Geophys. J. Int. (2009) 178, 351–374
doi: 10.1111/j.1365-246X.2009.04130.x
The 1356 Basel earthquake: an interdisciplinary revision
Donat Fäh,1 Monika Gisler,1 Bernard Jaggi,2 Philipp Kästli,1 Thomas Lutz,2
Virgilio Masciadri,3 Christoph Matt,4 Dieter Mayer-Rosa,5 Dorothee Rippmann,6
Gabriela Schwarz-Zanetti,1 Jürg Tauber7 and Thomas Wenk8
1 Swiss
Seismological Service, ETH Zurich, CH-8092 Zurich, Switzerland. E-mail: faeh@sed.ethz.ch
Denkmalpflege, Unterer Rheinweg 26, CH-4058 Basel, Switzerland
3 Klassisch-Philologisches Seminar, Universität Zurich, Rämistr. 68, CH-8001 Zurich, Switzerland
4 Archäologische Bodenforschung des Kantons Basel-Stadt, Petersgraben 11, CH-4001 Basel, Switzerland
5 Schwandenholzstrasse 260, 8046 Zurich, Switzerland
6 Historisches Seminar, Universität Zurich, Karl Schmid-Strasse 4, CH-8006 Zurich, Switzerland
7 Archäologie und Museum Baselland, Amtshausgasse 7, CH-4410 Liestal, Switzerland
8 Wenk Erdbebeningenieurwesen und Baudynamik GmbH, Postfach 6063, CH-8023 Zurich, Switzerland
2 Basler
SUMMARY
Within historical times one of the most damaging events in intra-plate Europe was the 1356
Basel earthquake. Given its significance for assessing regional seismic hazard in central
Europe, an interdisciplinary project was launched in 2005 to re-explore this event. Our effort aimed to incorporate techniques from history, seismology, archaeology, paleoseismology
and engineering. New and reinterpreted historical data from Basel and its surroundings plus
archaeological findings on buildings that survived the event and still exist enabled this macroseismic assessment. Palaeoseismological studies combined with historical evidence provided
additional data. For the surrounding areas, archaeology offers sparse information on some castles and churches, sometimes supported by historical records. A contemporary source allows
some reconstruction of the stronger fore- and aftershocks.
This expanded information base improves our sense of the event’s damage and consequences. For the city of Basel, the relatively abundant archaeological data allowed us to assess
statistically the macroseismic intensity at IX, although the pattern of damage was scattered.
Data points for the expected area of damage around Basel are not distributed regularly. The absence of historical and archaeological findings for southern Germany might be due to archival
problems; future investigation may improve this situation.
Our results confirm that the Basel earthquake was the most destructive known for central
Europe. Intensities up to VIII are found within a radius of about 30 km. Analysing the
macroseismic field confirms our former assessment of the event and shows an epicenter
located about 10 km south of Basel. The most probable range for the moment magnitude Mw
is between 6.7 and 7.1.
Key words: Palaeoseismology; Seismicity and tectonics; Europe.
1 I N T RO D U C T I O N
The 1356 Basel earthquake is well known as one of the most damaging events in intra-plate Europe within historical times (Fig. 1). It
was one of several devastating catastrophes in the 14th century. In
the summer of 1338, grasshoppers devoured the harvest; in July and
August 1342 flooding reduced the harvest again; in the years 1345–
1347 the most adverse weather known in the last millennium struck
and famine occurred (Schwarz-Zanetti 1998). In 1349, the Black
Death reached Basel and reduced its population significantly. AntiJewish pogroms swept through several cities, among them Basel. In
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1354, the northern part of the city of Basel (see Fig. 2) was partly
destroyed by fire (Meyer 2006).
The consequence is a difficulty when it comes to studying the
sequence of events on 1356 October 18, through contemporary
sources. They include a few detailed period records like the Basel
city manual Rotes Buch (Wackernagel 1856) and the chronicles
of Heinrich of Diessenhofen (Boehmer 1868b) or of Konrad of
Waldighofen (Sieber 1882). These specify what might have occurred in Basel on that day (Table 1). The earthquake sequence
started after noon of October 18; its fourth shock was first to strike
buildings in the city. A series of strong aftershocks followed. At
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Figure 1. Fictional depiction of the destruction of the City of Basel (Münster 1550).
around 9 (UTC) pm, the main shock hit the Basel area, causing
major damage within a radius of approximately 30 km. An ensuing
fire destroyed parts of the inner city and the quarter St. Alban
Vorstadt (StABS: Ratsbücher A1; Wackernagel 1856; Böhmer
1868b; Closener 1870; Bernoulli 1890). The pattern of October
18 and 19 is well documented in the above-mentioned chronicle
by Heinrich of Diessenhofen (circa 1300–1376) (Boehmer 1868b)
who noted the time and strength of each shock felt at Konstanz,
120 km east of Basel (Table 1). The shocks of the following 10 days
are summarized only.
We are thus able to depict the event on a general level. Difficulties
start when we would like to go more into detail, for example on the
distribution of damage. It is next to impossible to differentiate which
shock(s) provoked the actual damage. The documents closest to the
event give accounts of vast destruction in the city of Basel; none
of these written reports, however, distinguishes between the several
shocks. We were unable to assign damage to individual earthquakes
or damage as a consequence of repeated shaking. Furthermore, the
documents do not distinguish between damage from shaking versus
fire. What’s more, many familiar commentaries originate from the
16th, 17th or 18th century and distort our view of the event. We can,
however, surmise that the two strongest shocks (numbers 4 and 5 in
Table 1) caused damage (Böhmer 1868b).
Distinguishing what might have come to pass is also difficult
when we seek the number of casualties. Contemporary testimony
by Johannes de Rupescissa in Avignon, based on an eyewitness report (Sieber 1882), refers to a large number of victims (‘innumeris
habitatoribus interfectis’). Diessenhofen’s chronicle mentions victims as well but without giving a precise number (Boehmer 1868b).
Other contemporary sources, like ‘Das Rote Buch’ or manual of the
city of Basel (StABS: Ratsbücher A1; Wackernagel 1856; Bernoulli
1890), contain no details. The names of only three casualties are
distinguishable (Meyer 2006). However, in historical documents after the 14th century, concrete figures appear: the number of 300
victims is given in the ‘Wurstisen Chronicle’ of Basel originating
around 1580 (Wackernagel 1856). Miscellanies of the 16th century
report a maximum figure of 2000 victims. Since Basel had an overall population of 6000–7000 at the time (see Figs 2 and 3 for a
geographical overview), this number is highly improbable (Meyer
2006). Concerning the rural population, a low number of two to
five inhabitants per square kilometer can be assumed, based on estimates for the Jura area south of Basel (Bickel 1947) and the region
of Sissach (BL) in the late 15th century, respectively (OtheninGirard 1994). Thus, the overall number of victims remains uncertain. According to the Diessenhofen chronicle (Boehmer 1868b),
after the first strong shock in the afternoon (around 5 pm) people
in Basel left most buildings. Many did not re-enter their homes
due to repeated strong shocks, a precaution that must have limited
casualties.
Several studies have tried to highlight the sequence of events on
1356 October 18. In the 19th century, it was the philologist Wilhelm Wackernagel from Basel who, to commemorate the event’s 5th
centenary, collected 27 historical documents (stemming from 24 different authors) to present an overview of the quake (Wackernagel
1856). This collection—focusing on the Basel area—represents a
potential wealth of significant information, even though fewer than
10 of the texts originate in the 14th century. The compilation has
been the basis for interpreting the 1356 event as in the macroseismic studies by Cadiot et al. (1979) and Mayer-Rosa & Cadiot
(1979). Recent studies by Fouquet (2003), Meyer (1990, 2006) and
the web-database ‘sisfrance’ (Bureau de recherches géologiques et
minières 2007) have improved our understanding by integrating additional records. The work of Wechsler (1987), on the other hand,
used official account books for Basel to summarize overall damage
in the city. Other regional studies have been carried out by Bernard
et al. (1997) and Lambert et al. (2005), the latter discussing some
persistent difficulties with historical names. Besides these historical
and macroseismic studies, others have investigated the damage area
(Sabourault et al. 2003; Lambert et al. 2005) or possible source
locations (e.g. Meyer et al. 1994; Meghraoui et al. 2001). Paleoseismic studies (e.g. Becker & Davenport 2003; Monecke et al.
2004; Ferry et al. 2005) as well as the collection of graphic representations of the event completed these investigations (Kozak &
Thompson 1991).
Our study presents historical and archaeological investigation
into this event, as well as its interpretation and parametrization. Our
effort integrates techniques from several different scholarly fields:
history, seismology, archaeology, paleoseismology and engineering. Our main goal was to create a more robust database. Research
in archives and libraries has exposed new contemporary and copied
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Figure 2. Geographical map of the area of Basel published in 1880 [Schumacher 1878/1880; coordinates: Swiss National Grid in (km)], and representation of
the city of Basel in 1615, seen from the North (Merian 1615). Klein-Basel is the part of the city north of the Rhine river; Gross-Basel is the part south of the
river Rhine. Construction of the outer city walls (shown in red) was initiated some years after the 1356 earthquake, so we can assume a slightly smaller size
for the city in the year of the earthquake. Today the area is densely populated.
historical material, especially on locations outside Basel. Historical
material includes the chronicle of Heinrich of Rebdorf (Böhmer
1868a, p. 509) and a deed of a consecration of an altar in the
monastery Moutier-Grandval (Trouillat 1861, 13 Juni 1361, pp.
177–179); documents about repairs in the Berner Leutkirche, 1359
April 26 (Fontes Rerum Bernensium 1903, Vol. 8, Nr. 795), in the
castle Grasburg 1357–1359, 1363–1365 and 1379–1381 (Burri
1935), in the monastery Blotzheim (Boner 1945) and probably in
the castle Röteln near Kaiserstuhl 1359 (GLA: Ms. 5 Conv. 548.
Perg. REX II 5462, 5453), documents defining reduced taxes in
Gelterkinden 1366 (StABS: St. Alban E fol. 37), a regulation about
clothes in Speyer (StASp: Inv.-Nr. 1A6, 1356 November 11), a
second fund-raising appeal for the Basel Cathedral, 1364 July 10
(StABS: Domstifturkunden, No 130), a contract in Saint-Ursanne
(AcSU: Carton 25, 1388 Avril 20), a writ of the year 1458 with a
hint about the castle Madlen near Pratteln (StABL: Urkunde 537)
and some documents about houses in Basel, for example, Haus
Zum Landser, Schlüsselberg 15 (StABS: Domstifturkunden, No
III 41) or Haus Blatzheim, Rittergasse 7-9 (Trouillat 1861, pp.
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108–110) and the Bitterlinshof, Rittergasse 20 (Liebenau 1867, Vol.
5, Urkunde XC, 1357 September 16), see Table 2. A deed about the
castle Soyhières disproved alleged damage in 1356 (Trouillat 1858,
pp. 457–460). New findings in archaeology and art history
concerning the churches of Rodersdorf (Loertscher 1957), Olsberg
(Courvoisier & Sennhauser 1990), Oltingue (Schweitzer et
al. 1990), Muttenz (Ewald 1998), Rheinfelden (Frey 2000),
Kaiseraugst (Kontic 2006) and the castle of Rötteln near Lörrach
(Schomann, unpublished data) clarify effects of the 1356 event. Additionally, in chronicles of the 17th and 18th century, two unknown
copies of lost sources were found, such as the manuscript ‘Synopsis
Annalium Monasterij S. Petri in nigra Silva’, by Pater Gregorius
Baumeister (EAFr: Ms. Ha 583), and the print ‘Epitome Fastorum
Lucellensium’ by Buchinger (1666). Finally, to illustrate the perception of the disaster by later artists, we integrated an early fictive
picture of the Basel earthquake in two exemplars of the Konstanzer
Weltchronik (BSB: Germ. 426 and PLNY: Spencer Collection Ms.
100) (Fig. 4). For further details, see Gisler et al. (2006), SchwarzZanetti et al. (2006) and Gisler et al. (2008). Copies of lost sources
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Table 1. Summary of the earthquakes of 1356 October 18 and 19, as observed in Konstanz by Heinrich von Diessenhofen (Boehmer 1868b) T,
UTC.
Date and time
Intensity
October 18
Between noon and vespers
• First earthquake, medium
• Followed by two weaker shocks
Vespers, around 5 pm
• Strong shock (stronger than [2] and [3])
October 19, begins with the darkness of October 18
Bedtime, around 9 pm, to midnight six shocks
• Main shock, around 9 pm
• Five weaker shocks
After noon
• Intensity unknown
After vespers
• Intensity unknown
Number of
shocks
[1]
[2–3]
[4]
[5]
[6–10]
[11]
[12]
[1356] Item mense octobris anno predicto lvi. in die sancti Luce
ewangeliste [oct. 18] post prandium et ante vesperas venit terremotus
magnus Constantie, et postea eadem die duo parvi motus ante vesperas
similiter venerunt. Item quartus maior quam duo precedentes dum vespere
pulsabantur. Et in nocte subsequenti a primo sompno usque ad medium
eiusdem noctis mota est terra sexies, sed primus maior inter nocturnos
motus terre. Et proxima die sequenti duo motus septimus post meridiem,
alius post vesperas. [As on 1356 October 18, shortly after noon and before
vespers (ca. 5 pm), a vast earthquake occurred at Konstanz, and later two
smaller shocks followed, similar to the one before the evening meal. A
fourth shock occurred throughout vespers, larger than the two precedents.
And in the following night, starting at bedtime to midnight, the earth shook
six times, the first of the shocks being the major one. The following day two
shocks occurred, the seventh (in total) after noon, the other after vespers.]
were only accepted as supplementing contemporary material. This
decision helped to exclude errors originating in later historiography.
Archaeological data for the area around the city of Basel consist of dendro-chronological dating or indications of fast destruction like entire parts of collapsed masonry or a large number of
valuable, mainly metallic objects that can be dated around 1350.
If possible, written records were compared against archaeological
findings and vice versa. Not all information was treated equally but
was interpreted as more or less reliable. As a consequence, in the
macroseismic section, we supply two different tables (Tables 4 and
5). For the city of Basel particularly, a new approach was applied
by combining archaeological findings on buildings that survived
the event with engineering assessments of the respective structures.
This endeavour has been amended with results from excavating
remnant layers of buildings no longer there.
In the first two sections, we discuss the outcomes of the historical,
archaeological and paleoseismic investigations (Sections 2 and 3) to
assign intensities to the potential sites (Section 4). Then we discuss
potential faults.
2 HISTORICAL AND
A RC H A E O L O G I C A L A P P ROAC H E S
2.1 Investigating the 14th century: some remarks
Historical seismology studies earthquakes of the past to better estimate present regional and local seismic hazards. Such research involves finding and interpreting historical documents via established
approaches, which are refined as the work progresses. Successful
investigation of earthquake records depends on the organization
of archives and libraries and the availability of working tools like
guides and inventories. Systematic questions about written sources,
Figure 3. Geographical overview of the area, providing the names given in the text.
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Table 2. Overview of the assessed buildings in Basel, including the most probable vulnerability class and the range of damage grade according to EMS-98.
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Table 2. (Continued.)
Note: The types of information used to assess the building as well as an excerpt of the individual findings are listed. Buildings with neither vulnerability nor
damage grade estimation as well as the town gates pulled down in the 19th century are not included into intensity assessment. The abbreviations are given in
the references.
Documents and compilations used are as follows:
(1) Historical records report the destruction of the neighbouring buildings of the convent and church of St. Leonhard (Maurer 1961).
(2) For example: StABS: Domstifturkunden, No 99, No 130; Diessenhofen in Böhmer 1868b; Maurer 2005, pp. 227–248.
(3) Officialurkunde GLA Karlsruhe, zit. n. StABS: HGB Rheinsprung, Nachträge; Jahresberichte der Archäologischen Bodenforschung 2005, pp. 238–251;
Die Kunstdenkmäler des Kantons Basel-Stadt 2007, Vol. VII, pp. 369–373.
(4) Die Kunstdenkmäler des Kantons Basel-Stadt 2007, Vol. VII, pp. 118–120; StABS: Domstifturkunden, No III 41.
(5) Published archaeological report: Brandenberger & Jaggi 2002.
(6) Die Kunstdenkmäler des Kantons Basel-Stadt 1966, Vol. V, pp. 319–416; Bernoulli 1890, Vol. I, pp. 499–501.
(7) Published archaeological report: Wyss & Jaggi 1987.
(8) Published archaeological report: Reicke 1999.
(9) Liebenau 1867.
(10) Trouillat 1861.
traces of the events at archaeological sites and pictorial records establish a base for interpreting the data. Descriptions of the event
in different records at hand have a rather similar structure. At best,
they provide the type of event and its date, the site of observation,
an account of local phenomena and information from other locations. Yet more often than not it was unclear whether the record
described a particular site (i.e. a town or a village). In such cases,
the information was not considered for macroseismic assessment.
We have already pointed out the scarcity of contemporary records.
A further problem stems from several extant lists of allegedly destroyed castles in the wider region of Basel: the so-called Burgennamenlisten. A few contemporary sources mention the complete
destruction of many or even all castles within a radius of approximately 16–32 km (Schwarz-Zanetti et al. 2006). The official manual of the city of Basel, the ‘Rotes Buch’ (StABS: Ratsbücher
A1), was resumed shortly after the earthquake and reports on
destroyed castles in the area without naming them or giving an
exact number. In 1362, a native of Strasbourg, Fritsche Closener
(∼1315–1390/1396), notes the destruction of 60 castles (Closener
1870), whereas Heinrich of Diessenhofen (∼1300–1376) records
46 destroyed in the diocese of Basel (Boehmer 1868b). Around
1360, the famous poet Francesco Petrarca (1304–1374), probably
staying in Milano during the earthquake, mentions the destruction
of at least 80 castles (Carraud & Tognon 2002). The ‘Konstanzer
Weltchronik’, compiled at the end of the 14th century, lists the number as 130 in the four surrounding dioceses (BSB: Cgm 426; PLNY:
Spencer 100, KO 29; Kern 1869). The quantity of destroyed cas-
tles thus varies immensely and none of these records offers specific
names.
From the 15th century onwards, nevertheless, several lists
emerged with names of 60 or more castles destroyed in the Basel
region. Although none was strictly contemporary, these were later
used extensively (Mayer-Rosa & Cadiot 1979; Lambert et al. 2005).
Tracing back, we find that these lists originated in two records still
at hand which date to the first half of the 15th century: the ‘Basler
Zusätze in der Sächsischen Weltchronik oder Repgauische Chronik’
(UBBS: Ms. E VI 26; Wackernagel 1856) and the ‘Klingenberger
Chronik’ (Henne 1861; Gamper 1984). None of these lists, though,
is explicit about its specific function. We do not know why the
collection was carried out or what sample it reproduces.
In addition, some names for these castles no longer exist and are
thus difficult to recognize and localize. Several authors have tried to
identify them (Müller 1956; Meyer 1981, 2006; Lambert et al. 2005;
Wild 2006). Lambert et al. (2005) completed an important corrective study. They propose new locations for the Sundgau Castles. We
traced the lists of destroyed castles (‘Burgennamenlisten’) used in
this and other macroseismic studies. Yet, these ‘Burgennamenlisten’
refer to two samples from the first half of the 15th century and are
thus not contemporary. What’s more, both lists are imprecise about
their specific aim. As a consequence, we did not integrate them into
our macroseismic analysis unless damage to particular castles was
confirmed by other historical sources or archaeological findings.
In what follows, we present results of the archaeological and
historical investigations into Basel and then its surrounding area.
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Two types of data were analysed in our project. The first refers
to excavation of layers with indication of fire and debris including objects and foundations of buildings that no longer exist. The
second type refers to extant parts or entire buildings from the preearthquake period and those for which good documentation exists
between 1356 and their demolition.
Soil archaeology
Figure 4. Fictional picture of the Basel earthquake in the Konstanzer
Weltchronik (BSB: Cgm 426).
2.2 Historical and archaeological investigations of the city
of Basel
Written records concerning the event in the city of Basel are numerous but unspecific (see Wackernagel 1856). When it comes to detail,
as in the distribution of damage, sources remain insufficient. The
documents closest to the event give an account of vast destruction
in the city and a devastating fire in its inner walls and at St. Alban Vorstadt (StABS: Ratsbücher A1; Wackernagel 1856; Böhmer
1868b; Closener 1870; Bernoulli 1890). Unfortunately none of these
written reports distinguishes between the several shocks, so we
were unable to assign damage to individual earthquakes or as a
consequence of repeated shaking. Furthermore, they do not distinguish damage from shaking and that from fire. Probably the two
strongest shocks (numbers 4 and 5 in Table 1) both caused great
harm (Böhmer 1868b).
The city of Basel is of particular interest due to a wealth of
archaeological data. Since its founding in 1962, the Basel Archaeological Department has analysed more than 2100 excavation sites
in the city; 700 reports exist for the time before 1962. After the
creation of a soil archaeology unit, a section for building archaeology was established in 1978 within the ‘Basler Denkmalpflege’
(Historic Building Section of the Canton of Basel), an institution
for preserving Basel’s monuments and history. This research unit is
working as a component in medieval archaeology and examines all
material artefacts in the Canton Basel-Stadt area, including all historical buildings in any state of preservation and completeness. In
the past three decades, more than 600 objects have been examined.
These are not equally distributed over the city and their investigation
shows large differences in rigor. Some quarters are covered densely
with sites; in others only a few data points exist.
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Reports from the 2800 excavation sites in the city of Basel1 were
analysed for any evidence of the 1356 earthquake. Of these, only a
few hundred had potential information: 800 sites were checked for
possible earthquake connections of which 200 were investigated in
more detail. Only 54 were included in this study. After more careful
consideration, only six sites could be related to the 1356 event:
Fischmarkt 3 (excavated in 1927), ‘Gerbergasse 28’ (1935),
‘Andreasplatz 7—12’ (1983), ‘Leonhardsgraben 47’ (1985),
‘Nadelberg 32’ (1987) and ‘Lohnhof ’ (1996). The location of the
six sites is given in Fig. 5. These locations were selected using
findings dating from before the earthquake. From the number and
significance of objects at these six sites and debris found nearby, we
assume that they were probably deposited during or after a catastrophic event. Traces of fire were often detectable. New buildings
were constructed above the levelled debris layer.
The most valuable site was ‘Fischmarkt 3’, with many significant
objects in a debris layer with traces of fire (Fig. 6). A relevant
discovery is also available from a city wall tower at Lohnhof (Matt
& Rentzel 2002). Its walls and a wooden ceiling from the year 1358
(dendro-chronological dating) were completely rebuilt: a possible
indication of the earthquake. The connection with the earthquake
is established, because the known city fires (see below) attacked
other quarters. Furthermore, historical records report the destruction
of the neighbouring buildings of the convent and church of ‘St.
Leonhard’ (Maurer 1961).
The low number of useful excavation sites is the result of two
city fires in 1354 (all of Klein-Basel, the part of the city north of
the Rhine river) and 1377 (a part of Gross-Basel near the town hall;
Gross-Basel is the part of the city south of the river Rhine). The
occurrence of two significant fires before and after the earthquake
along with its associated fire damage creates difficulties in dating
fire damage between 1354 and 1377. A basement filled with debris
cannot necessarily be directly related to the earthquake; it could be
due to one of the mentioned fires or a fire that destroyed only that
building. In some cases, archaeological findings allow us to locate
damaged or destroyed buildings, even though estimating the degree
of damage is difficult. Information from the soil archaeology can,
however, provide additional insight into feasible damage occurrence
to extant buildings as in the case of Lohnhof.
The absence of debris does not offer information on whether
or not damage in the specific area occurred. We can assume for
example that debris was disposed of in the Rhine river, a common
practice then. At the ‘Münsterhügel’ (Münster hill), many findings
from the Celtic and Roman ages are extant. However, in its soil
layers, no archaeological evidence for an earthquake exists for the
14th century. Yet we know that the ‘Basler Münster’ (main cathedral)
was severely affected, like other buildings in the area of the Münster
hill, and we might assume the removal of debris and reuse of material
(Basler Münsterbauverein 1895; Wechsler 1987).
1 According
to the database of the Archäologische Bodenforschung (May
2008), Basel (ABoFoBS).
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Figure 5. Location of the sites in Basel, for which archaeological data related to the 1356 earthquake exist (circle: building; squares: excavation sites). All
indicated locations are given. Klein-Basel is the part of the city north of the Rhine river; Gross-Basel is the part south of the river Rhine. St. Alban Vorstadt is
a quarter of the city of Basel around St. Alban church.
Archaeology of buildings
Since the 1970s, the Building Archaeology Section of the ‘Basler
Denkmalpflege (DPF-BS)’ has collected data on more than 600
buildings (the results of the investigations are published annually in
the Jahresberichte der Archäologischen Bodenforschung des Kantons Basel-Stadt; see references). These buildings were explored
prior to their alteration, rebuilding or demolition. The geographical distribution of the investigated buildings was arbitrary since it
was related to construction activities in the city. Little data is available for buildings demolished before the data collection started. The
database therefore provides a somewhat random distribution. Of the
600 reports, 120 could be identified as having potential earthquake
information.
The earthquake of 1356 has special significance in the building history of Basel even though it has not in itself been a focus
of research for the Building Archaeology Section. Over 30 years
of research, evidence of the damage caused by the earthquake has
frequently come to light. In many buildings, dating from the mid14th century, different methods of construction can be distinguished
and associated with periods before or after the event (cf. Dossiers
Bauforschung DPF-BS, in particular 2006/218, D 1998/10, 2000/7,
D 1983/23, D 1983/21, D 1999/26). Masonry methods changed
after the earthquake; the use of bricks significantly increased and
they were systematically combined with quarried stonework. This
modified masonry technique assists in the interpretation and dat-
ing of surviving walls. Classification of different building phases
is based on the chronological identification of successive structures, the characteristics of the materials used and functional and
stylistic developments. Thus, rough dating is relatively error free
and straightforward as far as the time window of the earthquake
is concerned. For an accurate, year-exact identification, however,
dendro-chronological dating of the wood used for building is required. Generally speaking, there is room for interpretation as far
as there is causal connection between dated building phases and the
earthquake. Unambiguous dating requires the support of written
historical documents.
The building reports were carefully analysed to give summary
information on specific sites (see Table 2). Dendro-chronological
dating exists for some of the buildings at different levels of construction, allowing us to deduce the sequence in the building’s history.
Under optimum conditions, dendro-chronology permits the dating
of wood with an accuracy of 1 year. If a piece of bark survives on
the wood sample, the felling of the tree can be exactly dated. When
the border zone between the sapwood and the heartwood is still
present, the date of the felling of the tree can be estimated within
20 years (‘terminus post quem’). Age determinations shortly after
1356, taken together with traces of fire in the stonework and plaster,
and the style of workmanship were therefore of special interest,
indicating reconstruction after the earthquake. More difficult for
interpretation are age determinations of wood dated before the year
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Figure 6. Selection of objects found in a debris layer at Fischmarkt 3 (Photo: Philippe Saurbeck). These date to the second quarter of the 14th century. The
stove tiles and other findings show remarkable traces of fire. This might result from the fire following the 1356 earthquake, because this part of the city was not
affected by the fires of 1354 and 1377.
1356, because recycling of material in the reconstruction cannot be
excluded.
The archaeological information was complemented both by contemporary historical sources that mentioned specific buildings and
by surviving mural paintings dated to the pre-earthquake period. The
investigation included mostly private residential buildings but also
some monasteries and several churches. Some towers of the city wall
survived the earthquake without significant damage. However, most
no longer exist, so they were assessed using historical drawings.
Six buildings from the time before the quake have been proven to
have suffered insignificant or no damage. These survivors include
the internal building structures and roofs of: Nadelberg 6 ‘Schönes
Haus’ (dated 1270), Nadelberg 10 ‘Zerkindenhof’ (dated 1270),
Schlüsselberg 15 ‘Zum Landser’ (dated 1345), Unterer Rheinweg 26
‘Klingentalkloster—Dormitoriumsflügel’ (dated 1274, see Fig. 7),
Unterer Rheinweg 26 ‘Klingentalkloster—Schaffneiflügel’ (dated
1347), Kasernenstrasse 23 ‘Klingentalkloster-Klosterkirche’ (dated
1290). The clock tower of the former Leonhardsstift (Im Lohnhof)
has survived since its construction in 1330 and was not damaged
by the earthquake. Its roof, however, is of a much later date. Due
to its type of construction, the roof structure of the church of ‘St.
Alban’ (in St. Alban Vorstadt, a quarter of the city of Basel), which
has not been dated exactly, can probably be assigned to the late 13th
century.
Many extant historic buildings possess partial structures predating the earthquake. In such cases earlier elements or components
either survived later alterations in situ or were reused (beams for
example) elsewhere in the same building. Some floors structures
have survived in situ over the centuries and are still used. However,
the degree to which these old buildings resisted the earthquake is
unknown because of the complex overlays of later construction. On
the one hand, we assume that some of these buildings were only
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slightly damaged. On the other hand, several show traces of reconstruction that can be dendro-chronologically dated to shortly after
the event. For each building the specific uncertainties were included
in the assessment of damage (see Table 2).
Of seven roofs constructed in 1357/1358, two belong to
churches ‘Peterskirche’ (Peter’s church, Peterskirchplatz 1/choir)
and ‘Theodorskirche’ (Theodor’s church, Theodorskirchplatz
5/nave); the other five belong to non-ecclesiastical buildings. In
two of these, only parts of the 14th century roof are preserved.
Three dating after 1360 are typical medieval timber church
roof structures (Clarakirche (Clara’s church, Claraplatz 6), Predigerkirche (Prediger church, Totentanz 19) and Theodorskirche
(Theodor’s church, Theodorskirchplatz 1/choir). The others belong
to various old secular buildings and are predominantly purlin roofs
with common rafters (Lutz & Wesselkamp 2005). The buildings reconstructed between 1357 and 1363 are Augustinergasse 17 (Fig. 7),
Rheingasse 15, Rheingasse 32, Schneidergasse 28 and Blumenrain
34. Six further roofs can be dated to the time around 1365 to 1375,
two others to the end of the 14th century.
Damage from the 1356 earthquake can be observed in the most
significant building of Basel: the ‘Basler Münster’ (Münster church
in Fig. 5) or cathedral (possibly the church shown in Fig. 4), and
also confirmed by historical documents (e.g. Wackernagel 1856;
Sieber 1875). A thorough inspection reveals evidence of earthquake
damage at different locations in the masonry. Reconstruction seams
are visible in the medieval fronts of both west towers: of the original
five towers, these were the only ones to be rebuilt. Of the former east
towers that once flanked the chancel, only some orphan cornerstones
protrude from the upper parts of the walls. Strong distortions are
visible in the aisle pillars in the area of the crossing. The late
Romanesque aisle vaults survived the event but the nave vault had
to be reconstructed.
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Figure 7. Examples of buildings investigated, indicating the range of vulnerability class and damage grade. Top: Archaeological building inventory of
‘Kleines Klingental’, Unterer Rheinweg 26. It is completely conserved to the top, with dendro-chronological dating for the pre-earthquake period in the roof.
Bottom: The same for Augustinergasse 17; the yellow walls date to the period after 1356, the foundation (orange, pink, purple) dates to the time before the
earthquake (Jaggi 2000; DPF-BS: Bauforschung, Befunddossier 2007). No indication of fire was found. One dendro-chronological dating to the year 1363 is
available. For the location of the two buildings, see Figure 5.
Intensity and vulnerability assessment for the city of Basel
To collect and analyse the available information formally, a structure
was developed for data on the details of construction, dating and
other historical information plus an assessment of the vulnerability
class and damage grade according to the European Macroseismic
Scale (EMS-98; Grünthal 1998). We paid particular attention to possible damage from fire. We then estimated a most likely vulnerability
class, the damage grade as well as potential ranges, by validating
the specific data available for each building. All structures were
classified under the vulnerability class A, B or C: the typical range
for un-reinforced masonry buildings with flexible floors according
to the EMS scale. Buildings with negative features like irregular
layout, setbacks, thin walls or many openings in walls were rated
as Class A; buildings with seismic resistant features like a regular
layout, rigid basement, very thick walls and massive worked stones
were rated Class C. Damage grades in the investigated buildings
range from 1–2 (minor damage) to 5 (complete destruction). Two
representative buildings are shown in Fig. 7. Our research found that
more than 50 buildings could be assessed with different degrees of
uncertainty. An overview is given in Fig. 8 and Table 2, including
damage grade, vulnerability class and uncertainties.
As expected, damage shows a clear relation to building quality.
Buildings of vulnerability classes B and C generally survived better.
More vulnerable buildings with higher damage are characteristic in
the ‘Birsig’ valley, a lower income area supposedly devastated by
a fire following the earthquake. Unsurprisingly, the geographical
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Figure 8. (a) Overview of the assessed buildings in Basel, including the most probable vulnerability class and the range of possible direct earthquake damage.
Damage is concentrated in areas with low building quality along the rivers Birsig and Rhine. Numbers refer to the numbers in Table 2; numbers without
color-coding are given when the building class could not be applied. Nr. 26 is outside the area shown in the figure. (b) (inset) Buildings that show traces of fire
in the stonework and plaster. Damage due to fire is separated from direct earthquake damage for EMS intensity assignment. With this data set, we can roughly
locate the city fire that several historical sources traced to the earthquake.
separation of Basel’s income classes is reflected in the damage
distribution.
This data set contains information on 63 buildings, with estimates
for their building vulnerability class and damage grade according
to EMS-98 (expected values, minimal probable values, maximal
probable values). Thus, we estimated macroseismic intensity for the
city of Basel by applying a statistical assessment with a Monte Carlo
simulation. We assume that the available information represents
an unbiased sample of the damage in 1356. We simulated data
sets using a probability model that assumes a probability of 0.5
for the expected vulnerability class and damage grade, and a total
probability of 0.25 for the vulnerability classes and damage grades
between the expected and maximum or minimum probable values,
respectively. We assumed a discretized Gaussian type distribution of
the probabilities. For some buildings, we could estimate no expected
value, but only a range of vulnerability class or damage grade. In
those cases, we assumed an even distribution of the probabilities
between the minimum and maximum values. Based on a simulation
of 105 data sets, the probability that our data set reflects intensity
IX in the city of Basel is between 89 and 94 per cent, depending on
the selected buildings. Using the well-established buildings results
in 89 per cent probability and using all buildings in 94 per cent.
Intensity VIII is obtained for 11 or 6 per cent of the simulated data
sets, respectively. The database used for this assessment reflects the
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sample of information conserved today with the related uncertainty
of our interpretation.
There are two ways in which the data set used for intensity assessment might be non-representative for the 1356 event:
(1) The subset of buildings with information available today
might be non-representative in construction properties. It is a reasonable assumption that buildings of better quality (e.g. building
class C) had a higher chance of surviving than those poorly constructed. However, since the EMS-98 intensity scale allows us to
estimate the same intensity based on different typical damage to different building classes, such non-representativeness will not affect
the intensity assessment.
(2) Within one building class, the distribution of damage grades
in the set of preserved information might not represent the real distribution of different damage grades. However, since our methodology allows us to detect high damage grades (resulting in complete
reconstruction) as well as low (resulting e.g. in the preservation of
roof construction and wall paintings in upper floors), such distortion
in the data is not a priori probable. We therefore assume that the
intensity derived from the available data set represents a consistent
approximation of the real situation in 1356.
The few extant buildings that still reflect their original, preearthquake design were systematically screened. Two structures
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Table 3. Calculated horizontal spectral accelerations corresponding to grade 2 damage for two masonry buildings that survived the earthquake with
no major damage.
Measured fundamental frequency
Calculated fundamental frequency
Assumed drift limit for damage grade 2
Resulting horizontal spectral acceleration
Klingental
Schönes Haus
Unterer Rheinweg 26
Nadelberg 6
Longitudinal
Transverse
Longitudinal
Transverse
9.0 Hz
5.0–9.0 Hz
0.0015
8.1–26 m s−2
3.5 Hz
2.5–4.0 Hz
0.0015
2.0–5.2 m s−2
4.8 Hz
2.1–4.2 Hz
0.0015
2.0–8.1 m s−2
4.2 Hz
1.5–3.0 Hz
0.0015
1.0–4.2 m s−2
(‘Klingentalkloster—Dormitoriumsflügel’ Unterer Rheinweg 26,
‘Schönes Haus’ Nadelberg 6) show only minor modification to
windows and entries in the last 650 years. We were able to estimate
their seismic performance by using modern engineering techniques.
Both present several positive conceptual features: a compact, symmetric layout, thick continuous walls, relatively stiff wooden floors
with massive beams and a rigid basement. The quality of the natural stone masonry was judged clearly above average for both. These
buildings probably suffered only minor damage (damage grade 1 or
2) since no traces of repaired cracks could be found in their walls
and wooden floors, and their roofs were dated to pre-earthquake
time. Ambient vibration measurements were performed to determine the fundamental frequencies of the building vibrations in both
principal horizontal directions (Table 3). The measured frequencies are characteristic for very low amplitude vibrations before
the onset of masonry wall cracking and can be considered an upper bound for the stiffness during real earthquake shaking. With
growing cracks, the wall stiffness will typically be reduced by at
least a factor of 2 (Eurocode 8-1, 2004). Assuming a range of
possible material properties, we confirmed the measurements by
simple linear structural analysis. The drift limit corresponding to
damage grade 2 was estimated to be in the range of 0.001–0.002,
corresponding to typical serviceability limits in building standards
for the earthquake-resistant design (Eurocode 8-3, 2005). Given
building height and drift limit, we calculated resulting horizontal
spectral displacements in the fundamental mode following the inverse procedure of displacement-based seismic design (Priestley
et al. 2007). The obtained horizontal spectral displacement was
then transformed into the dynamically equivalent horizontal spectral acceleration of the single degree-of-freedom system. This corresponds to the fundamental mode (Table 3). Agreement between
measured and calculated fundamental frequency is better for the
‘Klingental’ building that presents a simpler geometrical layout
than does ‘Schönes Haus’. The values in Table 3 consider only the
in-plane resistance of the masonry walls. We expect that the weakest
point would be the out-of-plane behaviour of the walls parallel to
the timber floor beams, resulting in somewhat lower acceleration
values.
Table 3 shows the results from the simple linear dynamic analysis: the two buildings could have survived an earthquake shaking
with spectral accelerations up to 4 or 5 m s−2 corresponding to
intensity VIII or IX without major damage. This broad range of
intensity (VIII–IX) results from the choice of ground-motion to intensity relation to be applied (Wald et al. 1999; Kästli & Fäh 2006).
We therefore cannot eliminate this level of shaking during in the
1356 event. On the other hand, it is neither possible to estimate
lower bounds for the shaking nor to deduce an intensity value from
analysing only these buildings.
2.3 Historical and archaeological investigations
of the quake area
Distribution of data on the quake area is somewhat dispersed. Apart
from direct information about what happened on October 18, we
relied on indirect data about the reconstruction of buildings. Below
we provide a compilation of sites with earthquake data that we
gathered from historical and/or archaeological sources. We sought
a robust data set to assign macroseismic intensity.
Wider Basel area
For the surrounding areas, archaeology offers modest information
on some castles and churches. As was mentioned earlier, several
castles were partially or completely destroyed by the event. However,
only in a few cases, archaeological evidence was supported by
historical records.
The most consistent data underlining this hypothesis come from
sites where both written and archeological evidence was found. Pratteln (BL), a small town east of Basel, with its castle Madeln, is one
of these examples. During an excavation of Madeln, a large quantity of valuable objects was recovered from the debris, including
two great helms, a tin plate and many weapons that could be dated
around the year 1350. Heavy damage to the castle is very probable
given this large number of metallic objects and to the fact that parts
of the masonry had collapsed as an entire unit. No reconstruction
occurred. The destruction of Madeln is confirmed by the ‘Pratteler
Kundschaft’ (StABL: Urkunde 537) and the ‘Eptinger Hausbuch’
(Christ 1992) even though the records lack specifics about the degree of loss. A second building at this site, the ‘Weiherhaus’, was
destroyed as well, but restored later (Meyer 1981; Christ 1992).
From a large number of metallic objects found during an excavation of Castle ‘Bischofstein’ at Sissach (BL), its rapid destruction
can be assumed. Among other objects, a brass pan was found. These
evident signs of rapid destruction indicate that an abrupt incident—
not a slow breakup—occurred. Scholars point to the 1356 event
(Tauber 1980; Meyer 1981; Wild 2006). For Castle ‘Waldeck’ (Leymen, F) the most spectacular object recovered was a large bronze
cauldron (Meyer 1981, 2006; Wild 2006). A deed of 1379 implies
that the bishop of Basel proposed rebuilding the Castle Waldeck
after the earthquake, when he was eager to leave the castle as a
legacy (Trouillat 1861).
A further example of heavy damage is Castle ‘Angenstein’
in Duggingen (BL), mentioned within the ‘Burgennamenliste’
(Bernoulli 1890). Archaeological evidence shows the collapse and
rebuilding of the complete northwestern wall of its donjon (Meyer
2006; Wild 2006). Some wooden beams used in the newly built part
could be dated by dendro-chronology to 1364 (Gutscher 2005).
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However, no written evidence could be found to support this
interpretation. The same holds true for the castles ‘Wildenstein’
in Bubendorf (BL) and ‘Münchsberg’ in Pfeffingen (BL), both
mentioned in the ‘Burgennamenliste’. Archaeological excavation
at Bubendorf indicated severe damage (Tauber 1980) even though
no written evidence exists to support this theory. For the church of
Muttenz (BL), evidence of building activities in the mid-14th century is known (Ewald 1998; Meyer 2006; Wild 2006). A document
from the mid-18th century refers to historians of former centuries
(Bruckner 1748) who describe the collapse of Castel ‘Wartenberg’
at Muttenz (in fact this was a group of three neighbouring castles).
No contemporary record could be found and no archaeological evidence supports this hypothesis so far. Wartenberg as well as Castle
Farnsburg in Buus (BL) was known to be inhabited after the earthquake, thus damaged but not destroyed. Archeological findings have
shed no further light (Wild 2006).
Rebuilding activities are also known for the ‘Church St. Martin’ near Rheinfelden (AG), approximately 10 km east of Basel.
The top floor of its tower had to be refurbished and we know from
dendro-chronological dating that this happened in 1361. Since the
church was so new, having been consecrated in 1352, such rebuilding might indicate earthquake damage (Frey 2000; Frey & Reding,
unpublished data; Wild 2006). Two historical records from the 15th
century note support given to the city of Basel by neighbouring
towns, including Rheinfelden. [Others were the Alsatian villages of
Strasbourg, Colmar, Schlettstadt and Mulhouse as well as Freiburg
im Breisgau and Neuenburg (D) (Stierlin & Wyss 1819; Burkart
1909).] Such aid capability implies less damage in those donor
regions.
The restoration of the church of the Olsberg Monastery at the time
might hint at partial earlier destruction. Courvoisier & Sennhauser
(1990) suggest linking this restoration to the 1356 event. Others
though disapprove this assumption (Frey & Reding 2006). For the
St. Gallus Church in Kaiseraugst (AG), new construction horizons
for the top floor of the church could be dated to the time shortly
after 1356. This was equally true of the bell-tower for the years
1368/1369 (Kontic 2006). Here, we rely on dendro-chronological
dating and archaeological findings only.
No archaeological investigation has been carried out yet for
‘Schauenburg’ Castle at Frenkendorf (BL). It was supposed to have
suffered damage from the Basel earthquake but was inhabited until
1502 (Wild 2006). Nor is much known about the site of Riehen
(BL). A chronicle of the 18th century blames the destruction of the
church there on the quake, and in fact, the church bell dates from
1357 (Iselin 1923). No contemporary document is at hand, though.
Indications of possible building activities after the event can be
found in the ‘St. Alban Zinsbuch’ of 1369 (StABS: St. Alban E fol.
37) for the village of Gelterkinden (BL). The document mentions
the reduction of interests (‘Zinsreduktionen’) due to the tremor.
Regions of Bern, Solothurn and Aargau
(south of the epicentral area)
For the town of Bern, the town clerk and chronicler Konrad Justinger
(†∼1425) is a rather reliable source on the 1356 event. In the chronicle of 1421 (Stierlin & Wyss 1819, Feller 1974), he mentions a crash
of the tower and choir of the Leutkirche, as well as fissures in walls
of other buildings in Bern. Refurbishing one of the two towers of
‘Grasburg’ Castle in Wahlern (BE), situated roughly 85 km south of
Basel, was traced to the 1356 event (Burri 1935; Wild 2006). Contemporary accounts provide evidence for the purchase of material
to reconstruct the top of the donjon as well as the wall’s perimeter
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and unmistakably blame the quake (Burri 1935). A contemporary
record in the Fontes Rerum Bernensium (1903) also notes construction of a new tower for ‘Leutkirche’ in 1359 April 29, after its great
annihilation (Howald 1872). A similar account is to be found in an
edited chronicle by Etterlin of the 15th century (Gruber 1965) as
well as in Schodoler’s manuscript of 1525 (StiBib. Eins.: Ms. No.
384). No archaeological evidence exists for this site so far.
In the town of Solothurn, geographically situated between Basel
and Bern, reconstruction of the steeple of the main church, built
around 1300, was undertaken shortly after the 1356 quake. A chronicle of the late 18th century, composed by the cantor Franz Jakob
Hermann mentions damage in Solothurn due to the event (ZSO: Ms.
S II 18). Unfortunately, he did not give any quoted sources. Later
compilers pursued this assertion (Winistörfer 1855; Amiet 1865;
Sennhauser 1990). And indeed, a building contract dating from
the year 1360 to erect a new spire for the St. Ursen Church supports this statement (StASO: Urk. 1360; Solothurner Wochenblatt
1816). There is no indication in this document, however, of why the
spire was rebuilt, the entry thus remaining fairly vague.
Construction work at ‘Röt(t)eln’ Castle near Kaiserstuhl (AG)
reports high costs in the year 1359. The available record does not,
however, justify strongly attributing such activities to seismic damage (GLA: Ms. 5 Conv. 548. Perg. REX II 5462, 5453). Thus, it has
not been integrated in our assignment sample. For the same reason,
we omit alleged devastation reported for the town Zofingen (AG)
in ‘Frikart’s chronicle’ (Frikart 1811), as well as archaeological indications for quake damage to the bell towers in Rodersdorf (SO)
(Loertscher 1957). Both hints offer no direct indication of whether
they can be linked to the event. They consequently have not been
assigned for our purposes.
By contrast, there is a very reliable entry in an Austrian deed,
concerning the fates of the subjects in the Aargau, then under the
Habsburg rule (Thommen 1899; Merz 1905). This record notes that
‘Homberg Castle’ in Wittnau (AG) was almost completely destroyed
by the quake. Renovation was projected and partly carried out but
never finished. Valuable objects found under its debris support this
entry (Reding 2000; Wild 2006).
Jura region
Indication of earthquake damage was also found for ‘Valdegrani’
Cloister at Moutier-Grandval (BE) in the Swiss Jura. Heinrich of
Rebdorf (†1364) mentions in his chronicle the complete devastation
of the monastery (Boehmer 1868a). However, we note his obvious
exaggeration; he speaks of mountains that should have exchanged
sites, and 2000 people dead. Seismic damage, however, is supported
in part by a Basel deed, describing the consecration of an altar in
1361 (Trouillat 1861). This entry nevertheless remains somewhat
vague.
In the 17th century, the chronicler Buchinger (Buchinger 1666;
Walch 1950) mentions that the church of the ‘Lucelle’ Monastery
near Pleigne (JU) was rebuilt in 1346 due to a strong earthquake.
This difference of a decade is most likely a scribal error for 1356.
Since the monastery was later given as a legacy, it is most probable
that its damage was limited (Trouillat 1861).
The alleged destruction of ‘Soyhières’ Castle at Soyhières (JU) is
erroneously taken as having been complete. The entry in Trouillat
(1858) dating to 1337 was later incorrectly taken as the testimony of
a total loss from the earthquake (Helg 1970; Meyer 1981). However,
as Quiquerez (1863) states, the castle was damaged only marginally.
Since we do not have any earlier records of this account, the finding
is uncertain.
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Delémont (JU) is supposed to have been damaged, since the
Vorbourg Castle (consisting of two buildings and inhabited by the
Telsperg family) and local dwellings are said to have been damaged
(Helg 1970; Daucourt 1980; Wild 2006).
Alsace
The entire Alsace is said to have been affected (Bib. Mun Col.: Ms
No. 503). Most likely, the seismic event was felt in Colmar (Bib.
Mun Col.: Ms No. 349) even though the record is imprecise as it
was for Strasbourg (Rasch 1591; Dietler 1898). The contemporary
witness Fritsche Closener notes that the intensity of the 1357 event
in Strasbourg was remarkably stronger than that of 1356 October in
Strasbourg (Closener 1870). For Strasbourg and the 1357 event, an
intensity VII is estimated.
A most interesting statement in a Swiss deed concerns the
monastery at Blotzheim (8 km in the northwest of Basel): it explicitly negates the habitability of the buildings after the 1356 earthquake (Boner 1945). We thus conclude that damage to the buildings
was rather strong.
Damage to ‘Morimont/Mörsberg’ Castle at Oberlarg has been
documented by a number of chronicles (Trouillat 1861; Walch 1950;
Reinhard 1965). However, since they are not contemporary, their
entries remain somewhat suspect. Archaeological investigation has
not been more specific; we are not yet certain of what occurred at
the castle before and after 1356. Although it is well known that
the fort was given as a feud in 1361 (Trouillat 1861), this does not
clarify its grade of damage or possible preservation (Biller & Metz
1989; Wild 2006). Unfortunately, a full renewal of the fortress in
the 16th century erased any chance of tracing the history of the old
castle.
The same holds true for the church at Oltingue: despite the fact
that archaeological indications for earthquake damage have been
found (Schweitzer et al. 1990; Munch-Armengaud 2005, personal
communication), a decisive connection to the 1356 earthquake cannot be made. Also ‘Blochmont’ Castle at Kiffis (Trouillat 1861) was
given as a feud. It is most likely that this castle was destroyed and
rebuilt (Meyer 1981).
Furthermore, the earthquake was felt at the nearby site
Montbéliard (Duvernoy 1832).
Southern Germany
Information for Southern Germany is scarce and unspecific: note the
collection of records by Mone (1848). The paucity of historical and
archaeological findings for this region might result from archival
difficulties: documents of the diocese Konstanz and of Monastery
Sankt Blasien are scattered over several archives, or they note only
minor effects of the Basel quake in this area. Contemporary documents are absent also for the donjon of ‘Rötteln’ Castle at Lörrach
(D), 10 km north-east of Basel, although its eastern side shows noticeable repairs (Heimgartner 1964; Schomann, unpublished data)
(Fig. 9). Other records mentioning perceived earthquake effects at
the site are neither contemporary nor reliable in origin (Holdermann
1903; Seith 1954; Moehring 2001).
The famous Konstanzer Weltchronik (BSB: Cgm 426) mentions
an earthquake in 1356 in Konstanz (D), without going into detail; it
is possibly based upon ‘Heinrich of Diessenhofen’, a contemporary
witness. Diessenhofen reports one huge shock and several foreand aftershocks occurring on 1356 October 18 and the day after
at Konstanz (Böhmer 1868b) (see Table 1). Of damage he speaks
about Basel itself; it is most likely that Konstanz did not experience
Figure 9. Picture of Rötteln Castle close to Lörrach (Schomann, unpublished data). See noticeable repairs on its eastern side (see arrow). Documents providing
reasons for the repair do not exist.
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any. However, since Diessenhofen presumably did not reside in
Konstanz at the time of the event (Hotz 1994, 2005), this record
is not as reliable as we hoped. Two fund-raising appeals for the
‘Basel Cathedral’ are verifiable in the diocese of Konstanz: the
first in November 1356 (Wackernagel 1856), the second in July
1364 (StABS: Domstifturkunden, No. 130), each with the promised
indulgence of 40 days. Again, this donor capability indicates minor
damage in the respective towns and regions, as did donations for
the city of Basel by neighbouring towns (Stierlin & Wyss 1819)
mentioned above. The third part of the project ‘Die Burgen im
mittelalterlichen Breisgau’ at the University ‘Freiburg im Breisgau’
might shed light on open questions for Southern Germany (Zettler
& Zotz 2003, 2006).
Wider quake area
In the early 20th century, historian Ernest Petit (1905) compiled a
selection of sources of roughly 15 Burgundian locations affected by
the earthquake. Since most of them seem to be contemporary, they
have to be considered, even though the collection of damaged sites
first evokes some irritation. Many of them consist of accounts of
necessary repairs of parts of the castles, reported by the respective
lords of the castles or manors (‘Guillaume’).
The most interesting trace is the one given for Montrond-leChâteau, where both the foreshock at around 5 pm and the main
shock at 9 pm are described. The tower of the castle is reported
to have collapsed. Of Besançon it is said that the tower of ‘Vayte’
was destroyed. And indeed, the Konstanzer Weltchronik (BSB: Cgm
426) also states that the tower of a church collapsed at Besançon.
At Dijon, a wall connecting two castles was shattered and several
building roofs had to be repaired (ADCO: B 1402; ADCO: B 1405,
Petit 1905). At Avallon, it has been said that two city portals as well
as many chimneys were cracked. At Montbard, the rebuilding of the
roof of a castle is accounted as well as a couple of chimneys that
were either damaged or destroyed (ADCO: B 5306; Petit 1905).
At Montréal, the repairs required were even more serious: walls,
portals, crenellates and also towers had to be restored. Required
reparation is also reported for Châtillon-sur-Seine, even though no
further detail of specific damage is given. Portals had also to be
rebuilt at Flavigny, and at Montcenis a wall with a rather large cleft
had to be renovated. At Beaune, several clefts in the walls as well as
of one of the portals were requested for restoration. And lastly, for
the towns of Semur, Lantenay, Aisey and Maisey-le-Duc, repairs
were stated even though the records lack details.
Yet, why should there be effects this far away from Basel (some
300 km due west), when regions such as the Alsace were damaged
only slightly? Petit himself claims that this destruction might be
traced due to bad weather conditions during this period; however,
most contemporary sources cite the 1356 October earthquake. Contemporary records for Paris and Reims (Géraud 1843) unquestionably support the postulation that the event was widely felt. Nonetheless, the findings for the Burgundy remain somewhat opaque. Even
though most unlikely, a potential hypothesis of a local damaging
earthquake in the Burgundy on the day of the Basel event or other
reasons for the reported damage should be further investigated.
One last remark concerns the town of Speyer, roughly 200 km
north of Basel. On 1356 November 11, the town council decreed
a modesty regulation about clothes (‘Kleiderordnung’) to appease
the anger of God made visible by earthquakes (Eisenbart 1962).
The chronological proximity of this decree to the 1356 October
earthquake implies that it was felt at this site.
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365
3 PA L A E O S E I S M O L O G I C A L R E S U LT S
R E L AT E D T O S E C O N D A RY
P H E N O M E NA
Damaged speleothems in caves (Lemeille et al. 1999; Lacave et al.
2004) and numerous triggered rock-falls that date to the time of
the Basel quake (Becker & Davenport 2003) have been recognized
as possible secondary phenomena in the epicentral area. There,
Schürch & Becker (2005) studied some blocks along the edges of
cliffs that appeared very unstable with respect to ground motion.
They applied the precarious rock method proposed by Brune (1996,
1999) to seven blocks of which, according to Brune’s definition,
two are precariously balanced. Their peak toppling accelerations
are slightly lower than about 3 m s−2 . Two (or three) further blocks
are possibly semi-precarious. If we assume that most rocks with
toppling accelerations smaller than 3 m s−2 were triggered during
the 1356 event, this acceleration value provides some bound for the
ground motion of the 1356 event. As discussed by Schürch & Becker
(2005), the large uncertainty of estimated ground motion values is
related to possible near-source effects, local site conditions and the
method used. According to Brune & Whitney (2000), macroseismic
intensities of VII in the MM (Modified Mercalli scale) scale would
probably have toppled most precarious rocks. Those with intensity
VIII MM would have toppled all. Due to the similarity of modern
macroseismic scales, similar intensity values can be assumed in the
EMS scale. The sites of the studied cliffs are located in flat-lying,
thickly bedded upper Jurassic coral limestone, for which we expect
intensity values lower than those at soft-sediment sites. However,
as indicated by Anderson & Brune (1999), topographic effects may
play a role and the problem becomes very site specific. For the
Basel area, no complete statistical evaluation of the toppled and the
non-toppled precariously balanced rocks is available. Information
from these investigations was not transformed into a macroseismic
intensity point.
Lacave et al. (2004) proposed ground motion estimates for two
near-surface caves at about 5 km and 40 km from the fault. For
the closer cave (Bättlerloch, Zwingen), they estimated peak ground
acceleration (pga) with 10 m s−2 to explain the complete breaking
of a stalactite group. This value is a worst-case estimate, accounting
for the most unfavourable hypothesis concerning the initial, intact
length of the broken stalactites. However, as pointed out by the
authors, the breaking of the stalactites might have originated in a
strong flood, not the earthquake. Information was not transformed
into a macroseismic intensity point.
For the more distant ‘Milandre’ (Boncourt) cave, they estimated
the pga between 0.5 and 2.5 m s−2 , with an upper limit in the range of
2.5–4 m s−2 . That limit corresponds approximately to the intensity
range VIII to IX, depending on which ground-motion to intensity
relations are applied (Wald et al. 1999; Kästli & Fäh 2006). Other
reasons for the broken stalactites are also possible at this Milandre
site. Archaeologically observed cracks in the walls of the nearby
Château De Milandre were most probably due to the earthquake
(Wild 2006). The castle was inhabited until the 15th century at
least. For the macroseismic assessment, weight was given only to
the archaeological information.
Investigations of lake deposits in the Basel area (Becker et al.
2002) revealed several earthquake-induced structures that could
have been caused by prehistoric events. The effects of the 1356
earthquake, however, were not visible in the geological archive due
to unfavourable conditions in lake sedimentation during that time.
Human activity in the following centuries may also have obscured
such effects. Soft-sediment deformation (liquefaction) in lake
366
D. Fäh et al.
deposits could, however, be identified about 60 km from the epicenter in Baldegger Lake in Central Switzerland (Monecke et al.
2004). The data were taken at two borehole locations and include
13 sediment cores from the deepest part of the lake. Small-scale
deformation structures were observed in two cores. In one, the sand
forms a mushroom-like structure protruding into the carbonate mud.
In a second core, lenses of carbonate mud are sunk into the clastic
material. Furthermore, slight disturbances in the layering and disrupted layers occur below the clastic stratum. These structures are
interpreted as earthquake-induced soft sediment deformations with
mushroom-like intrusions and pseudonodules. Such deformations
may indicate the passage of the 1356 seismic waves. According to
Monecke et al. (2004), lake sediments are only affected if they are
situated within an area that underwent ground shaking not smaller
than intensity VI to VII. The authors conclude that the Baldegger Lake might have experienced a movement equivalent to this
macroseismic intensity range.
The slightly more distant lakes (Vierwaldstättersee, Seelisberg
Seeli) show no such deformation and no sub-aquatic landslides, so a
macroseismic intensity in the range V to VI or lower can be assumed
for that region. Monecke et al. (2004) conclude that only intensity
V was reached in the Vierwaldstättersee and Seelisberg Seeli. An
intensity of VII is the threshold for multiple sub-aquatic landslides
in these lakes (Monecke et al. 2004; Strasser et al. 2006) and they
have been identified for several past events. Previous studies identified numerous mass-movement deposits related to the Mw 6.2
earthquake of 1601 in central Switzerland (e.g. Schnellmann et al.
2002, 2006). For that event, the intensity was VII in the Lucerne area
(Lucerne is located at the western border of the Vierwaldstättersee)
(Schwarz-Zanetti et al. 2003).
For the Lucerne area, palaeoseismological conclusions related to
the 1356 event are supported by a contemporary description from
Lucerne in the ‘Burgerbuch’ (dated 1357), which, however, lacks
reports of damage (Wackernagel 1856). The record of the earthquake in the Annales S. Blasii et Engelbergenses (1861), recorded
in Engelberg (OW), allows us to assume that it was widely felt in
this region.
For the Lake of Zurich, two mass-flow deposits in its western part
(close to the villages Kilchberg and Küsnacht) could be dated to
590–700 cal yr BP (1250–1360) and might coincide with the Basel
earthquake (Strasser et al. 2006; Strasser 2008). These deposits are
partly related to slope failures along lateral deltas where threshold
stabilities might be low (Strasser 2008). Delta slopes may have
been additionally ‘charged’ or even triggered by the historically
documented flooding event in 1342 (Schwarz-Zanetti 1998). At its
site by the western end of the lake, Zurich was one of the larger cities
in the 14th century. In terms of significant damage, the two versions
of the Zurich chronicle (Henne 1861; Gamper 1984) mention the
event for Basel but not for Zurich. Thus, an intensity of V to VI can
be assumed for the latter city and its surroundings.
4 M A C R O S E I S M I C A N A LY S I S
All information from the different historical and archaeological
findings was collected in a database of the Swiss Seismological
Service and analysed formally. This analysis was performed by a
designated working group who took into consideration the time
elapsed between an event and its description. Then, given the document’s function, the author’s intention in producing the record, the
overall context of the document and the available archaeological
information, single reports were rated for their reliability. Macro-
seismic intensity in the EMS-98 scale was assigned by settlement,
using all sources of information about effects to buildings within
it. Depending on the intensity-relevant content of the reports, the
project group assigned a most probable intensity and a range defined
by the minimum and maximum probable intensities.
The assignments were tagged with a quality estimate representing
the reliability, independence and diversity of the summed information sources concerning one site and its earthquake-relevant content.
The quality is defined within a 5◦ scale that ranges from ‘very good’
to ‘very poor’ in accordance with previous investigation of historical
Swiss quakes (Fäh et al. 2003).
All macroseismic intensity points in this study received the two
lowest qualities (poor, very poor), except for the city of Basel where
we assigned the second highest quality: ‘good’. The macroseismic
points are given in two tables. Table 4 provides the reliable intensity data points, derived from contemporary information, whereas
Table 5 provides the uncertain ones, derived from secondary evidence. Fig. 10 illustrates the site points derived from historical,
archaeological and palaeoseismological information. The most reliable site point is for the city of Basel.
The castles from the lists (‘Burgennamenliste’) are not given in
Table 5, because these lists are not contemporary and, according to
Lambert et al. (2005), sometimes wrongly located. Different authors
(see Lambert et al. 2005 for a summary) have used the castles listed
in the ‘Burgennamenlisten’ for macroseismic assessment. Lambert
et al. (2005) is the most recent study, it suggested some locations
for castles unlike those used by other authors. However coordinates
are not provided in his study. Lambert et al. assigned intensity of
VIII to all the castles and intensities of VIII or IX to Liestal and
Basel.
Finally, we estimated the epicentral location and magnitude of
this event. It was last assessed during the revision of the Earthquake
Catalog of Switzerland (ECOS02) (Fäh et al. 2003, Swiss Seismological Service 2008) and relied mostly on the macroseismic
field published in Mayer-Rosa & Cadiot (1979). ECOS provides a
uniform estimate of the moment magnitudes Mw for all historical
and instrumental events. The historical events were then assessed
following the proposal of Bakun & Wentworth (1997). This uniform earthquake size estimate in terms of magnitude required a
magnitude/intensity calibration based on a calibration data set of
earthquakes in the 20th century for Switzerland and adjacent areas
(Fäh et al. 2003). A distance weighting function is used, with observations at near distances preferentially weighted to improve the
resolution of the epicentral region. The weight is zero for distances
larger than 200 km. Fäh et al. (2003) proposed two attenuation relations, one for shallow events (∼0–7 km depth) and one for deep
events (∼8–20 km depth). For any event with a magnitude larger
than 5.5, the relation for deep events was selected for calibration.
The formerly estimated moment magnitude Mw of the 1356 event
was given as 6.9, with an error bound of 0.5 units. One problem
in assessing the magnitude was the fact that the Basel event was
outside the magnitude range of the calibration events. Additionally,
the cumulative effects of damage in the epicentral region due to
fore-, main- and aftershocks could not be separated. The estimated
magnitude is therefore uncertain.
We applied a procedure identical to Fäh et al. (2003) for the new
macroseismic field, based on a model tree with three branches:
(a) Calculation based on the more reliable intensity data points
given in Table 4, equally weighted;
(b) Calculation based on all available intensity points (Tables 4
and 5), equally weighted;
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367
Table 4. Sites with good, poor and very poor intensities. Location, macroseismic intensity according to the EMS-98 scale, minimum and maximum probable
intensity, quality, use of historical, archaeological and palaeoseismological information.
Site
Basel
Bern
Besançon
Blotzheim
Bubendorf
Colmar
Dijon
Duggingen
Engelberg
Gelterkinden
Kiffis
Leymen
Montbard
Montbéliard
Paris
Pfeffingen
Pleigne
Pratteln
Reims
Rheinfelden
Sissach
Speyer
Strasbourg
Wahlern
Wittnau
Lat
lon
Quality
47.56
46.95
47.23
47.6
47.45
48.09
47.32
47.45
46.82
47.46
47.45
47.5
47.63
47.52
48.7
47.46
47.43
47.52
49.26
47.55
47.46
49.32
48.57
46.82
47.48
7.59
7.44
6.02
7.5
7.74
7.37
5.05
7.61
8.4
7.86
7.37
7.48
4.33
6.8
2.33
7.59
7.31
7.69
4.04
7.79
7.81
8.44
7.74
7.35
7.98
Good
Poor
Very poor
Poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Poor
Very poor
Poor
Lower probable
intensity
Upper probable
intensity
Est.
intensity
Historical
evidence
Archaeological
evidence
Palaeoseismological
evidence
8
6
6
7
7
–
6
7
–
5
7
7
6
–
–
7
7
8
–
6
8
–
5
6
7
9
7
7
9
8
–
7
8
–
–
8
8
7
–
–
8
8
9
–
7
9
–
6
7
9
9
7
7
8
8
Felt
7
8
Felt
–
8
8
7
Felt
Felt
8
7
9
Felt
6
9
Felt
6
7
8
x
x
x
x
–
x
x
x
–
–
–
x
–
–
x
–
–
x
x
–
–
–
x
–
x
–
x
x
–
–
–
x
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
–
(c) Calculation based on all available IDPs, but with qualitydependent weighting: lowest weights for IDPs given in Table 5,
consecutively doubled weight for every quality class of Table 4.
For each branch, we performed a Monte Carlo simulation by using the probability boundaries given for the single intensity assignments. We simulated 10 000 data sets, using a discretized Gaussian
probability model that assumes a probability of 0.5 for the ‘best
estimate’ intensity at each point, and a total probability of 0.25
for the intensity between the probable intensity and the maximum
or minimum values, respectively. This procedure results in median
magnitudes of M w = 6.93 (5-/95-percentile: 6.78. . .7.1) for selection a, M w = 6.76 (6.67. . .6.86) for selection b, and M w = 6.89
(6.82. . .6.96) for selection c.
Overall, we estimate M w to be 6.9, with a confidence interval
of 6.7. . .7.1. The interval reflects the uncertainty of the intensity
assessment, assuming that there is no systematic shift in the intensity assignments. The best guess for the epicentral coordinate is
comparable to 612/257 given in ECOS (Fig. 11). However, we cannot indicate an error range, since the result depends on the spatial
distribution of IDPs.
There is a long-standing controversy over the location and mechanism of the seismogenic fault of the 1356 event. There are three
fault systems presently active (e.g. Ustazewkis & Schmid 2007):
the NNE striking Rhenisch faults including the eastern master fault
of the Rhinegraben, the ENE striking faults of the Rhine-Bresse
transfer zone and a series of smaller NW-SE striking faults east of
Basel outside the Rhinegraben structure. Of these three possibilities, two hypotheses are proposed for the 1356 event: a major fault
along the Jura frontal thrust as part of the Rhine-Bresse transfer
zone (e.g. Meyer et al. 1994) or the Reinach fault striking parallel
to the master fault of the southern Rhinegraben (e.g. Meghraoui
et al. 2001).
2009 The Authors, GJI, 178, 351–374
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x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
–
–
–
–
Meyer et al. (1994) compare the evidence for a normal faulting event along the eastern master fault of the Rhinegraben with
data for a reverse fault along the Jura frontal thrust or a fault reactivation within the Hercynian basin. Based on the location of
the macroseismic epicenter, the repartition of the main destruction
and the elongation of the isoseismals published by Mayer-Rosa &
Cadiot (1979), they exclude an event related to normal faulting
along the edges of the Southern Rhinegraben. Two modes of mechanisms for the 1356 event are then possible for an ENE striking fault
of the Rhine-Bresse transfer zone: a dextral strike-slip mode or a
thrust event. Meyer et al. (1994) favour a reactivation of a basement
fault (reverse or wrench fault) beneath the shallow-depth aseismic
detachment that underlies the Jura mountains. Similarly, Lambert
et al. (2005) propose a fault striking ENE-EWE like that suggested
by Meyer et al. (1994). This choice is based on the application of the
BOXER code (Gasperini et al. 1999) to their revised macroseismic
field. Ustazewkis & Schmid (2007) also favour this fault hypothesis, given evidence for dextral transpression along the Rhine Bresse
transfer zone west and south west of Basel. The reverse faulting
observed for the Rigney event of 2004 February 23, located about
100 km south west of Basel, further supports their choice. They suggest a combination of strike-slip and thrusting for the 1356 event.
Although strike-slip mode and a combination of strike-slip and normal faulting have been observed in the Basel area (Kastrup et al.
2004), thrusting has not yet been seen. Assuming that the few recent
earthquakes with available fault plane solutions represent the stress
field in the area south of Basel, a pure reverse fault seems unlikely
with the present-day stress field.
The second hypothesis for the 1356 event is the Reinach Fault
(shown in Fig. 11) south of the city of Basel. This proposal is based
on palaeoseismological research on six trenches (Meghraoui et al.
2001; Ferry et al. 2005). If so, the Bruderholz scarp would be the
geomorphological signature of the fault over a distance of 8 km.
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D. Fäh et al.
Table 5. Sites with very uncertain intensities. Location, macroseismic intensity according to the EMS-98 scale, minimum and maximum probable intensity,
quality, use of historical, archaeological and palaeoseismological information.
Site
Aisey
Avallon
Baldegger Lake area∗
Beaune
Boncourt
Buus
Châtillon-sur-Seine
Delémont
Flavigny
Frenkendorf
Kaiseraugst
Konstanz
Lake Lucerne area∗
Lake Seelisberg area∗
Lantenay
Lörrach
Lucerne
Maisey
Montcenis
Montréal
Montrond-le-Château
Moutier
Muttenz
Oberlarg
Olsberg
Oltingue
Riehen
Semur
Solothurn
Zurich
Lat
lon
Quality
Lower probable
intensity
Upper probable
intensity
Est.
intensity
Historical
evidence
47.73
47.49
47.2
47.03
47.48
47.51
47.52
47.37
47.52
47.5
47.54
47.67
47.01
46.97
47.34
47.63
47.05
47.85
46.8
47.53
47.15
47.28
47.52
47.47
47.52
47.51
47.58
47.51
47.21
47.37
4.58
3.92
8.26
4.83
7.5
7.86
4.39
7.34
4.53
7.72
7.74
9.18
8.44
8.59
4.87
7.66
8.31
4.68
4.38
4.02
6.05
7.37
7.65
7.23
7.78
7.4
7.66
4.33
7.54
8.54
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
Very poor
6
6
6
6
7
7
6
7
6
7
6
4
4
–
6
7
4
6
6
6
6
6
7
7
6
6
6
6
6
7
7
7
7
8
8
7
8
7
8
8
6
6
6
7
8
6
7
7
7
7
8
8
8
8
7
8
7
8
6
7
7
6
7
7
8
7
8
7
8
7
5
5
–
7
8
5
7
7
7
7
7
8
8
7
7
7
7
7
5
x
x
Archaeological
evidence
Palaeoseismological
evidence
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
x
Note: ∗ Based on the interpretation given by Monecke et al. (2004) and the historical information from the nearby localities, for example, Lucerne and
Engelberg.
Ferry et al. (2005) provide some evidence that the fault might extend northward into the southern present-day suburbs of Basel and
south into the frontal folds of the Jura mountains. Taking into account the proposed extensions, Ferry et al. (2005) suggest a fault
length of 20 km and a moment magnitude Mw of 6.5 or larger for the
1356 event. Their results from geomorphological and paleoseismological investigation at the Reinach fault suggest a dominant normal
faulting component without excluding strike-slip. However, applying the best regional stress-tensor proposed by Plenefisch & Bonjer
(1997) to the Reinach fault results in a mechanism with a dominant
left-lateral motion and a smaller normal component. Some recent
events in the area have purely normal faulting or purely strike-slip
style; others mix the two mechanisms (Kastrup et al. 2004). As
concluded by Ferry et al. (2005), the latter would not contradict the
Reinach fault hypothesis. Finally, does the Bruderholz scarp continue until the crystalline basement, or does it represent a secondary
fault of a partly or fully decoupled fault system (P. Huggenberger
2008, personal communication)? A landslide as proposed by Laubscher (Meyer 2006) is less reasonable because morphologies and
subsurface signatures are missing. Moreover, offset on the fault can
be observed in several trenches and construction pits over several
kilometers.
With the presently available data, it is not possible to clearly
decide which of the two large systems, the Rhenisch fault or the
Rhine-Bresse transfer zone, includes the 1356 fault. Moreover, the
two fault systems intersect in the area of the proposed epicenters,
and interaction of the fault systems has to be assumed.
Considering the quality of macroseismic information for the 1356
event, the problems related to the castle lists and the paucity of
historical and archaeological findings for southern Germany, it becomes evident that macroseismic information cannot define the
fault strike and its mechanisms. From the quantity and quality
of macroseismic information, we suggest that a fault region can
be drawn for the 1356 event. Considering the uncertainties, the
epicenter locations calculated from the revised macroseismic data
sets are consistent with the locations proposed by Meyer et al.
(1994), Lambert et al. (2005) and Bakun & Scotti (2006). Locations are also consistent with the location of the Reinach
fault proposed by Meghraoui et al. (2001) and the coordinates
given in the ECOS02 earthquake catalog (Swiss Seismological
Service 2008).
Estimates of the magnitude of the Basel event range from Ml =
6.2 (Levret et al. 1994; Lambert et al. 2005), intensity magnitude
Ml = 6.6 (Bakun & Scotti 2006) and our estimate Mw = 6.7 to
7.1. Bakun & Scotti (2006) applied an extension of the Bakun &
Wentworth (1997) method using bootstrap resampling techniques.
This procedure allowed them to quantify confidence levels for the
epicenter location and the magnitude. They propose a moment magnitude between 5.9 and 7.2 at 95 per cent (±2σ ) confidence level,
and between 6.2 and 6.7 at 67 per cent (±1) confidence level, with
a preferred magnitude of 6.6. They point out that the properties of
the attenuation model used are critical: they would obtain significantly larger magnitudes when using our ECOS attenuation model
for their estimates. We conclude that our magnitude estimate is
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369
Figure 10. Macroseismic field of the 1356 earthquake. The color of the point describes the intensity estimate; numbers depict the possible range from minimum
to maximum probable intensity. Italic numbers relate to intensity estimates where palaeoseismological investigations were used.
consistent with the values provided by Bakun & Scotti (2006),
and that additional work is required to investigate the properties
of macroseismic attenuation models in the Southern Rhine Graben
area. The magnitude proposed by Lambert et al. (2005) is also within
the error bounds proposed by Bakun & Scotti (2006), even with a
considerably lower magnitude than the other estimates. One reason
for this difference might be their use of the BOXER code developed
by Gasperini et al. (1999) for calibrating historical Italian earthquakes. Gasperini et al. (1999) used Italian macroseismic data for
calibration that are given in the MCS scale (Sieberg 1932). Although
this database is rather homogeneous for Italy, there may be differences at the border areas (Stucchi et al. 2007). The MCS scale
shows differences with the EMS (and MSK) scale, especially in the
intensity range between VII and IX. The values in MCS can be up to
one intensity unit higher than those expressed in the EMS scale describing the same earthquake effects. Such difference in scale might
explain the resulting small magnitude given in Lambert et al. (2005).
This calibration problem is being considered for updating of the
Swiss earthquake catalog. Reassessments of the calibration earthquakes by Braunmiller et al. (2005) and Bernardi et al. (2005) from
available digital and analog recordings have led to revisions in the
moment magnitude for some events. Moreover, the introduction of
additional calibration earthquakes will be addressed in a forthcoming study.
5 C O N C LU S I O N S
We have studied the 1356 Basel event with an interdisciplinary eye
by integrating findings from history, seismology, archaeology, pa2009 The Authors, GJI, 178, 351–374
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leoseismology and engineering. Our macroseismic assessment was
based on newly gained and known historical data contemporary
with the quake combined with archaeological investigation into extant buildings in Basel and its surroundings. Palaeoseismological
studies together with historical evidence made available some additional data points. The presented information provides a consistent
picture of the quake’s damage and consequences and allows us to
reconstruct the sequence of its stronger fore- and aftershocks. Our
results confirm that the Basel earthquake is central Europe’s most
destructive known seismic event.
The city of Basel has a wealth of archaeological information from
which we could statistically assess macroseismic intensity. Our result is a probable intensity IX. The database that was used for this
assessment reflects the information sample conserved today. Thus,
statistical values have to be validated in this respect. However, due
to our non-selective sampling of archaeological information, these
values reflect probable damage to the city of Basel. We reconstructed
for the city the whole spectrum: from completely destroyed buildings to only minor effects. Damage was clearly related to building
quality and its distribution reflects the geographical separation of
income classes. Engineering studies on two extant buildings with
several positive conceptual features suggested an estimated upper
bound for seismic excitation.
The resulting intensity data points are not distributed consistently
in the expected area of damage. The lack of historical and archaeological findings for southern Germany might result from archival
difficulties, a problem that future investigation might fix. Intensities
up to VIII are found within a radius of about 30 km. Intensity VII
can also be shown for the cities of Solothurn and Bern at epicentral
distances of 30 and 60 km, respectively.
370
D. Fäh et al.
Figure 11. Assessment of the epicenter location and magnitude of the Basel earthquake from macroseismic data points. The epicenter location provided by
the earthquake catalog of Switzerland (ECOS) is given as an open star; the new locations obtained with the different sub-data sets are given as filled stars. For
one example (data set b), the magnitude contours show the best fitting magnitude at each point (dotted lines), whereas the rms (Mm) contours (dashed lines)
show for each point the misfit to the macroseismic field. The epicenter location of SisFrance (Bureau de recherches géologiques et minières 2007), preferred
by Bakun & Scotti (2006), is given as a red star.
We consider our data improved by new information from both
historical and archeological investigation. This adding up resulted
in a more robust database and enhanced the macroseismic evaluation. Analysis of the macroseismic field confirms former assessments of the event and shows an epicenter located about 10
km south of Basel. From our study, the most probable range for
the moment magnitude Mw is between 6.7 and 7.1. After considering the quality of macroseismic information for the 1356
event and the lack of historical and archaeological findings for
southern Germany, we conclude that macroseismic information is
too sparse to provide data about the strike or mechanisms of the
fault.
Our interdisciplinary project offers access to a considerable
database for the 1356 earthquake. We hope it will enable future
work.
AC K N OW L E D G M E N T S
This research would not have been possible without the financial
support of the Cogito Foundation, the Swiss Federal Department of
Civil Protection and the city of Basel (‘Sicherheitsdepartement’).
We would like to thank Simon Aegerter, Christoph Werner, Rolf
Meyer, Marcial Lopez, Arnfried Becker, Werner Wild, Nico Deichmann and Domenico Giardini for supporting this project. We gratefully acknowledge Oona Scotti, David Baumont, Massimo Cocco,
Peter Huggenberger, an unknown reviewer and our English editor
Kathleen J. Jackson for helping to improve this work.
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APPENDIX
Manuscripts
AcSU:
Archives communales, Saint-Ursanne:
– Carton 25, 20 April 1388
ADCO: Archives Départementales Côte d’Or, Dijon:
– Ms. B 1402
– Ms. B 1405
– Ms. B 5306
ABoFoBS: Database, Archäologische Bodenforschung des
Kantons Basel-Stadt, (May 2008). Petersgraben 11,
CH-4001 Basel
StiBib. Eins. Stiftsbibliothek des Klosters Einsiedeln, Einsiedeln
– Ms. No 384: W. Schodoler, 1525/1604. Chronik
Eidgenössischer Geschichte (Abschrift)
Bib. Mun Col. Bibliotheque Municipal, Colmar
– Ms. No 349, fol 184v
– Ms. No 503
BSB: Bayerische Staatsbibliothek, München:
– Cgm 426: Handschriften, Konstanzer Weltchronik
DPF-BS: Basler Denkmalpflege, Basel-Stadt
– Bauforschung, Befunddossiers
EAFr: Erzbischöfliches Archiv Freiburg/Breisgau
– Ms Ha 583: Pater G. Baumeister, 18th c. Synopsis Annalium Monasterij S. Petri in nigra Silva
GLA: Generallandesarchiv, Karlsruhe:
– Ms. 5 Conv. 548. Perg. REX II 5462, 5453
PLNY:
Public Library, New York:
– Spencer 100, KO 29
StABL: Staatsarchiv, Basel-Landschaft:
– Urkunde 537
374
D. Fäh et al.
StABS: Staatsarchiv, Basel-Stadt:
– Domstifturkunden No 130, No III 41, No 99
– HGB Rheinsprung, Nachträge
– Ratsbücher A 1
– St. Alban E fol. 37
StASO: Staatsarchiv, Solothurn:
– Urkunde 1360 (September 28)
StASp: Stadtarchiv, Speyer:
– Inv.-Nr. 1A6, November 11, 1356: Speyrer Kleiderverordnung
UBBS: Universitätsbibliothek, Basel:
– Ms. E VI 26: Basler Chronik (Anfang des
fünfzehnten Jahrhunderts): Die Baseler Handschrift der
Repgauischen Chronik/Sächsische Weltchronik 1. Bair.
Forts. (erweiterte Fassung bis 1350) mit zahlreichen
Baseler Zusätzen, die bis zum Baseler Erdbeben vom
Oktober 1356 reichen)
ZSO: Zentralbibliothek, Solothurn:
– Ms. S II 18: F. J. Hermann (3. Viertel des 18. Jahrhunderts): Chronologische Notten zu Cantor Hermans
Geschichte der Schweiz und des Cantons Solothurn
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2009 The Authors, GJI, 178, 351–374
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