Discovery of Minoan tsunami deposits

Abstract

The Hellenic arc is a terrane of extensive Quaternary volcanism. One of the main centers of explosive eruptions is located on Thera (Santorini), and the eruption of the Thera volcano in late Minoan time (1600-1300 B.C.) is considered to have been the most significant Aegean explosive volcanism during the late Holocene. The last eruptive phase of Thera resulted in an enormous submarine caldera, which is believed to have produced tsunamis on a large scale. Evidence suggesting seawater inundation was found previously at some archaeological sites on the coast of Crete; however, the cause of the tsunami and its effects on the area have not been well understood. On the Aegean Sea coast of western Turkey (Didim and Fethye) and Crete (Gouves), we have found traces of tsunami deposits related to the Thera eruption. The sedimentological consequences and the hydraulics of a Theracaused tsunami indicate that the eruption of Thera volcano was earlier than the previous estimates and the tsunami did not have disruptive influence on Minoan civilization.

Tsunami hazard in the Eastern Mediterranean: strong earthquakes and tsunamis in Cyprus and the Levantine Sea

“…Several years ago an effort was made to study systematically the history of the Eastern Mediterranean Sea tsunami (Papadopoulos and Chalkis 1984;Koutitas and Papadopoulos 1998;Minoura et al 2000, Papadopoulos andPapadopoulos et al , 2005Perissoratis and Papadopoulos 1999;Papadopoulos 2001Papadopoulos , 2003Papadopoulos and Plessa 2001). In this paper, we compile a new tsunami catalogue for Cyprus and the Levantine Sea that extends from antiquity up to the present.…”

New approaches in assessment of tsunami deposits in Dalaman (SW Turkey)

“…Dominey-Howes (2004), however, suggested that there were no terrestrial geological evidence identified indicating a LBA eruption generated an east Mediterranean-wide tsunami. So the volcanic eruption could not be responsible for the tsunami, as well as the tsunami deposits mentioned by Minoura et al (2000). These results may imply (1) some local tsunamis occurred prior to the eruption instead of tsunamigenesis and tephra production was simultaneous or (2) a far-field tsunami occurred related to caldera collapse.…”

“…Minoura et al (2000) were able to identify significant stratified findings (ca. 10 cm thick sandy layer) which may represent the Late Bronze Age tsunami deposits in a small town Didim on the Aegean coast of western Turkey and also in Fethiye, 20 km east of Dalaman.…”

“…In the case of Fethiye, the tsunamigenic sand layer overlies non-marine sandy silt and overlain by 5-10 cm thick felsic LBA tephra. A LBA tsunamigenic origin was determined for the sand layer depending on the facies change rather than microfossil assemblage (Minoura et al 2000). The authors then suggested a Mediterranean-wide tsunami depending on an LBA eruption of Santorini.…”

A Tsunami Generated by a Possible Submarine Slide: Evidence for Slope Failure Triggered by the North Anatolian Fault Movement

“…Observation of storm surges on the coasts of the Aegean Sea suggests that they are generally agents of erosion and do not produce regionally extensive deposits on land areas (Minoura et al, 2000). Mixed inclusion of buoyant materials in the unsorted silty sand layer supports the interpretation of the abrupt landward transport of materials by turbidity currents.…”