344 Earthquake: Dardanelles, Turkey

343-344. Neocaesarea. An earthquake in the Pontus destroyed Neocaesarea (Niksar) except for the church and the bishop's palace, where some people sheltered and survived. Saint Jerome, the main source for this event, dates it to O1.280.4 (AD 343-344). Theophanes gives a similar account and dates the event a.M. 5835=September 342 to August 343, but also says that in the same year Paul the Confessor was consecrated Bishop of Constantinople, which event actually took place in AD 337 (Grumel 1958, 434), thus his chronology for a.M. 5835 may be confused. Cedrenus has a similar account to Theophanes's, but says that Neocaesarea was 'swallowed up'. Guidoboni et al. translate Cedrenus's 'pontistheisa' as 'engulfed by the sea' following Migne's 'mari absorpta', and suggest the occurrence of a seismic sea wave at Neocaesarea, a location 70 km inland from the Black Sea (Guidoboni et al. 1994, 250-21). This seems to me very unlikely. The word pontitheisa derives from pontos, 'sea', and evolved to mean 'engulfed', not necessarily by the sea. Malalas, writing much earlier, has 'kataponthistheisa eis thalassan' (Mal. 313/469)', 'engulfed intot the sea' for the Salamis earthquake of AD 341, showing that (kata)pontistheisa has to be qualified. (reference #9116)

344. Dardanelles (Hellespont) and Niksar (Neocaesaria), Thracian coasts. In 344 a violent earthquake in Hellespont devastated Niksar (Neocaesaria). This event is mentioned by many historians but Cedrinos and Sigonius refer in addition to a convulsion both at sea and on land as a result of which the city of Neocaesaria << drowned into the sea >>. It is not clear whether Cedrinos's statement refers to an inundation. From Sigonius's narration, however, it seems most probable that Neocaesaria was flooded by the sea.

No detailed account on this event was found.

According to the writers in the Corpus Scriptorum Historiae Byzaritinae, the year of this event must be 344 AD. Both Mallet (1858) and Perrey (1850) date this event one year too low and miss Cedrino's statement.

(above from reference #23)

344. Dardanelles, 40 deg 18 min N, 26 deg 30 min E. (reference #2427)

344. Dardanelles (Hellespontos) and Niksar (Neocaesaria), Thracian coasts, intensity IX, 36 N, 28 E. (reference #20)