September 17, 1857 Tsunami: Marmara Sea, Turkey
A tsunami caused by an earthquake began at Marmara Sea, Turkey on September 17, 1857 at 22:00 UTC. Its effects were recorded at 1 place.
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
The tsunami
- Date
- September 17, 1857, 22:00 UTC
- Source
- Marmara Sea, Turkey
- Cause
- Earthquake
- Earthquake
- The earthquake
- Runups recorded
- 1
- Waters
- Ocean
- How certain
- Very doubtful tsunami
- Source location
- 40.200° N, 29.000° E
The toll
- 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
- Houses damaged
- Many (101 to 1,000) 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.
"An earthquake 20-30 s long occurred in Istanbul which was initiated by vertical vibrations that turned to horizontal oscillations. The earthquake was felt along the whole shore of the Bosporus... The quality and yield of water from a well supplying water for a brewery changed in Kurucesme on the northern coast of the Bosporus. Never, before the earthquake, had the cellars of the brewery been flooded by the waters of the Bosporus. They began to be flooded by 10-15 cm of water after the earthquake, when a southern wind started blowing and the level of the water in the strait rose. The owner of the brewery explained this phenomenon as a subsidence of the land. Similar subsidence was revealed of all the dwelling houses on the shore. (reference #2130)
(Listed as very doubtful tsunami by Ref #2130, #9275, #12345)
Every runup
Nearest the source first. Heights are above sea level at the time; a tide gauge reads half the wave’s full height.
| Where | Country | Km from source | Water height, m | Inland, m | Measured by | First wave, UTC | Deaths |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kurucesme, Istanbul | Turkey | 95 | Eyewitness observation of water height |
More
Every tsunami in 1857The 1800sTsunamis of TurkeyThe 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 868.