زلزلة سنة 597هـ
زلزلة سنة 597هـ
c. 1201 CE · c. 597 AH
The famine of 597 in Egypt when human flesh was sold, then in Sha'ban the great earthquake that struck most of the world — Abu Shama: a tenth of mankind died beneath the rubble, Nablus was razed, and the year's dead were counted at a million and a hundred thousand 1.
At a glance
- Era
- The Crusades, Ayyubids and Mamluks
- Region
- Egypt & Nile · Levant & Iraq
- Review
- Draft Completeness 2/5 · Help complete it
In time
Overview
The "Fragments of Gold" (Shadharat al-Dhahab) records for 597 AH a severe famine and death in the land of Egypt, then a great earthquake in Sha'ban, which it is said spread over most of the world. 1
What the Fragments transmits
Ibn al-Imad reports that the famine lasted to the middle of the year, and that human flesh was sold. He reports from Abu Shama that a tenth of the people died under the sand, and that Nablus was destroyed. He then says that the number of those who died that year was counted at eleven hundred thousand. 1
These are figures the source gives as they stand, and the method of counting them is not known. An additional source is needed.
Sources
- Shadharat al-Dhahab — Ibn al-Imad al-Hanbali, p. 809
Cite this page
islam.museum contributors. “زلزلة سنة 597هـ”. islam.museum, https://islam.museum/en/event/earthquake-597/. CC BY-SA 4.0. Accessed 2026-10-17.