Quantifying Earthquake Effects on Ancient Arches, Example: The Kalat Nimrod Fortress, Dead Sea Fault Zone

Hinzen, Klaus‐G.; Schwellenbach, Iris; Schweppe, Gregor; Marco, Shmuel

doi:10.1785/0220150282

Cited by 16 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 23 publications

(23 reference statements)

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“…Computer modelling by Kamai and Hatzor (2008) revealed that a single element or a set of elements (a segment) of an arch can drop only under repeated compression and extension, i.e. transient horizontal ground motion (Hinzen et al 2016). In each extensional step, the voussoir (one of the set of blocks constituting the arch) drops down a fraction of a millimetre.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Repeated historical earthquakes in Sousse, Monastir and El-Jem (Tunisia)—an archaeoseismological study

Kázmér

2021

Arab J Geosci

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Tunisia is known of sparse and moderate earthquakes. However, there are seismically damaged historical buildings in the eastern Sahel region. The Roman amphitheatre of Thysdrus (modern El-Jem), various Islamic religious and secular buildings in Sousse and Monastir testify to seismic events with intensity up to IX (EMS98 scale). We raise the hypothesis that their destruction was caused by the nearby east-west Cherichira-Abaieh Fault and the north-south Monastir Fault. Simultaneity of the 859 AD Kairouan earthquake and extensive restoration works in Sousse 50 km to the east allow assessing magnitude up to 7.2 based on segment length. The city was hit both by the 859 AD and a post-1575 earthquake. Being nearby two active faults, seismic hazard in Sousse is higher than either in Kairouan or in Monastir.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Repeated historical earthquakes in Sousse, Monastir and El-Jem (Tunisia)—an archaeoseismological study

Kázmér

2021

Arab J Geosci

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“…Notwithstanding its immense size and durability, the Massive masonry sustained earthquake damage on a catastrophic scale, as most of the tower's western face, as well as internal sections utterly, collapsed [9]. The (Fig.…”

Section: Massive Masonrymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…proposed that the fortress was established in the post-Crusader era between A.D 1220 and 1230 by the Ayyubic ruler of Banias, Al-Malik Al-Aziz 'Uthman [3]. The Ayyubic theory gained wide popularity and is currently accepted by most scholars [6][7][8][9]. However, it is based on an interpretation of historical texts, rather than on firsthand observations or archaeological findings [7].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…As masonry and architecture styles are oftentimes linked to a specific historical era and/or ruler [10], these observations suggest that construction was carried out by different masons during different historical times and under different rulers. The fortress compound bears clear and distinctive earthquake footprints [9]. These footprints were attributed to a single earthquake, that of A.D 1762 [3,6].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Differential earthquake footprints on the masonry styles at Qal’at al-Subayba (Nimrod fortress) support the theory of its ancient origin

Margalit

2018

Herit Sci

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Qal'at al-Subayba (Nimrod Fortress), one of the largest medieval fortresses in the Middle East, is strategically located above the city of Banias on the ancient highway from Tyre to Damascus. Scholars have attributed the founding of the fortress to different rulers and periods. Current theory attributes the fortress founding to the Ayyubids. Although the Ayyubic theory is widely accepted, it relies primarily upon alternative interpretation of historical sources rather than firsthand observations. The fortress was constructed using distinctively different masonry styles. The primary styles, Massive, Crusader, Ayyubic, and Mamluk, are characterized here. Some of these masonries carry earthquake footprints and findings show that the damage is correlated with the specific masonry rather than geographical or other constraints. The Massive masonry sustained the greatest damage. The Crusader masonry was damaged to a lesser extent and the Ayyubic and Mamluk were spared. Based on these findings, it is concluded that the fortress was hit by two powerful earthquakes, the one of A.D 749 and the one of A.D 1202. The earthquake of A.D 749 devastated the Massive masonry, prior to later constructions. As this masonry has Hellenistic characteristics, it is suggested that the fortress was founded by the Greco-Syrians.

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“…Within the Middle East, there are a multitude of well-preserved masonry buildings that are ideal for archaeoseismological studies (e.g. Harding, 1959;Segal, 1981;Retzleff, 2003;Kázmér, 2015), along the DST (Marco et al, 1997;Ellenblum et al, 1998;Meghraoui et al, 2003;Haynes et al, 2006;Ellenblum et al, 2015), and in the vicinity of the DST fault (Marco et al, 2003;Korjenkov and Erickson-Gini, 2003;Thomas et al, 2007;Al-Tarazi and Korjenkov, 2007;Marco, 2008;Wechsler et al, 2009;AL-Azzam, 2012;Alfonsi et al, 2013;Kázmér andMajor, 2010, 2015;Korjenkov and Mazor, 2014;Hinzen et al, 2016;Schweppe et al, 2017, Al-Tawalbeh et al, 2019. These studies indicate a rising interest in archaeoseismology as a research topic around the DST.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Two Inferred Antique Earthquake Phases Recorded in the Roman Theater of Beit-Ras/Capitolias (Jordan)

Al‐Tawalbeh

Jaradat

Al‐Bashaireh

et al. 2020

Seismological Research Letters

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A Roman theater is recently being excavated at Beit-Ras/Capitolias in Jordan, which is one of the Decapolis cities, founded before A.D. 97/98. This is an archaeoseismological study that aims to investigate the temporal and intensity impacts of past earthquakes on the theater’s existing structure. A rich set of earthquake archaeological effects were identified, including deformed arches, tilted and collapsed walls, chipped corners of masonry blocks, and extensional gaps, indicating a seismic intensity of VIII–IX. The study identified at least two significant destruction phases that took part in the damage of the theater, which may have contributed to the abandonment of its major use as a theater at different periods. This is based on field observations of construction stratigraphy and damage features, the assessment of the observed destruction, and literature reports. The date of the first phase is bracketed between the establishment of the city (before A.D. 97/98) and the date of an inscription found in the walled-up orchestra gate (A.D. 261). The most likely candidate earthquake(s) for this immense destruction are the A.D. 233 and/or 245 events. Other moderate and less damaging events may have also occurred within the region but are not mentioned in available catalogs. After a major restoration, another earthquake phase occurred between A.D. 261 and Late Roman–Early Byzantine times, when the scaena wall tilted and collapsed, rendering the building useless and beyond repair. Subsequently, the theater was then filled with debris and was abandoned. The most probable causative earthquake of the second phase of destruction is an event in A.D. 363. The article provides a rich discussion of potential causative earthquakes, based on archaeoseismological, construction stratigraphy observations, and calibrated intensity of historical earthquake-based attenuation modeling. It identifies the potential phases and types of destruction and reuse.

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Quantifying Earthquake Effects on Ancient Arches, Example: The Kalat Nimrod Fortress, Dead Sea Fault Zone

Cited by 16 publications

References 23 publications

Repeated historical earthquakes in Sousse, Monastir and El-Jem (Tunisia)—an archaeoseismological study

Repeated historical earthquakes in Sousse, Monastir and El-Jem (Tunisia)—an archaeoseismological study

Differential earthquake footprints on the masonry styles at Qal’at al-Subayba (Nimrod fortress) support the theory of its ancient origin

Two Inferred Antique Earthquake Phases Recorded in the Roman Theater of Beit-Ras/Capitolias (Jordan)

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