BETWEEN 9 and 10am, on November 1, 1755, sheets of paper shuddered on the desk of a resident of Lisbon. Not long after: a loud cracking sound. Suddenly, the upper floor caved in. The woman ran outside, her breath choked up by the dust of rubble spewing out from all around her. The city lay in ruins. Screams were heard from every corner. She saw priests praying and churches crumbling.

In only six minutes, 30 churches had collapsed. And some