The Lost City of Atlantis: Facts and Myths About the City

According to the ancient Greek philosopher Plato, Atlantis existed 9,000 years before his time.

The mystery of Atlantis still attracts the attention of explorers today. One thing is certain: people are still curious to know more, which has led to multiple speculations about the lost city.

The world is full of mysteries, and despite the remarkable progress of science, humans are still ignorant of many aspects of their surroundings.

The ocean is the birthplace of many myths, mysteries, and legends, and it seems even stranger to us than the land we live on. While science has explained many mysteries, some remain unsolved.

The fascinating world of the ocean includes hidden treasures, lost cities, and mysterious ships. Among all the mysteries, the lost city of Atlantis tops the list.

One of the greatest and oldest mysteries, the lost city of Atlantis, was first mentioned by the ancient Greek philosopher Plato in his works Timaeus and Critias around 360 BC.

According to Plato, the ideal island kingdom existed for 9,000 years before his time and mysteriously disappeared one day. The city was mysterious and fascinating and hailed as a place where all the world’s pleasures were displayed.

Despite years of searching, the true truth of the lost city has yet to be discovered, which only strengthens the folklore associated with it. Read on to discover interesting facts and legends about the city.

Was the Lost City of Atlantis real?

In Plato’s story of Atlantis, the founders of the lost city were demigods and semi-humans who created a perfect civilisation and rose to become a great naval power. Their habitat consisted of concentric islands separated by deep moats and connected by a waterway running through the middle. The fertile islands were home to a wealth of rare wildlife and were a source of silver, gold and other precious metals. The middle island had a great capital city.

Today, the lost city of Atlantis is seen as a peaceful utopia. Still, archaeology professor Ken Feder said it was more like a technologically advanced but “morally bankrupt” evil kingdom that sought “world control by force,” according to Live Science.

Few experts believe Atlantis was a real place. Robert Ballard, National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence who discovered the wreck of the Titanic in 1985, said, “The Atlantis myth makes sense given historical events of volcanic eruptions and catastrophic floods, one of which is somewhat similar to the story of the destruction of the city of Atlantis.”

The Aegean island of Santorini, located near Greece, was destroyed by a major volcanic eruption about 3,600 years ago. Santorini was the birthplace of the then highly advanced Minoan civilisation. Around the same time as the volcanic eruption, Minoan society suddenly disappeared.

However, Ballard does not believe that Santorini is Atlantis, as the island’s volcanic eruption did not occur simultaneously, as Plato claimed that Atlantis was destroyed.

On the other hand, James Romm, a Bard College in Annandale, New York professor, claims that Plato wrote the allegory to illustrate some of his philosophical theories, particularly his vision of an ideal society.

Where is the mysterious city of Atlantis located?

The biggest question that puzzles scientists is, “Where is the Atlantic Ocean located?” The city is believed to have sunk into the sea during a tsunami or earthquake. According to Plato, Atlantis was a large island near the Rock of Gibraltar with a Poseidon statue, concentric canals, and city walls.

Plato noted that the underwater city must be in the Atlantic Ocean. However, no such city has been discovered on the seafloor using technological means.

Many theories claim that Atlantis is located off the coast of Spain in the Mediterranean Sea, but others claim that it may be located beneath Antarctica. For a long time, the Azores were believed to be the site of the lost city of Atlantis.

However, new research has revealed a whole new location, and scientists believe Atlantis may have been located in Cadiz, between the waters of Spain and Morocco.

“Pick a place on a map and someone will say Atlantis is there. Every place you can imagine,” Charles Orser, curator of history at the New York State Museum in Albany, told National Geographic.

Unknown size of the lost city of Atlantis

Plato wrote: “The ocean was navigable at that time; and in front of the mouth of the river, which you Greeks call the ‘Pillars of Hercules’, there was an island larger than Libya and Asia put together.”

Early Christian writer Tertullian believed that Atlantis once lived in the Atlantic Ocean. He agreed with Plato that the island would have been larger than today’s Asia and Libya combined.

Due to numerous proposals to build the city of Atlantis in the Mediterranean, people began to measure the size of the city on Crete, the largest Greek island.

However, many stories after Plato’s time refer to Atlantis as a giant city, but do not give any precise dimensions. American Christian mystic Edgar Cayce believed that Atlantis and Eurasia were similar in size.

Who built the city of Atlantis?

Legend has it that Poseidon – the god of storms, seas, and earthquakes – built the city of Atlantis after falling in love with the human lady Cleto. He built this castle-like city on a remote island in the ocean, which he called Atlantis, to protect it.

According to legend, Poseidon traveled worldwide in search of the largest island. When he arrived at Atlantis, the largest of them all, he found that the island’s inhabitants were more charming and intelligent than the world’s great men. There, he met a woman named Cleto and fell in love with her.

Poseidon created rings of water and earth around the new home he built for his lover in Atlantis. Five waterways were connected to the land through five tunnels, a huge canal that connected the outer waterways to the ocean.

Ships could pass through the lanes, and towers and gates guarded each entrance to the city. In addition, the walls around the rings were made of red, black, and white rocks and decorated with precious metals.

There was another mountain nearby, Mount Cleto, where Poseidon was believed to have trapped his wife because he did not trust her fidelity. There were huge ditches and docks around this hill.

Golden Statue of Poseidon

Legend has it that Cleito and Poseidon had five twin boys, the oldest of whom was called Atlas. The great city was passed down to ten children, with the eldest son, Atlas, becoming the first king of Atlantis.

However, it is believed that they also built a large temple for their father, which contained a huge statue of Poseidon riding a chariot pulled by winged horses.

The statue, made entirely of gold, was mounted in a sanctuary with a high spiral roof over which clouds floated.

The thriving city and its revival

Atlantis was an extremely fertile city where demigods lived. It was believed to be a self-sufficient region where people raised livestock and grew their own food.

With the help of a well-maintained irrigation system, farmers in the fertile plains surrounding the city began to grow crops. They used black and crimson stones to create amazing structures and other architectural works. In addition to having access to rare metals and even alloys such as copper, they often used crystals for fun and experimentation, had a lot of free time, and enjoyed playing with volcanoes.

American psychotherapist Edgar Cayce believed that the lost city of Atlantis would rise again, just as “the sun rises from the sea.” He predicted that a new continent would appear off the east coast of North America.

In addition, he suggested that many Atlantean souls were reincarnated in the Americas to bring about a new era of enlightenment in human consciousness.

Alien Contact with Atlantis

Fabers said the original Atlanteans are believed to have been extraterrestrials who arrived there from the Lyra star system 50,000 years ago.

These people are powerful prototypes of the human species that existed at the time because although they were taller and smarter than the average person today, they had an average lifespan of 800 years.

Extraordinary Powers of the Atlanteans

The inhabitants of Atlantis were believed to have supernatural powers, including the ability to control the weather and alter volcanic eruptions. However, some claim that the lost city of Atlantis was located on Mars or was simply a colony of an alien society.

In addition, some accounts mention using a device that allowed them to channel energy from space and time. Some believe that the city of Atlantis is just a fictional depiction of a brutal lifestyle, although legends claim that its inhabitants were superior beings.

The extent of the truth in the story of the lost city of Atlantis is a mystery in itself. The question of whether Atlantis existed or is just a myth remains unanswered. But until the truth is fully revealed, the world will continue to speculate about the existence of the greatest city ever.