This was the strongest tremor that hit Italy in 36 years.
On Sunday, a third powerful earthquake hit Italy four days after quakes of 5.5 and 6.1 magnitude hit the same area and nine weeks after nearly 300 people died in an August 24 quake that devastated the tourist town of Amatrice at the peak of the holiday season.
The quake struck another painful blow to the rich artistic heritage of villages that dot the Apennine Mountains. The worst damage was reported in Norcia, a town in Umbria closest to the epicenter.
Italy's most powerful earthquake in 36 years dealt a new blow on Sunday to the country's seismically vulnerable heart, sending terrified residents fleeing for the third time in nine weeks and flattening a revered six-century-old church.
The earthquake which hit Italy in two months spared human life but struck at the nation's identity, destroying a Benedictine cathedral, a medieval tower and other beloved landmarks that had survived the earlier jolts across a mountainous region of small historic towns.
Italian Premier Matteo Renzi said the nation's "soul is disturbed" by the series of quakes.
Here are some of the photographs of devastation and an attempt at recovery.
(With agency inputs)
Also read: Powerful 6.6 magnitude quake hits Italian town Norcia
1. Damaged cemetery
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Coffins are seen in the collapsed cemetery of the village of Campi near Norcia, following an earthquake in central Italy. (Photo courtesy - Reuters)
2. Recovery in Norcia
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A woman speaks on the phone at a gathering point outside the centre of Norcia after a 6.6 magnitude earthquake on October 30, 2016. (Photo courtesy - AFP)
3. Deserted streets of Norcia
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Path Sertorio following a massive earthquake in the town of Norcia in Perugia, Italy. (Photo courtesy - Getty Images)
4. Town in ruins
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A general view of damaged buildings in the red zone in Trisungo, Arquqta del Tronto, following a massive earthquake. (Photo courtesy - Getty Images)
5. Town square of Norcia
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Firefighters working in the square San Benedetto da Norcia following the earthquake in Norcia. Although no-one died, there was huge damage. Weakened by repeated powerful jolts in recent weeks, many of Norcia's churches, monasteries and chapels were wrecked. (Photo courtesy - Getty Images)
6. Aerial view of Arquata del Tronto
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A general view of damaged buildings in Arquata del Tronto following the earthquake. (Photo courtesy - Getty Images)
7. Castelluccio di Norcia
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An aerial view of Castelluccio di Norcia the day after an earthquake hit central Italy. Italy's premier pledged Monday to find temporary housing for all those displaced by a series of powerful earthquakes in a central mountainous region, as the nation's strongest temblor in 36 years pushed those needing assistance to more than 15000 and some communities resisted relocation. (Photo courtesy - PTI)
8. Collapsed cemetery
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A coffin is seen in the collapsed cemetery of the village of Campi, Norcia. Italian Premier Matteo Renzi said the nation's "soul is disturbed" by the series of quakes, starting with the deadly earthquake at Amatrice that killed nearly 300 people, two back-to-back temblors on Oct 26, and the biggest of them all, a 6.6-magnitude quake that shook people out of bed originating at Norcia. It was the strongest quake to hit Italy in 36 years. (Photo courtesy - Reuters)
9. St Benedict's Cathedral
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St. Benedict's Cathedral in the ancient city of Norcia is seen following the earthquake. Closest to the epicenter was the ancient city of Norcia, the birthplace of St Benedict, the father of monasticism, and famed for its Benedictine monastery. Witnesses said the 14th century St. Benedict Cathedral collapsed in the quake, with only the facade still standing. (Photo courtesy - Reuters)
