There is some talk of people wishing to pack up and leave Christchurch, because of the uncertainty of more shakes. It is easy to understand this decision, even though we now know quite a bit about the process of tectonic movements and my guess is that these aftershocks will end soon for Christchurch, probably around the end of November. But in ancient times populations would also have packed quickly and left, deserting their cities after perhaps 1000 or so serious aftershocks, presumably surmising that the end of the world was nigh, or that the gods were punishing them. They would have wearied of the constant strain of apprehension, and the grieving if there was ongoing loss of life after the first initial disaster. There are many cities that appeared to have suffered this mass-desertion fate. The ancient city of Megiddo, also known as Armageddon, provides one example. Another may have been the collapse of the Harappan civilization in South Asia. The Harappan civilization mysteriously disappeared in 1900 BC, after almost 2,000 years of continuous existence. An earthquake has been blamed.
For interesting reading, and to show that the same sentiment must have arisen often in the past, Google "ancient cities deserted after earthquakes".
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