April 1, 407 Tsunami: Marmara Sea, Turkey
A tsunami caused by a magnitude 6.6 earthquake began at Marmara Sea, Turkey on April 1, 407. 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
- April 1, 407
- Source
- Marmara Sea, Turkey
- Cause
- Earthquake
- Earthquake
- Magnitude 6.6
- Runups recorded
- 1
- Tsunami intensity (Soloviev-Imamura)
- 4
- Waters
- Ocean
- How certain
- Very doubtful tsunami
- Source location
- 41.000° N, 29.000° E
The toll
- Damage
- Limited (under about $1 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.
407 A.D. April. Tyrrhenian Sea, Island of Ischia near Naples. A strong earthquake. "The earth shuddered so that the cross of the Capitol crashed down to the ground. Many ships were wrecked and many corpses were carried out by waves to the coast of Hebdomon". Tsunami intensity iii-iv. (reference #2130)
407 A.D. April 1. Marmara Sea. Earthquake 41 N, 29 E, magnitude 6.6, intensity VIII. Ships damaged in Constantinople. (reference #2427)
407 A.D. April 1. Constantinople. On 1 April 407 Constantinople was shaken by an earthquake at the same time as an exceptionally severe thunderstorm was raging in the region of the Sea of Marmara. The bronze tiles from the Forum of Theodosius were scattered over Caenopolis (the area immediately to the south of the Forum). Christ's emblem on the Capitol fell, many ships were damaged or sunk and not a few dwellings were 'cast forth' at Hebdomon (Makrikoy/Bakirkoy). Aftershocks may have lasted for seven days. The shock is not recorded as having affected any other centre of population and the reported damage seems to have been due to the weather conditions rather than to a seismic sea wave, for which there is no evidence. The damage to ships, probably those docked at Constantinople or sailing nearby, has led modern cataloguers to suggest that this earthquake may have caused a seismic sea wave (Guidoboni et al. 1994, 284). This does not seem valid, when the cause of the reported damage to the shipping was given explicitly as the storm. (reference #9116)
407 April 1. questionable tsunami. (reference #11164, v.2)
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ischia Island | Italy | 1,268 | Eyewitness observation of water height |
More
Every tsunami in 407The 400sTsunamis 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 2315.