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Continuation of History of the Patriarchs of Alexandria by Michael the Bishop of Tannis

Background and Biography
Background and Biography

Excerpts
English

In these days, there was the King Az-Zahir 1'‘Izazi dini' Hah and his name was Abu'l-Hasan [A. D. 1021-1036] and the wazir at that time (was) ‘Ali ibn Ahmad al-Gargani, and the administrator in the Rif (was) ‘Ali ibn Hadid, and he was of great ill-repute. He filled the prisons with people, men and women, so that pregnant women brought forth in the prisons.

There appeared in those days, in the land of Palestine a wonder (which) was that two mountains in the district of Paneas1 met together and fire came out from between them at their meeting together, and many trees were burnt, and a large part of the sea dried up so that men took up fish from the land which was uncovered, and they found in it (the land) lead and iron and many things. Then the sea returned to what it was before2.
Footnotes

1 i.e. Caesarea Paneas or Caesarea Philippi.

2 Cf. E. A. Wallis Budge, The Chronography of Gregory Abu l'-Farag (Barhebraeus), London, 1932, vol. 1, p. 194.

Chronology

The earthquake account above is within the section for Pope Shenouda II of Alexandria who ruled held the Apostolic Throne from 13 December 1032 – 29 October 1046 CE. There is also some chronological information that can be derived from the two sentences preceding the discussion of the two mountains. This information restricts the date of the events described to 13 December 1032 - 13 June 1036 CE and is summarized in the table below.
Date Range Personage
13 December 1032 – 29 October 1046 CE Coptic Pope Shenouda II of Alexandria
13 February 1021 – 13 June 1036 CE Fatimid Caliph Al-Zahir li-i'zaz Din Allah known as Abu'l-Hasan
1027 CE - March 1045 CE Wazir ‘Ali ibn Ahmad al-Gargani
? administrator in the Rif ‘Ali ibn Hadid
Seismic Effects
  • two mountains in the district of Paneas met together and fire came out from between them at their meeting together, and many trees were burnt
  • a large part of the sea dried up so that men took up fish from the land which was uncovered, and they found in it (the land) lead and iron and many things. Then the sea returned to what it was before
Locations
  • district of Paneas
  • the sea
Online Versions and Further Reading
References