Tsunamis in 1857

May 13, 1857 Tsunami: Bali Sea, Indonesia

May 13, 1857 · 3.4 m · 36 deaths · Definite tsunami

A tsunami caused by a magnitude 7 earthquake began at Bali Sea, Indonesia on May 13, 1857. The water rose as high as 3.4 meters. Its effects were recorded at 4 places in at least 2 countries. It killed 36 people, counting the earthquake or eruption that caused it.

Where the waves reached

The source (white) and every runup with a place, colored by the water height recorded there. A ring is a runup NCEI marks doubtful.

  • Under 1 m
  • 1 to 3 m
  • 3 to 10 m
  • 10 to 30 m
  • 30 m and more
  • Height not recorded

Tsunami warnings in force

Travel times

How long the first wave took to reach each part of the ocean, one line for each hour up to 24, estimated from the source and the depth of the sea.

The travel times are computed in your browser, which needs JavaScript.

  • 1 to 4 hours
  • 5 to 6 hours
  • 7 to 14 hours
  • 15 hours and more

Computed in your browser the way NOAA’s own travel time maps are: the wave travels at the square root of gravity times the depth, over NOAA’s ETOPO1 depths averaged to a 10 arc-minute grid. Checked against NOAA NCEI’s maps for 21 tsunamis over the first 24 hours, these lines fall within 10 minutes of NCEI’s at half the points compared and within 52 minutes at 9 in 10. They give when the first wave could arrive, not how high it is; bays, harbors and island chains finer than the grid can see it later. Not for use in a warning: see tsunami.gov.

The tsunami

Date
May 13, 1857
Source
Bali Sea, Indonesia
Cause
Earthquake
Maximum water height
3.4 m (11.2 ft)
Runups recorded
4
Tsunami intensity (Soloviev-Imamura)
2
Tsunami magnitude (Iida)
1.6
Waters
Ocean
How certain
Definite tsunami
Source location
8.000° S, 115.500° E

The toll

Deaths
36 with the earthquake or eruption that caused it
Damage
Moderate (about $1 to $5 million) with the earthquake or eruption that caused it
Houses destroyed
Some (about 51 to 100) with the earthquake or eruption that caused it

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.

Reference #414:

1857, May 13, 1857, about 10:30 [local time]. There was a strong earthquake on Timor Island. In Dilhl Bay, the water rose and fell 3 m (10 feet) four times. At Likisa, a tidal wave surged onto the land and completely inundated the village. At about 11:30 [local time], strong oscillations in sea level were observed at Ambon.

Reference #40:

1857, May 13. Indonesia, Timor 8o 50' South, 126o 00' East. In the bay at Dili (08'33'S., 125'35'E.) the wave reached height of 3.4 meters (11 feet). In the bay at Dili (08o33'S., 125o35'E.) Wave reached height of 3.4 meters (11 feet) (Heck 1947).

Reference #132:

1857, May 13. Dutch East Indies, Timer. In Bay of Dilli, wave reached height of 11 feet.

Reference #11528:

A tsunami with four waves truck the bay and reached 3.1 m high.

hill sank on Palau Kambing (north of Dili) killing more than 36 persons.

Every runup

Nearest the source first. Heights are above sea level at the time; a tide gauge reads half the wave’s full height.

WhereCountryKm from sourceWater height, mInland, mMeasured byFirst wave, UTCDeaths
Likisa (Liquica), Timor IslandEast Timor1,086Eyewitness observation of water height
Dili Bay, Timor IslandEast Timor1,1123.4Eyewitness observation of water height
Hera, Timor IslandEast Timor1,124Eyewitness observation of water height
Ambon, Ambon IslandIndonesia1,483Eyewitness observation of water height

More

Every tsunami in 1857The 1800sTsunamis of IndonesiaThe earthquakeThis day in weather historyAlerts in force

Sources

Tsunami events and runups 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 tsunami event 870.