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Archaeological evidence for Roman-age faulting in central-northern Sicily; possible effects of coseismic deformation

Giovanni Barreca, Maria Serafina Barbano, Serafina Carbone and Carmelo Monaco
Archaeological evidence for Roman-age faulting in central-northern Sicily; possible effects of coseismic deformation (in Ancient earthquakes, Manuel Sintubin (editor), Iain S. Stewart (editor), Tina M. Niemi (editor) and Erhan Altunel (editor))
Special Paper - Geological Society of America (2010) 471: 223-232

Abstract

We analyzed displacement on man-made structures and destructive effects on the ancient Roman community in two archaeological sites located on the southern Madonie Mountains, central-northern Sicily. At the archaeological site of Mount Alburchia, a votive niche of the Late Roman period is offset approximately 15 cm by a NNW-SSE-striking normal fault belonging to a NNW-SSE-trending en-echelon system related to an E-W-oriented regional shear zone. Structural analysis of deformed conglomerates suggests a coseismic origin of displacement. At the Gangi Vecchio archaeological site, 3 km northeast of Mount Alburchia, the prevalence of pottery pieces and coins dated from the fourth century B.C. to the fourth century A.D. and a sudden decrease of evidence of human activity at the end of the fourth century A.D. have been emphasized by archaeologists. Furthermore, recent archaeological excavations have revealed a Roman-age grave where remains of some women and children are mixed. Because ancient Romans usually did not use common burial, this could be related to an unexpected natural disaster. This event was conceivably a strong earthquake that probably occurred in the Late Roman period. An analysis of historical catalogs suggests that this event could be referred to the A.D. 361 earthquake, the epicenter of which, in central Sicily, is poorly defined. Our data represent a first step for the relocation of this seismic event northward in the Madonie Mountains area.


ISSN: 0072-1077
EISSN: 2331-219X
Coden: GSAPAZ
Serial Title: Special Paper - Geological Society of America
Serial Volume: 471
Title: Archaeological evidence for Roman-age faulting in central-northern Sicily; possible effects of coseismic deformation
Title: Ancient earthquakes
Author(s): Barreca, GiovanniBarbano, Maria SerafinaCarbone, SerafinaMonaco, Carmelo
Author(s): Sintubin, Manueleditor
Author(s): Stewart, Iain S.editor
Author(s): Niemi, Tina M.editor
Author(s): Altunel, Erhaneditor
Affiliation: University of Catania, Department of Geological Sciences, Catania, Italy
Affiliation: Katholieke Univesiteit Leuven, Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Leuven, Belgium
Pages: 223-232
Published: 2010
Text Language: English
Publisher: Geological Society of America (GSA), Boulder, CO, United States
References: 52
Accession Number: 2011-015772
Categories: Quaternary geologySeismology
Document Type: Serial
Bibliographic Level: Analytic
Illustration Description: illus. incl. geol. sketch maps
N36°45'00" - N38°15'00", E12°00'00" - E15°00'00"
Secondary Affiliation: University of Plymouth, GBR, United KingdomUniversity of Missouri-Kansas City, USA, United StatesEskisehir Osmangazi University, TUR, Turkey
Country of Publication: United States
Secondary Affiliation: GeoRef, Copyright 2017, American Geosciences Institute. Reference includes data supplied by the Geological Society of America, Boulder, CO, United States
Update Code: 201110

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