What was the historical tsunami at Potidaea in 479 BC?

The 479 BC Potidaea tsunami is recognized as the oldest recorded paleotsunami in human history. Triggered by a magnitude 7.0 earthquake in the north Aegean Sea, the wave struck the coast and destroyed a Persian army that was besieging the Greek colony of Potidaea. While the historian Herodotus attributed this catastrophic natural event to the divine wrath of Poseidon, later writers like Thucydides began connecting tsunamis directly to seismic activity.

What we know

• The 479 BC Potidaea tsunami is the oldest recorded paleotsunami in human history. [1, 2]
• The tsunami is believed to have been triggered by a magnitude 7.0 earthquake in the north Aegean Sea. [2]
• The natural disaster destroyed a Persian army from the Achaemenid Empire that was attacking the town of Potidaea. [2, 5]
• The historian Herodotus attributed the Potidaea tsunami to the divine wrath of Poseidon rather than a geological cause. [4]

Where to go next

• how we knowHow did Thucydides correctly explain the cause of tsunamis?
• whereWhen was the colony of Potidaea founded by Corinth?
• what caused itWhat magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck the north Aegean Sea?
• the bigger pictureHow are tsunamis listed in historical records worldwide?
• compared withHow did the Persian Empire interact with Greek city-states?
• an unexpected connectionHow did ancient historians differ on explaining natural disasters?While Herodotus blamed Poseidon's divine wrath for the 479 BC Potidaea tsunami, Thucydides correctly deduced just decades later that ocean earthquakes cause them.

Sources

• [1]479 BC Potidaea earthquake (Wikidata Q110640002) · CC0 1.0
• [2]479 BC Potidaea earthquake · CC BY-SA 4.0
• [3]Potidaea · CC BY-SA 4.0
• [4]426 BC Malian Gulf tsunami · CC BY-SA 4.0
• [5]List of tsunamis · CC BY-SA 4.0