Story: Historic earthquakes

1888 earthquake rupture

1888 earthquake rupture

The land surface ruptured along the line of the Hope Fault, North Canterbury, where the ground moved upwards and sideways. The figure sitting with his back against the fault scarp gives an indication of the amount of vertical movement of the land behind him, which was considerably less than the horizontal offset.

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GNS Science
Reference: 4625
Photograph by Alexander McKay

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How to cite this page:

Eileen McSaveney, 'Historic earthquakes - The 1888 North Canterbury earthquake', Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, http://www.TeAra.govt.nz/en/photograph/4487/1888-earthquake-rupture (accessed 29 March 2024)

Story by Eileen McSaveney, published 12 Jun 2006, reviewed & revised 28 Mar 2011, updated 1 Nov 2017