THE LOST ISLAND OF ATLANTIS

The Lost Island of Atlantis

One of the oldest mysteries in the world, the legend of Atlantis has mystified humanity since ancient times. According to the Greek philosopher Plato, Atlantis was a large island somewhere west of the Pillars of Hercules (the Rock of Gibraltar) and the home of an incredibly advanced civilization known as the Atlanteans. Plato described Atlantis as a place of immense beauty with a palace compound in the center of three ringed canals. He said that every king that inherited the palace would add to it, trying to surpass his predecessor and by doing so they made it a palace that surpassed any other in both beauty and wealth. The Atlanteans themselves were blessed with wealth but at the same they were incredibly ambitious, constantly seeking power. Atlantis is said to have met its end when it was hit by a giant earthquake and swallowed by the sea. But is any of this the truth or is the story of Atlantis just a myth?

Theories

It seems that everyone who has ever studied Greek history has a theory as to Atlantis’ location. Also, many other cultures have stories of a great flood and even the name Atlantis isn’t exclusive to the Greeks: the Basques have Atlaintica, the Vikings have Atli, the Northern Africans have Attala, the Aztecs have Aztlan and on the Canary Islands there are legends of Atalaya. Proposed locations of Atlantis: Santorini in Greece, the Bermuda Triangle, the Atlas Mountains of Morocco and Tunisia, the Azores archipelago (Portugal), Greece’s Crete and even Sweden. It has also been said that some Atlanteans survived and went on to settle in England (Druids), Hellenic Greece, the New World (Mayas and Incas) and Egypt.