July 19, 1738 Earthquake: Zefiria, Milos Island, Greece
A magnitude 6.5 earthquake struck Zefiria, Milos Island, Greece on July 19, 1738. 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
- July 19, 1738
- Place
- Zefiria, Milos Island, Greece
- Magnitude
- 6.5 (Ms)
- Tsunami
- Yes: the tsunami it caused
- Epicenter
- 36.800° N, 24.400° E
- Country
- Greece
The toll
- Damage
- Moderate (about $1 to $5 million)
- Houses destroyed
- 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.
1738, July 19. Milos. An earthquake destroyed the village of Zephyria on the island of Milos. A marginal note written in the monastery of Ag. Marina, on the island of Milos, mentions an earthquake that on 8 July 1738 (.O.S.) destroyed the town of Zefiria (Palea Hora; Bees 1944, 263-264). Local tradition has it that the shock was so violent that even the graves in the cemetery opened up (Hatzidakis 1927, 172-185). The European press reports the seismic activity in the region, but without details (PMF 1738, 2063). (reference #9116)
Note: This catalog does not mention a tsunami.
Other significant earthquakes nearby
Within 200 km, the deadliest first.
- December 856, Korinthos,patrai (Patras), Greece
- February 16, 1810, Iraklion (Candia), Crete, Greece
- June 7, 1750, Morea,cerigo, Greece
- May 29, 1508, Iraklion (Candia),megalokastron, Crete, Greece
- September 7, 1999, Athens, Greece
- July 9, 1956, Dodecanese, Greece
- April 22, 1928, Corinth (Corinthia), Greece
- September 13, 1986, Kalami, Lakonia, Zakinthos, Greece
- February 21, 1858, Vieille,korinthos,hexamilia, Greece
- August 18, 1853, Thebes, Boeotia, Greece
- August 11, 1903, Mitata (Kythera), Greece
- August 28, 1962, Southern Greece
- March 4, 1981, Athens-Corinth-Khalis, Greece
- September 27, 2021, Crete, Greece
- July 9, 1956, Aegean Sea, Greece
More
Significant earthquakes of 1738The 1700sRecent 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 6002.