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
- May 1566
- Place
- Antigua, Guatemala
- Intensity
- 8 on the Modified Mercalli scale
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 14.600° N, 90.700° W
- Country
- Guatemala
The toll
- Damage
- Severe (about $5 to $25 million)
- Houses destroyed
- Many (101 to 1,000)
- Houses damaged
- Many (101 to 1,000)
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.
1566, May. Description: There was a terrible earthquake; houses toppled over in Zelahay and Patzun but no damage was caused here in Solo1a. (reference #103)
1566. Serious destruction in Antigua, with seisms during 9 days. (reference #1107)
1566, May. VIII: Quezaltenango, Taxisco (G), Sonsonate (S). houses collapsed; aftershocks for 9 days (reference #14066)
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- February 4, 1976, Chimaltenango, Guatemala City
- December 26, 1917, Guatemala City
- April 19, 1902, Quezaltenango, San Marcos, Guatemala
- October 10, 1986, San Salvador, El Salvador
- April 14, 1854, San Salvador, El Salvador
- June 3, 1773, St. Jago, Guatemala
- September 3, 1874, Antigua,chimaltenango,amatitlan, Guatemala
- February 26, 1902, El Salvador-Guatemala
- May 3, 1965, San Marcos, El Salvador
- July 29, 1773, Antigua, Guatemala
- April 20, 1765, Chiquimula, El Salvador, Guatemala
- November 7, 2012, San Marcos, San Cristobal Cochu, Guatemala
- June 19, 1982, San Salvador, Guatemala, El Salvador
- September 18, 1991, Guatemala City, Pachuta, Solola
- July 22, 1816, Soloma, Guatemala
More
Significant earthquakes of 1566The 1500sRecent 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 9789.