Thc Kushmur (Tur'shiz) 1903 .!Uni Torbut-c Hcidnriyeh 

(Sollth) 1923 cnrthqllukes in Centrnl Khornssnn (Irun) 

J. S. '1'CHAI,E:-KO ('l') 

Receivell on Selltembi'r 20th, 1972 

SU,IUIAltY. - Xi'W bibliographieal mlll fielll data ari' prt'st'nh,tl on 
two little·known earthquakes w]lieh OCCUlTPll in thc Khora~sml Province 
of Iran. The Kashmar {Turshiz} eaI'iltquake of 25 Fli'ptember 1003 dpstroyp,1 
part of the llI'escnt.day town of Ka~hmar anrl some SU!Tou)lllinp: villap:cs 
and killell 200 people. The Torllat·c lIeirlari:reh earthquake of 25 )Iny 1923 
dcstI'oyctl comilletdy ;) yillagcs south of Torllat·e IIcidariych and killi'd 
2,210 people. Both these i'arthquakes and a few o1hcr sllJUller on('s after 
1900 llI'csent the chal'aderistics of bcing 10cflÌcd on or near the nctive Do· 
l'uneh Fault, of having moderate magnitudes beiween il and 6. of being 
very shallow ant1 responsible for high intcnsitics restridctl to arcas less 
than lO km in maximum tlimension. 

RIASSL'NTO. - In qUi'stn nota sono riport.a1i nnovi dati ra('colti bi· 
bliograficnnJCntc c in loco concernenti due terr(,llloti 110eo ,"onosduti, n\'· 
venuti nella Provimia di Khorassan (Iran). Il te1'l'ellJOto (li Kashmar (Tur· 
shi?) dci 25 Settemhre IOn3 tliHtrusse parte della attuale cHti~ Ili KHslllllar 
e alcuni villaggi circostanti l'ausando la morto ,li 209 lll'rHone. Il tenelllOto 
di Torhat_e Heitlariyeh del 25 J\faggio 1023 (listru~se completamente cinque 
villaggi n sud dclla eitt:\ llrovocando la morti' Ili 2.219 pcrsone. Entrllmlli 
i tenemoti elI alcuni altri d'intensitil minore llopo il 1900, )lrcscntllno Ic 
seguenti cllratteristiehe: sono loeali?zati sulla o vicino alla fllglia attiva di 
Doruneh; hanno una magnitUll0 modcrata com)lrpSa fm ;) e 6; sono molto 
superficiali e di elevnta intensit:\: mcntre l'area mll['J'osismien interessata 
ò, nella sua massimH dimensione, in[erio!'C ai lO km. 

{*} Engineering Seismology. Imperial Collegc. London SW7 {Englnnd}. 



31J 

.1, - I:\' T Ronl."r:;T l o"ì 

l,l (;clIl'ml 

\"t'I',\' litUt, !ll'Cd,,~~ infol'llJation has lX' l'n I1n('ov(ll '~' d t,o dat.e on the 

ma Il,\' I!eli tl'llelive e:wt.lu I11 f1 kt'lI k lltl\\' ll t o havc o('e,111'}'t·t l i n Ihe K hol'-

a."fI:UI l'rovi lU'c (lf TI~ tn el. "hi.'i !:wk or in fol'ln u.ti u ll ii; Il:utic ular ly 
ll<' ute fOl' tlw l'cginni; fl,\\'ao)' from t ltc lal'I.'l.'S t pUlIulati o ll (,.,n trcs o r 

:\Ias lt ad a mi ~il; h;j.PIll· iII t. lt e nO l'lh limi Qain :u HI Hirj: u u l i n I-It e litlllth , 

anl l g l'ca l-l." im pt"l los t! 1() a ~ i;(\SS JJumt, oC I-he ('a d .\" r c:.r iona l HeiHmi ei t y 

or c as t Iran. Tn th e na~ht,- t~ Bayaz :ìlHl GOllltlJ:ul lH\sinll whie h wel'e 
II cY as1atml h,\' Ihe c!1l't-hquakt! or HHiK, ana il! tlt e Ka .. lllnal' anll Tol'-
h at -!' lIeillariych l'ogiol!, i t b unly aftlll' ahol1t H)OO t- ha.t t.he dala 

11 l'r'omes ~11{fi('icntly 1)l'lI('iSt, tll Ile IllIerl ill sei,~mol,(! rt,olliC' anl\ lIeill111ieity 
.'It1Hlil',~. In t be latt.cl' l 't~ :..d Oll in partieulal', rlC-lIpite n, l'ceon!el"1 legelld 
w hi ch mCllt,io li S fl't' llll l.'lIt tl c\, :l i; tatin g eaI'U1 1Iu :tkc>i ( ~) a lll i t,be III'I:'SC IU'C 

ur f,he m :ljlll' lIct ivc Jh' I ' un~h F n.ult, on l)' I WII Ilesll'll('t. ivt'- f\: 11't.hq llakc>i 
arc k llown iII a n)' tlel.,ai! , th e Ka s h m a l' (Tul'sh iz) e:.II"t. hj·lu a k c or .l!I03 
a ll i I t,he Turbat-e_ l1 (': ill;~l'i:r(!h (so ll t h) ea rt hq uake of 192:t Thesl~ t-wo 

evcnt,<; thns t ~j.ke on a SJll' (' ial impol't. ... n<'C il! ~ t,lLdit\!j u( l'~g-ion:ù se is-

lllidt~·, : ~11I1 it hN'um~'s e~lIential that they shullW he tloC'llme·n Ì('ll HS 
ae('.nratd~· 11$ po,~.<;ible , 

bliog'l'aphical allrl fl eIrl 

T h e present. llok .<;nmmal'i~efl .'Io nw new hi-
11 atn on t.lw~c two eal'thquaktl,~ anrl on sOllle 

kmHllel' cal'thqlmk(lJ) in thc )'eg-ion. 

'rl1(~ teet nni('s or tl w K ashmal'-Tor hat-e H e ill:n i," c h r egiOl I a rl:'-
Ilom illa\cti b,\' th c noruneh Fan lt" a majOl' (l l~'nl(' l! t. i n t.ht> st,nwtm't> 
or Iran, s e('olHl onl.\' in impol't.alH'e to tl w Zag'WIj j'Thl'mt" in tlle 

kO llthwest of t,lw couutr y, In t-he regi 011 eOll >iitl el'ec\ h e re, th e nOl'llnch 

:l<'ault il; lm)aIU,\' east·w()ljt, il! 11il'cet-ion anrl eOllcave towal'l\fI thc sollt,h 
(I!'ig, l ), Tt lIepal'ate>i tl le Kul l- e S11l'kh mOUlltail! l':\n:.rc i n t he nOl't,1t 
from t,lw !\. aVil'-(l X;lIllll k o ll.->;in in t !w Ijunth a H/l c l'USSC:> ove r most 
uf it-s le ng th UI:'Ci 'lI t, a tl ll t'out.c lllponu 'y lit'llinwnt fall fO l'nmt.i o ns. 

A rccellt fie lll ret'1J nn :dAAall('C tl1 t lll' l'tl/!iOl l fl1ll11 ll evi ,lcn~e that t ht, 
la·tt·s t, I li ~l ,la('t'mell ~ Oli t.ht,_ fa 11 1t were ]lI"etltlllli na llt ly Yt'-rt.i ca-I amI iII 

tll e fl ellflC- uC l']e- \' :~t.in:.r t.h(~ Ilurt.hcnl llluuntain hl o('k lI" it.h n 'lsl't'l't- tu 



T UE " MWll .l.1( (T t:RM IIZ) 1903 ,1:'; 0 n' IUUT- I-: II Klll All l rE U (l'OI,;TII) BT. 3 1 

l<'ig. - KA 9TD! AR·ToRlIAT.~: ll~IIl.\ltl\EII REmo:.;. 

l. RcgivlLS ll huve 1500 m: 2. Donm cll F:IUIt : 3. l i agnitllli c vC i!lii t,fu rnc ntall.\' 
Il cll!J'mi nO!I C1lr Ulq ullk es: -J . E picl' lItl',.1 l'c~rjon o f flcs trud.iv(l 1 ~ :lI' l-Il'l uakc: 
lu.tehed, v ill llges nffcetcIl ; f'roas· h:lldICII . vill llgcs co mlll ete l! .I estroyt'fl , 

tho ba,~ in (1 ! ), The readel' is ,,1.<;0 ['eiorre.t! tu Wellman (l~ ) awl (bnsser ( ~) 
f.)]' more informatiull 011 tllo tect o[)icll oI thc region. 

2, - IC,\SIBL\R ('rrnsIlIz) EAJI'I'llQl'A KF. , 1903 

2.1 DUC'III/!(' lIfn l s7t(}('h iII 19O:! (/1/(1 1.903 

A re\\' shoc.ks ll l'e kllO \\"1l fO I" t,he pre-in ll ll'IIJUf.'nt~l l l Wl'iod a s t!u>.r 
W\Jl'O l"o)Jo!'t,ed b y Alnll1-1.O\' (1 ), the J'u~~ia.fi militlll'Y f{O('f,OI' I·o~ ifl e.nt-

o 



32 .1. ~. TcnAI.E:\KO 

in 'l'ol'bat-('· Heillal'i.\'eh a.nd in chal'g'e o[ met.ereologieal, seismologie~1l 
a·nd intRlligmlf'1' information. 

20 ,Tnl'y, 1!J02: t;wo comeeutiye shoeks damagell ~ome honses n.bont 
'7 km nOl'tlnHst oi TOl'bat-e IIeilbl'iyeh in Un<1-e Majan. The 
sho('ks were not feH, in Torbn.t-e IIeidariyeh (1); 

10 ,Tn.nlUu'y, HJO:,; an eart.hquake oeenl're<1 n.t 13 10 18m IoeaI time and 
was felt with intensity IV (Rossi-Forl'eH) in 'forua.t,-e Heidal'iyeh. 
rt wa~ most. seyel't< in }lowIetabn.d 28 km east oi '['ol'ha.t,-e l-Il'itln.-
l'ireh, uut did not, ('anse any destnlCtions (~); 

Hl .Tune, Hl03: a slight shoek WllS fdt in TOl'bat-e IIeillal'iyeh (2); 

20 .Tune, HJ03: a sIight. shoek '\"a~ felt. in 'l'orlmt-n IIeilla.riyeh ( ~ ); 

21 June, 1!J03: two shoeks oeeuned at. OHh 138 m, the fh'st, 0I1e being 
of intensity Hl (H ossi Forl'eH) in '['ol'ha.t,-e l-Ieillal'iyeh (2); 

23 .Tune, Hl03: n.n 1'n.l'thqnake occurred a,t. :?3 h .t-8 m and was ielt with 
intensity Y (Hossi-ForreH) in 'l'ol'bat-e Heillal'iyeh, Tht< in-

hahitant.s ilell t.o t.he st.l'eet,~ (2); 

21 .Tune, Hl03: n. shopk was felt at 01 lo 03m (2). 

2.2 J((!.shma.j" (Tw'shiz) ca'i'thqwrJ.e, l[JO,~ 

The ea,l't.hquake oee\1lTell 011 the 25 St<ptember, I!J03 at 02 10 31 m 

IoeaI time u,lHI was tlesel'ilwll in <1etail by AImazov who visitel! the 
site shortIy after t,lte ev,mt, (:). lUs rqlOrt, given here in c;rt61lso, eons-
t.itutes the onIy eyewitness a.(·('onut o[ the event. and is prolmuly very 
a·epurate on most. of it·s points. The })resent-day t,own o[ Kashmal' 
was called '['nrshiz up to t.he lìrst llecades of t,he 20th centnl'y. 

"Turshiz,l'el'sia. "\t 2h :n m an ea.rthqua.ke oeelll'l'ell in the form 
o[ several abrupt. shoeks o[ whieh up t.o 20 were eount.el\. The llireetion 
oi the eal'thquake in the generaI opinion was from t,he nOl't,hwest, it,s 
lluration 25-30 seeolllls, its intf'nHit,y (I) IX. 'l'lw en.rthqun.ke pre-
eeded an undel'gl'ounll noise. After the ea,l'thqnake t.he water in t.he 
wells inel'en..<wtl, as wPll a·s in the qanats, espeeill,lly in t.he qanat. at, 
]r'ru[nfill, :2 verst.s (2) [rom Tlll'shiz, wlwl'e it was saill that the fiow 
of watel' tlouuled. Out of 1200 houses in Tlll'shiz (3) lmlf wel'e lles-
tl'oyed, abont ·100 wt<l'e seyerely damaged, ami the l'est. were slight.ly 



TUE KA~ r nrAn (TUI\SllIZ) l\lD3 A~1l TOnnAT_Jo; HEJJ)_\HI.Y~:1I (~OUTl[) ECC. 33 

rlama,ged, Homcs of ulIhakrrl anll mixl'd bri('b sul1'erPII mo,~t, H,nd 

tlrick waHf! malie of kiln hl'ickf! werc fr:wtnr('11 in pla('c~ but not dps-

t,roycd; in the mud houses generally the donwrl 1'00f8 whit'lI WPI'P 

usually ma,de of unhakerl hl'ickf\ l'ollapf\('d, thr annual layr.'r of ('Ia~' 

1 
81H'ea,r! on t,he roof anll which ilH'rea.'l('(1 ils thi('kncss 1111 lo l ., a['-
f\hill (4) heing pa,l't.ly l'csponsiblc for thif\ l'ollapse. 'l'Ili' sout-hprll pal't-

of t.he town anrl the nOI't.hea,~tern f\uhur'bs were particularly dama).;pd, 
a8 well a,s t.he nearesi- villages, 'rhe area- oi dCf\lrnption pxtrnr!('11 lo 
il, rarliuf\ of 20 vel'St,s wit-Ir the l'elitre at 'l'111'shiz, in tlll' wP,~t thp dps-
truct.ion cxt..enlling 1,0 3i) versts. 'l'lll'l'e i~ infOl'mat-ion tlra,t tl\(' ~lrol'k 

wa-f\ {elt in BijislrUl. \Val1s eollapsPl1 in ali directiollf\ (5), in sonw plar('s 
in one rlireet-ion, in othel' p!a('es in anotl\('l' rlil'ection, a,nrl pI~('whpl'(' 

yet in a,not.lrel' rlil'ection, hut- ncvel't.lrelesH, as if t.lw walls which 'n'l'P 

spal'ell were orienterl west or nort.hwcf\t, t.hus indicating tlu' dirpc1ion 
of t.he ea,l'tlrquake f\11Ol'k. 'rhe anfile wilh l'(',~peet. to thp horizonlal 

of the fiSf\1\res in the housef\ wcn, ap}lroximat('ly 90°. 'l'hp 1:.0\\'11 iH 

locaterl in a valley, in t·he north ti\(' monntain,~ are S vprf\t.~ ,Hmy, 

anrl in t.he sout.h 20 verst-s; in t.he northern monntains Q('clllTPd roel,-
falls of severa.! lnllll]retl pUI]S (6). 'l'hl' 80il iH loess, in plar('f\ mixpd 

\\'itll c!ay. 2."; vi11ages were def\t.roy('rl 01' al1"eet~'rl (7), 
During t.he time tha,t. I stayel] in 'l'mshiz lo collcd informa,lion 

on thi8 ea,rthquake, from t.he 2flt.h of Se]lt,pmber t-o the 7t-h Octo!WI', 

t.here werc up to 40 fi1'oIllHI sho('kf\. 'l'lrc f\t.rongcst o('('url'cll on t!w 
30th Sept.emher lIear snnf\et; it. lastell about ti sPcolld,~ and causerl thl' 
dCf\truction of some houses ili the to\\"n ami in f\omc 'villag'rf\; on that 

sa,me rla.y dnring the last- t.hree honrs there were six morI' shorks, 

(1) PresulJlahly in the Rossi FOlTe! st'a!c; 
(2) 1 versi = 1.06 km; 
(3) In 1894 the town Wil~ rleseribed a8 eovcrillg an areil of ilhout 1/2 km" 

and eontaining about 1200 hou8eR (Baumgarten, IS!HI); 
(4) 1 arshin = 71.12 CIII. 
(5) 'l'hiR ohvious!y rcfers to the town 01 'l'lll'Rhiz, a!ld lIot lo Biji~\.[\!l; 
(6) I ]1\1(1 = IG.38 kg; 

(7) 'l'hCi'e wel"e hetwecn 80 allli 120 villages in thc vkillity ()f Turshiz, 
with an averag-e of ahout GO hOll~e~ IleI" villag-e awl a tota!Ilopulation, ex· 
clurling: 'l'urshi?, of about 2·1,000 (Billlmgarten, IS!)()); 

(8) 'l'he pO]Julatioll of Turshi? was about GODO (BiluIIlgarten, ISHG); 
(9) The Iasi rellOl'tc(1 aftershoek was feIt in 'l'urshiz on Ihe 17th Ile· 

ccmhel" 1003 ahout 40 lllinutcs hefol"e 811nrise, 



.J. !<. TCIL\LEXKO 

thOllgh not strong (int,,'nsitiCf\ from [I f t.o Y), yet. distinetIy felt. (t.he 
ohsl'l"Ver~ at thi~ tilllP were either in 1l10vement or ~itting on t.lw floor). 
Alt.ogl'/her, tlw ~h()(~k~ during thi.~ (lay oeelllTed eitJwr at. Slinset. or 
~hor1ly aft,er. 100 people were kille(l in 1'mshiz (8), two having dil'(l 
the 1irst. !lay of their inju1"les; /here ,,"ere more than 100 injtued. In 
tl)(' villages (7) OIW eountp(l !H.l killed alHl Hil injml'd, Jmt there ,,"ere 
surl'ly more. (Y. ,\lmazov, Direetor of the Cent.er for MelUeaI Oh-
sl'Tyation in 1'orbat-e fIeillariyeh)". 

"Turbl/t-e Hei-r1ari!lrh, Persia. At 2" :!8 m thcrc O('CUlTCll an emth-
qualw whil'h laMmI 25 8e('01](ls. 1'lw liiredion of t.hc ca.Ithquakc ,,"ai'! 
in the o]linion of mOi'!t of the inhabitant~ from thc nortln\"e~t., and the 
illh!lli'!ity YI. The earthquake wa~ a.e.eolll}lanied hy a strong undcr-
grolln(l ~ouwl ,,"hieh star/ed about 5 seconlls before the earthquake 
al](l produ('cll at 1irst t.hc impression of a liistant. thlln(lm' a.lul nl1nhle 
of a stormo ])OOi":"1 aIHI "\"induws lmn,!!;"l'(l violently, !w(li'! swaye(l, a·nd 
the l'To('kery raUled. During this t.ime the car1h wai'! lllovin,!!;" in 1'nr-
shiz. Of the shocks that followe(l in TlIl"~hiz thc strongest oeelUTe(l 
011 thc 30th SPjJtl'll1[lI'r. Jt. W['i'! ali'!o fcH in Torhat-c lIeidariyeh, but 
not. so ~trongl.)". Dllring the night of the 10th t.o 11th Oct.oher at a·bout 
2l1' :-s'" there again oCC'UlTel! an pa.rthqllake of inteni'!ity ahollt. 1\' (9) 
(V. Alnmzoy, Dil"(l('t.Ol· of 1:lw Centre for ~le!li('al Ob~crvation.~)". 

lt Sl'mns likely t.1mt _-\Inmzoy did not Yi~it }lersonally thc yillagcs 
a.rOl!lHI TlIrshiz and that t1le arca of destruction whie1l 1Ie mcntions 
shoulil be intCl1lrcl"ed a·s tlw ,H"ca OV('l" whieh villages were alTeetell 
hy l!ama.ge of some sort allll'it. not. ne('essm'ily ~evere. The hOllsl's in 
the rC',!!;"ion, bcin,!!;" cntirely of a(lobe awl snn-Ilried bride, won1ll be 
nSSllrell a.t vcr.)" low intemities, but the small numher of casualties 
iII tl]('se villages sllggest.s that. com]Jlptely (,olhlJlSed hOllses were t.lw 
cxccption. 1'he easna.Ity Hgllre~ given are ]Jrobab!y ai'! l'elia.bIc ai'! 
eoulll ]lossibly hc obtained at thc time beeause Alnmzov's mission in 
'['mshiz wa~ t.he OI"ganizatioll of Ill('l!icltl relief allll aill from his hos-
}lital in Torbat-e IIcida.riyeh. Sykei'! who visited the tOWll ill ]fIO.! 
also note(l t.hat Turshiz "wfIerell considcrab!y dmin,!!;" thc ea.rthl!1Hl.}W 
of 1!W3, whi('h fOl"tunat.ely affected onIy a small arca" (11). 

;{. - TOHTlA'l'-E IIElllARIYElt (f;Ot:Tlt) EARTlIQU},Ji:E, .I!.l23 

Tlw earthquakc OeelllTe(l on t.he 25t.h May Hl23 at 2:!1\ 21'" GMT 
(2\i May 1923 at 021\ 21 n1 loea! tilllc) a.mI i~ llottribut{;ll a· ma.gnitlllle 



l 
\'~Il\I, ... ill~ lwtwN'n ,')" Illld li (~, I) . Tìu" fid(L stUfli('~ 1'('110I'tCI[ lwlow 

Juwc csta blishcIl that t,he cpiecnt l'al l'egioll WHS ('(>lll'Cl'c.1 about 8 km 
SO llthW (>Rt. of TOl'bat,· e 1I1!irbll'iyeh. ('()ntI'Hl'~' to th c iIHli('at,i()n~ oI 
~cveml eal't.hqllake catalolinll'~ , [Bit·hE."l'jO( (In), l'ClleatPI! h~' H(>ZilnOy ("), 
allll ot.l ll'l's ], thc town it'4(> l! W;l ~ !lot. all'ecte!! allli .!ill Ilot .~ ull' el· all~' 
ca'.m:\I t.ic.<;. !-fowcvCl', l~S 111 1\ e,"c llt. ii; :ùn·lul:.' knOWIl il ", IIIC " Torhat-e 
IIeidar iyeh carthqU:lkf''', tilis Il li nte w ill lH> rcklilwd ilere with Ihe 
:HI.li tiOI! of "80Ilth" to itulicatl~ that· f,he earthqU:lkc :l ll't'c tt •• ! :I n'/.dull 
$tm UI of t,}1t~ tOWll. 

Fig . .2 - RUlllòs O F QAI .'E II sow V1f.L.\~E DE STROYI!:P l\l" TIl Yo )!) 2 3 E AIITII· 
Q.UA liE. 

'l'he villn).:"c wa~ at the HOlltl1(J:l~t.cnl Iimi1. (lf the elJic cutm l rcgioll all(l wa~ 
only }Hll't.inlly <lcstl'oycù. Th c hotl~(,11 whith SUl'vivc<l and III'C s till illhahited 
IO.JI:1Y ('H II he seell in t.h o hn c k!{l'otm<l. 

The min s oi some of Uw Il clItroyCl"1 v iUages are IjWI vi siblc to-day 
(~'ig. 2) allli man )" or t.ll e lIl1I 'Vivol'l! a l'e stili livin~ in t h(\ r4'i,.'ion ami 
Cll.11 rcculln t the (11·t~lils 01 t hc evcnt. B.y CllISS- r C rl'l'(! UCe l)(>twll(' n the 
.lilt cre llt villages :lllli compal'isun lrith the occas iom~1 COI!t<>m]>Or.lJ]" 
lJl'C ~S l'HlJOl't, t,hl' reliahili ty or t.hi ~ information W!\-" gcne11l11y IOlllHl 



.T. S. TC II.-I. LE">KO 

to be high. The epi('cntral rl'hfÌon was Iocatcù along) a.nù south of, 
the J)ol'1ll1eh Valllt, a.nù incIuùcd il yillagcf! which werc COml)letely 
deHtl'Oyerl: Ifoz Sorkh (forme!'ly )Iurtazayil'h), Gujll (formcrly Kuzan), 
Khnrg, 'l'aghiabatl and Kaj Da.rakht. ("Fig. 3). The rlestrllction dccre-
a.f!cII ]'apidIy fliway [rom thif! region: in Buriabad, nlflony houses eol-
lapscù, but the l\losq1H' still stal1lLing tO-llay suffered pmct.ically no 
liamage at. all, a.I1II in Qal'eh Sow ollIy one haIf of thc houscs neerled 
reconHtruetion (Fig. 2). In Slmdmchr, onIy a. few houscs eollapseù 
l'ompletPly evcn though the village was eventually rcsct. south of its 
originaI l)osit.ion. Casllaltics allli approximatc l)Opula.tions of the 
time for theHe villagef!, a8 rememhcrcù by thc sun..-iving inh abitanh, 

were fIoS follows: 

Boy. Sol'l{1l (:ì\lurt.a.zavich) killcI} 170 l)OPuIa.t.ion 300 

Guju (Kuzan) 300 'TOO 

Khlll'g 110 :300 

Ka.,j Darakht 'TO 175 

Bul'Ìahatl 64 GOO ' 

QaI'eh Sow 8 100 

Shaùmchr :37 650 

'l'hc fIo bove list is not eomplete as some of the .. -illageH al'Ollll(1 the 
Cl)icentra.l rpgion wcrc not vi,o,itcd a,ml othcrs l)rOùuecd ilH'omif!tcnt 
]'esuItH whieh werc not considered sufficicntly rcIùloblc. Furthermorc, 
a few villages a.re to-ùa.y no Ionger inhahiteù (eg. Taghiabaù), anrl 
otllers 'which hea.r multiple na.mes (eg. iloz Sorkh-Murta.zavieh-Sa-
Ilmha.ll) may indicate tlla,t after 1923 somc villfloges wcre regrollpcd 
ra,tllcr tlmn rebuilt inrliviùually. In view o[ these considcrations, 
the offidaI figUl'e of :3,219 killell a.nd 170 severely injm'erl given at 
thc time by thc GO\'crnor Gencral sccmH ren..'JonahIe a.11I1 moreover 
corresponds t.o thc impression gained from contl'mpor flo ry news 
report.s (l~). 

'l'hc cxtent of the area. where Ilama.ged occurrcrl can be deHncri 
quit.e accurateIy a nù docf! not cxcccii lO km fl'Om ea.st to west all(I 
5 km [rom north to south (Figs. 3 al1l1 4). (Jutsiùc thi,o, a,rea, damn.gc 
"\H1f! inf!ignific~mt or nil; Z;a.nueh, Zarmihr, Z;allimbaù ami Islmnda,rabad, 
sihmtell rcspectively lIorthwcHt, WI'Ht, sout.hwest lmù 80uth Slmdmehr 
a,nù alI lcss than lO km a.way Irom thi,o, village, were 1)]·a.ctica.lly un-
aiIected. Similarly, .Alahahad, Hituated about lO km sOlltheast of 



• 1 02 !;;i;l3 _ I. _ 5 ...----6 ,.., 7 .. /8 0-4 ' • .. 
Fig. ::I - El'ICE!'Tl\,\L REGIO", OF TIIE 'l'ORBAT-E lIEJl)ARIYEII (~OUTtr) IDZ::! }~ARrHQUA"g. 

1) Villag() \lest.roycd or dmnagct1: 2) M l hut \lIlinhahitpt1 io-rlay: 3) apPl'oximate region of tol,HI rlcstrlll'tioll: 
4) fault: 5) youngest fault iT:lec: 6) ghcam 1wl1: il ~!aslliHl-Bif(lj:lllt1 ront1: Xl 'Innat. 



.J. ~. TCIIALESKO 

Qal'eh :\ow, and, a~ already mentioned, Torba.t-e Heidariyeh, ,,-ere 
lllldamage(l. 

J~xCel)t fol' a· HinJ{le unconfirmed l'e]Hll'Ì. of liHflurefl neal' Kaj D a -
mkht, no ea,~e,~ of W'OU1Hl fmetlll'itlg of any kind were notiee(l at t.he 
time by the inlmbitants, Vlow in the (janf\Ì,S waH Ilowever cotlsistent.ly 
repol'ted as haYing significantIy inrrea,setl, in pal'ticular in Burialmtl, 
1-' Oli i'iorkll, Khurg and G-uju, In lskatldamlmd, a qanat ,,-hich !md 
been dry for some time befOl'e t.he eart.hquake, ,~tart.c(! flowing a.gain. 

4, - EAR1'IIQUAKR OF TT-IR i) OCTmmR, 1962 

.. \fter 1923, otlly one eart.hqlla.ke is known t.o haye rf\nsetl Home 
de~tl'urtion in tlle rejlion,~ rro~Hrd by the DOl'uneh Fault. It. orclll'l'ed 
on tlle 5 October, 1962 aIHl the illHtrumelltal el)icentre was locatcd 
sont.h of the Fanlt. and a.bout mid-wa.y between the 1903 ,W(! the 1923 
event~ (Fig. 1); the m agtlitude was est,imated at 5. 'l'he yillages of 
Alllnatlabu.l, Malnnalad aIHl Rizteh (!) flitllat.cd in a l'egion abont 
10 km south of the instl'llmentally tletel'minetl epicentre \Vere ~eyel'ely 
da,mage(!. 6 ]1eo]11e were kille(! and 3 injured, most of tlle pOlmlation 

Fig. 4 - 1923 1.;r!CESTRAI. REGIOK SEE'\ FRO~[ ~'IIE EA~T. 

'l'hc ncal'cst villagc (lcH) is Burialmd amI the furthest, Kaj Darakht. 'l'hc 
fauH 7.OIlC lm~Bc~ cast (l'i;.:ht) of thc hill hchind !Caj Daral,ht, and ('rossc~ 
Lhe Sllast Darreh floolllJlain towards the cCllll'c-l'ight ellgc o( the photogrnllh. 



TH}: KASIDfAIl. (TURSI!IZ) 1003 .iND TORBAT·}: IIEIDAlHYEIf (SOl'TU) ECC. 3D 

Imving apparently been forewHrnel1 by a fOl'l'shock nhout 3 minutes 
before the lllain shock (a). 

3. - CO::'\OLUDI::'\G RFDIARKf'> 

The 1903 all(1 1923 ea.rthquakcs have several points in COllllllOlI. 
They ea·eh afIectcII small arcas sihmt.ell a.long, antl illlmetliately south 
or, the noruneh fil.111t, imI l probably not exceeding ahont 10 km in 
large~t. Ilimension. Epieentra.J intensities were high in thefle areHS 
even though the magnit.utles were only moderate (;).5 to lì in the 
1923 earthquake) illllieating very f\hallow hypocl'ntres. 'flw shoeks 
neal' 'forba.t·e Heidariyeh in HI02 and 1903, and the earthquake or 
19ti2 alf\o atIeded very loealizetl a.rei "<;, anll the other instrl1mentally 
tletermined earthql1alces in the region are an or ma.gnit.lllle ti or I1ntler, 
,dth one exception on 4 May 1940 '\'it,!l magnihuIe IJ.;) (Fig. 1). 
:More Ila.ta on Ilre·1900 earthquakes is howeyer reql1irel[ to esta.blish 
'\'hether tllis tn1e of earthqlla-ke whieh seems to be C'lmmetel'istic fol' 
the region dul'ing the 20th eentnry alf\o llrevailell Illlring eadier times. 

AOKl'OWLEDGEME.:\''l'S 

'l'he fielll '\'ork re})orted here Wi "<; nnllerta.ken i>8 part of li joint. 
project between the University of Mashatl antl the Engineering Heis-
mology sect.iclll, Imperial College, the latteI' being supported for this 
work hy il gmnt frOlll the National Environmental Research COUlH'il, 
I,ondon. :Many tliseussions in the field amI offiee ,dth )1. Berberian 
of the Geologieal Smvey of Ira.n, allll Il. Belumdi or t.he Uniypr.~ity 
of l\Iaf\hall, with whom a generalreeonnaissanee of tlw eastern Doruneh 
Fault W11.S underbken il.lld pllhlishetl (f\ee Her{')'ences), amI ,\"ith A. 
lI Iohajer·Asjai, were ai- the Ol'igin or the st.ndy llresentetl here. 

REPEREKCEH 

(I) AUIAZOV V., HlU-l-. _ :;pi~nk zClllletTiH~t'lIii, H102. Izy. l'ost. 'J'sclIt.nd. 
i'iCi8111. KOlll, l, Il. 112, St. l'etcl'sbUl'g. 

e) AL~IAZOV V., 1905. - Spiso!;: zellllctriasl'nii, 1903. by. Posto 'l'spnh'al. 
:5cism. KOlll, 2. pp. 14, 11-1-, 115, 157, 15,'\, 232. M. l'etcrslJ1lI'g'. 



40 .1. s. 'rCIlALl;;~KO 

(' l A)IIl[{'\~EYS X. X., I!Hi3. - 'l'hl' Huyin Zarn (Iran) l'artl/quakc 01 Be})-
I('mbe/" IV/;:!: (/ jìelll repor/. "Bull. R.eiSlll. Sor. Am.", 53, 4, pp. 705·740. 

(' l .bIHIUHn:s X. X. awl 'l'CJIALEXKO ,r. S., 1!)(j!J. - The Dahst·e })ayaz 
(lmu) cl1rlhqlwkl' Dj AlIgu,r 31, 1905: a fie/II repart. "13nll. SciSIll. 
~O(·. ,\111,", 59, ,:i. pp. 17,31-17!J2. 

(~ ) ,\'l'LAS l';';i:iH, lDH2. - ... lllas o/ l'(/Tlh.(lU(/ke~ in the FSSE. "Arml. Sci. 
l'::;::;U'' HHi2 {in russiiln}. 

(" ) (:A>,;SSEH A., IllUD. - 'l'hl' laTge l'ar/hq/wkl's 01 Iran allli I1I1'i1" ffl'%lJical 
trii/ne. "Edog-ac (:('01. Jllcv,", 59, pp. 4.,1-3·46fi, 

(' ) LE i:)TRA"Gt: G., HlO;j. - Thc 1,(//1.118 01 lite E(!s(ern ()nliphntc. "Fl'ilnk 
l'asi> !1IH! CO. LM.· Lund"ll, 31'(] illlpressioll J !J(j(j, pp. 530, 

(~ ) ):1AJlAVI S., H172. - .'i'he SeiHmicily DJ Iran, M. Sco Thcsis, l~nivcrsit.y or 
I,OIl!!OIl. 

(' ) Ih:zA;<;ov L A., lO;;!). - 'l"edo/tics anli 80ismici/y 01 Iho 'l"urlancllo-jllw-
ra~s(u1 .l/ounllli/Is, ",\('11(1. i:ici. U;-;;-;H", )!oseow lO;")!), pp. 246. 

(IU ) SmllEm; Z., 1032. - DiI' Erdbl'llon, in "B. Gutenbcrg's T1an,lhuch ,ICI" 
Geophysk", 4, E,l. G. BOI"ntrueger. 

( li ) i:iYlo:s l'. :'1.,101 J. -.t si.rlli journey in Persia. "Gcogr . .T.", 37, llP. J4!J-
165. 

( I~ J 'l'CIIAU::"KO .I. S., BElll\ERlA~ .\1. ali!! BElIZADI H., 1!)73. - Hcismic ami 
geomorphic evidl'lIcc 01 recO/II ae/Illily DI/. Ilio IJor1tlleh Fmllt (Inm) . 
• 'l'(l('.tonophy.~ks . , ili 1H(lRS. 

(l~ ) 'IlIE 'InlES, LOlHlon, AllahalHul cOlTeSpOIHlcnt .. 2 .IUllC 1!J23 ali!! li .TUilI.' 
l U23. 

( lO) \VELU1A" II. \V., 1%6. - Actiue Il"TI'IICh Ialdls 01 Iron. Atg/wllùlal/. allli 
l'akh/tw. "Geol. H1I!l(IR(~hau", 55, pp. 716-735.