1586 Earthquake: Antigua, Guatemala
An earthquake struck Antigua, Guatemala in 1586.
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
- 1586
- Place
- Antigua, Guatemala
- Tsunami
- None recorded
- Epicenter
- 14.553° N, 90.735° W
- Country
- Guatemala
The toll
- Deaths
- Some (about 51 to 100)
- Damage
- Moderate (about $1 to $5 million)
- Houses destroyed
- Some (about 51 to 100)
- Houses damaged
- Some (about 51 to 100)
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.
1586. Guatemala, intensity III which corresponds to an earthquake which destroyed towns and devastated districts.
(reference #1055)
Description: On the sixteenth of January there was a
very big earthquake [at Solola] which lasted until sundown.... On December 5 [1586], at daybreak, an earthquake
destroyed houses in Antigua. Some Spaniards were among those who died. (reference #103)
1586. Guatemala. The city of Guatimala was ruined. An eruption of the volcano of Fuego [14.473 N, 90.88 W] in Guatimala took place at the same time. There were also eruptions in this year in Java and Banda. (reference #521)
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 1586The 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 9787.