March 27, 1638 Earthquake: Cosenza,martirano, Nicastro, Calabria, Italy
A magnitude 7 earthquake struck Cosenza,martirano, Nicastro, Calabria, Italy on March 27, 1638 at 15:05 UTC. It killed 9,581 people.
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
- March 27, 1638
- Time
- 15:05 UTC
- Place
- Cosenza,martirano, Nicastro, Calabria, Italy
- Magnitude
- 7 (Ms)
- Intensity
- 11 on the Modified Mercalli scale
- Tsunami
- Yes: the tsunami it caused
- Epicenter
- 39.033° N, 16.283° E
- Country
- Italy
The toll
- Deaths
- 9,581
- Damage
- Extreme (about $25 million or more)
- Houses destroyed
- Very many (over 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.
1638, March 27. Italy, throughout (Calabria), especially destructive from Oppido to beyond Bisignano, also in Zante. Intensity III which corresponds to an earthquake which destroyed towns and devastated districts. (reference #1055).
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- December 28, 1908, Messina, Sicily, Calabria, Italy
- February 5, 1783, Tyrrhenian Calabria, Italy
- September 16, 1857, Calabria,montemurro, Italy
- December 16, 1857, Campania, Potenza, Italy
- September 8, 1694, Calitri, Italy
- July 17, 1361, Basilicata to Pouilles, Italy
- November 5, 1659, Panaija, Soriano, Polia, Italy
- January 1688, Pisticci, Italy
- February 6, 1783, Messina Straits, Italy
- January 21, 1065, Catania,messina,milazzo,pale, Sicily, Italy
- April 24, 1836, Rossano,crosia,craco,basilicata, Italy
- September 8, 1905, Monteleone, Tropea, Monte Poro, Italy
- February 12, 1854, Connici,cosenza,pietrafitta,paterno, Italy
- June 19, 1640, Badolato, Italy
- October 23, 1907, Ferruzano, Italy
More
Significant earthquakes of 1638The 1600sRecent earthquakes near hereThis day in weather history
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 934.