The Origins of an Old Myth: : Sir Arthur Evans, Claude Schaeffer and the Seismic Destruction of Late Bronze Age Eastern Mediterranean Civilizations

In the history of earthquake archeology in the Mediterranean region, the names of Sir Arthur Evans (1851–1941) and Claude Schaeffer (1898–1982) have become intimately related to the formative stages of the discipline through their association with pioneering theories (cf. Evans, 1928; Schaeffer, 1948) regarding the effects of earthquakes on ancient societies (e.g., Stiros, 1996; Jones and Stiros, 2000; Buck, 2006; Sintubin, 2011). Although strong parallels exist between Evans’ (1928) archeological interpretations at Knossos (Crete, Greece; see Fig. 1 for location of archeological sites mentioned in the text) and Schaeffer’s (1948) fundamental principles, no evidence exists to date to support direct influence; nowhere in his work does Schaeffer (1948) refer to Evans’ (1928), Palace of Minos apart from discussing the chronological implications of “Minoan” (Cretan Bronze Age) material recovered from Near Eastern archeological contexts. Particularly, the source of Schaeffer’s (1948) fundamental premises for earthquake catastrophes remains unclear. These premises are: Figure 1. Location of archeological sites discussed in the text and Near Eastern “ grandes zones epicentrales ” according to Schaeffer (1948: plate 1). 1. Maiden Castle, 2. Knossos, 3. Akrotiri, 4. Tell el‐Amarna, 5. Enkomi, 6. Ugarit, 7. Ur. Unpublished documents from the personal archives and library of Claude Schaeffer, held by the Cyprus American Archaeological Research Institute (CAARI) in Nicosia, may shed some light on the intellectual relationship between Evans and Schaeffer and help us clarify the origin of Schaeffer’s (1948) core hypotheses. This issue bears relevance beyond the field of archeoseismology, since Schaeffer’s (1948, 1968) theory as expanded by Nur and Cline (2000) and Nur …

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