Witness Account of the Apocalypse When Hit by a 100-Metre Tsunami

History records one of the most devastating disasters ever to occur in the Nusantara archipelago took place in Ambon in the 17th century. The event was captured through the testimony of a German naturalist working for the VOC, George Eberhard Rumphius. Rumphius arrived in Ambon in 1653 after a long sea voyage from Europe. He was initially assigned as a soldier to help guard the VOC’s territorial claims while supporting the spice trade, which was the primary commodity at the time. However, his interest in nature and the lives of the local community meant he spent more time making observations than carrying out military duties. This situation led the VOC to transfer him to a civilian post, which gave him broader scope to research the Ambon environment. From these observations, a number of important notes were born, later compiled in his monumental work, Herbarium Amboinense. In it, Rumphius not only wrote about flora and fauna but also recorded his experience of witnessing the natural disaster that shook Ambon on 17 February 1674. That day, Rumphius worked as usual from sunrise to sunset. There were no suspicious natural signs until night fell. At around 7:30 pm local time, the atmosphere suddenly changed. Although there was no wind or rain, the bells in Fort Victoria moved and rang by themselves. Shortly after, the ground began to shake violently. ‘People fell as the land moved up and down like the sea. As soon as the earthquake started shaking, the entire garrison, except for a few people trapped on the ramparts, retreated to the field below the fort,’ Rumphius recounted. They ran towards the open field hoping to save themselves. However, the location turned into a danger zone when seawater suddenly surged onto the land. Panic was unavoidable as residents tried to find higher ground. ‘The water was so high that it surpassed the tops of houses and swept the village clean. Coral rocks were stranded far from the shore,’ Rumphius recalled. The man, born 1 November 1627, was one of the few who managed to save himself by running to higher areas. Conversely, a total of 2,322 people in Ambon and Seram Island were reported dead due to building rubble and the surge of sea waves. Among the victims were Rumphius’s wife and daughter. Centuries later, Rumphius’s notes became an important source in uncovering the history of disasters in Indonesia. The Meteorology, Climatology, and Geophysics Agency (BMKG) calls the event the oldest documented tsunami record in the archipelago. Modern research estimates the earthquake that triggered the disaster had a magnitude of around 7.9. Its impact came not only from the strong vibrations that destroyed buildings but also triggered another geological phenomenon that worsened the damage. The earthquake caused the ground in Ambon to experience liquefaction—the loss of soil strength due to seismic vibrations. The earth swallowed everything on top of it. This aligns with Rumphius’s testimony describing the ground moving up and down like sea waves. Meanwhile, the tsunami that occurred is estimated to have reached a height of up to 100 metres. According to BMKG, the giant wave was not solely triggered by the earthquake but was also a result of coastal landslides that occurred after the tremors. Thus, the 1674 Ambon Tsunami serves as evidence that landslides are a critically important source of tsunami hazard in Indonesia. Many modern-era tsunami events are also triggered by a combination of earthquakes and coastal landslides. For this reason, the 1674 Ambon Tsunami, which generated waves around 100 metres high, is believed to be one of the largest tsunamis ever recorded in the history of the archipelago.