The Lost Continent of Atlantis: A Extended Review

Plato gave the world the oldest remaining written account of Atlantis, in Critias, recorded circa 370 BC. “Critias” was a fictionalized transcript of information from “Critias the Younger, ” an apparently real Greek nobleman who lived at the same time as Plato.

By Plato’s account, Poseidon, god of the sea, sired five pairs of male twins with mortal women. Poseidon appointed the eldest of these sons, Atlas the Titan, ruler of his beautiful island domain. Atlas became the personification of the mountains or pillars that held up the sky. Plato described Atlantis as a vast island-continent west of the mediterranean, surrounded by the Atlantic ocean. The Greek word Atlantis means the island of Atlas, just as the word Atlantic means the ocean of Atlas. Atlantis was governed in peace, was rich in commerce, was advanced in knowledge, and held dominion over the surrounding islands and continents. By Plato’s legend, the people of Atlantis became complacent and their leaders arrogant; in punishment the Gods destroyed Atlantis, flooding it and submerging the island in one day and night. Read more …

Atlantis - Theory and Fantasy

Did Atlantis exist, or was it merely a fantasy conjured up by Plato, and kept alive through wishful thinking over the centuries? If it did exist, where can we find it’s remains?
We can ask other questions. For instance, just what WAS Atlantis? How did it disappear? In this essay I will be examining just a few such theories, and seeing where realistic ideas end and fantasy begins.

PILLARS OF HERCULES

One popular assertion from Plato is that Atlantis was ‘beyond the Pillars of Hercules’. These are almost unanimously thought to be the outcrops either side of the Strait of Gibraltar.
The mythology of the Straits of Glbraltar is neat and explanatory. Geographically speaking, they represent a narrow stretch of water separating the Mediterranean Sea from the Atlantic Ocean. And mystically, they separate the known world from the unknown.
To the north and south of the Straits are two large promontories - the Rock of Gibraltar in Europe and the Abyla on the African coast. These are the pillars separating the narrow strait. But according to legend the two promontories were much closer. Indeed, they were a closed gate. Until, that is, the mighty Hercules stood by the rocks and pushed them apart, thus allowing the waters to flood in. Read more …