A reappraisal of the Lurøy, Norway, earthquake of 31 August 1819 Päivi B. Mäntyniemi*, Mathilde B. Sørensen, Tatiana N. Tatevossian, Ruben E. Tatevossian, and Björn Lund *Corresponding author Institute of Seismology, Department of Geosciences and Geography, University of Helsinki, P.O. Box 68, FI-00014 Helsinki, Finland E-mail:
[email protected], telephone: +358 2941 51624 1 Abstract Archives and libraries were visited to find previously unknown documents testifying to the Lurøy, Norway, earthquake of 31 August 1819 in northernmost continental Europe. The focus here is on Sweden, Finland, and Russia, which are important for determining the area of perceptibility east of Norway. The new written sources include 12 notes or entries in original archived documents, six contemporary newspaper reports, and two recollections written down years later. The original documentation uncovered is contributory to establishing the authenticity of the observations in Finland and Sweden. The dates of the original documentation allow tracing of the dissemination of eyewitness accounts in writing from the inner area of perceptibility southward to the larger documentation and population centers. New sources of information include weather reports of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, minutes of its meetings, and correspondence sent to the Senate in Finland. The minutes of meetings of the Academy indicate that ample data were collected in the Swedish province of Västerbotten. We found no original Russian documentation, but uncovered national newspapers are more reliable than the previously used Parisian newspaper. To increase transparency we provide the first list of macroseismic data points (MDPs) including the respective documentation that testify to the Lurøy earthquake.