Tsunami deposits in Martinique related to the 1755 Lisbon earthquake

Abstract. In order to assess tsunami hazard in oceanic islands, one needs to enlarge the observational time window by finding more evidence of past events. To that end, evidence of allochthonous deposits provides estimates of tsunami inundation, recurrence time and magnitude. However, in tropical islands, erosion due to the highly rainy climate generally prevents deposits to stay in place and when they are, relating them to a tsunami is not straightforward, as they can result either from a strong hurricane or from a tsunami. One notable exception concerns deposits sealed by subsequent events. In this paper, we present evidence of an anomalously thick two-layer tsunami deposit in an excavation in Martinique. Analysis of the archaeological remains indicate that it is related to the 1755 Lisbon tsunami. We explain the thickness of the deposit by a tsunami-induced bore in the mangrove drainage channels of Fort-de-France. Our results highlight the benefits of collaborative research involving geology and archaeology, indicate a way to improve our tsunami databases and further constrain the use of numerical modelling to predict paleo-tsunami deposit thickness.