Abstract

Recent seismic catalogues include a surprisingly high number of earthquakes and tsunamis in the Iberian Peninsula during antiquity. The Monarchia Lusytana (1597-1609) by the Portuguese historian Bernardo de Brito is identified in this essay as the primary source for the catastrophic events dated between the Second Punic War and late antiquity in those catalogues. Brito includes catastrophic episodes in 216 BC, 63 BC, 55 BC, 47 BC, 33 CE and c. 365 CE. Greek and Roman references for some of these catastrophic events are revised, the role played by spurious sources, such as Laimundo Ortega and Pedro Aladio, is addressed, and the purpose and function of these cataclysms within the Monarchia Lusytana is discussed.

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