Significant earthquakes of 1905

December 4, 1905 Earthquake: Puturge,celikhan,rumkale, Turkey

December 4, 1905 · M6.8 · Deaths: many

A magnitude 6.8 earthquake struck Puturge,celikhan,rumkale, Turkey on December 4, 1905 at 07:04:00 UTC.

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
December 4, 1905
Time
07:04:00 UTC
Place
Puturge,celikhan,rumkale, Turkey
Magnitude
6.8 (Ms)
Intensity
9 on the Modified Mercalli scale
Tsunami
None recorded
Epicenter
38.100° N, 38.600° E
Country
Turkey

The toll

Deaths
Many (about 101 to 1,000)
Damage
Severe (about $5 to $25 million)

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.

An earthquake in the Siro Cayi valley southeast of Malatya destroyed many villages between Puturge and Celikan with great loss of life. Damage extended to the southwest as far as Rumkale and to the plain of Malatya, where, near Izoli, the shock caused widespread liquefaction in the valley deposits of the Euphrates. Two closely-spaced aftershocks caused additional damage in the region of Abdulharab. (reference #1215)

Other significant earthquakes nearby

Within 200 km, the deadliest first.

More

Significant earthquakes of 1905The 1900sEvery quake the USGS located in 1905Recent 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 2743.