The Colossus of Rhodes

Background

The island of Rhodes lies on part of the boundary between the Aegean Sea and African plates. The tectonic setting is complex, with a Neogene history that includes periods of thrusting, extension and strike slip. Currently the island is undergoing a counter-clockwise rotation (17°±5° in the last 800,000 years) associated with the south Aegean sinistral strike-slip fault system.[3] The island has also been tilted to the northwest during the Pleistocene, an uplift attributed to a reverse fault lying just to the east of Rhodes. The earthquake of c. 227 BC is associated with an uplift of >3.0 m and movement on this reverse fault is considered to be the likely causative mechanism for the event.[4] The epicentral location of this event is uncertain, with modern catalogues giving locations either near Rhodes city,[1] or just south of the island of Symi.[5]

Some catalogues suggest that this earthquake caused a significant tsunami.[5] However, a recent review of the evidence has found no clear association.[6]