Simon

=Atlantis = =Where did it come from? How did it disappear? Where is it today? Nobody knows for sure... =

The Legend of Atlantis
Atlantis is one of the world's oldest, most puzzling mysteries. There are many rumors about how Atlantis came to be, what happened to it, and if Atlantis is a real place at all. When most people think of Atlantis, they think of an island in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean that doesn't exist anymore. However, many different stories have been told about Atlantis, each with different ideas on what it is or was. According to most stories, Atlantis was a big land mass in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, with a highly sophisticated civilization. Some of Atlantis' architecture, engineering, and technology were even more advanced than even people have today. The people who lived in Atlantis, called Atlantians, loved to encompass themselves with unique minerals and ideal landscapes. Then in just 24 hours, this amazing place disappeared. There are many debates about whether Atlantis is a real place, or a myth, like the Loch Ness Monster, or Big-foot. One thing is different about Atlantis, that sets it apart from other myths. Atlantis is described in much more detail than those, which makes it more believable and exciting to learn about. From elephants and horseracing to tsunamis and volcanoes, it continues fascinate many people today.

Plato
Greek philosopher Plato, who lived from 428 to 348 B.C, wrote the first recorded account of Atlantis. Most people think he was the one who made up Atlantis, or, at least, the first to write about it. His writings are still the most detailed, original account of Atlantis, too. Plato is a very smart and respectable person, even though he's from so long ago. He wrote many teachings on many topics, Atlantis being one of them. Plato first wrote about Atlantis in two different books, __//Timaeus//__ and //__Critias__//. In __//Timaeus//__//,//// two people called Timaeus and Socrates //talked about Atlantis and other topics. The whole book is dialogue back and forth between them. It is the same with //__Critias__;// the dialogue is between Critias and Socrates, though. Socrates, Timaeus, and Critias were all Plato's well known acquaintances. Plato wrote having them talking because he knew the way they talked, so the book would be more realistic. The speakers in the stories didn't actually have the conversations sometime in real life, though.

Plato says that he heard the story from his grandfather, who had known about Atlantis from his own father. He, in turn, had been informed of Atlantis' story by his friend Solon. Solon was an acclaimed Greek Politician from Athens, who heard the legend from an elderly Egyptian priest known as Saïs, who had come upon the myth in old church records. Even so, some people think Atlantis was born in Plato's imagination, as an idea only to show how life should be, or will be in the future. Even some of Plato's own students agree with that one. Here's the inside story according to Plato.

According to Plato, Atlantis existed 9,000 years ago. This is misleading, because Plato said that about 3,000 years ago, so that would be 12,000 years ago today, about 10,000 B.C. Plato claimed that Atlantis is west of the Pillars of Hercules (now known as the Straits of Gibraltar). It had been created by Poseidon, the Greek God of the sea. Five sets of twins, all sons of Poseidon, were set forth onto Atlantis. Each son ruled over one tenth of the land. The ten of them began one of the world's most astonishing and most mystifying places humans have ever known.

Plato described Atlantis as ". . .larger than Libya and Asia Minor [Turkey] together. . .a great and wonderful empire which ruled over the whole island and several others. . ." Plato equips the civilization with tunnels, bridges, springs, canals, and many other architectural feats. Atlantians loved having gold, silver, and many other rich minerals to surround their daily lives, lives said to be perfect and blissful. A huge golden statue was shown in a temple of Atlantis, showing Poseidon in a chariot harnessed by six winged horses.

In the end, though, having so much glory destroyed their lives. The people living in this palace began to become arrogant. The people of Atlantis had a very strong army, and they set off on world conquest, traveling overseas to fight for land. The Atlantian army defeated many areas in the Mediterranean, but were sent back home after being defeated by the great Athenian warriors in Greece. Many of Atlantis' citizens died in the battle. Later, the Greek Gods became enraged at how the people of Atlantis had been so greedy, and so the all-powerful Greek Gods decided to destroy the island, a very easy task for them. After one day and one night, while earthquakes, floods, and tsunamis had enveloped the area, and volcanoes had exploded with frenzy, Atlantis was gone forever.

The Theory of Crete
The Theory of Crete is what a lot of people believe Atlantis really was. It is very likely that Crete was what Plato was talking about all along. It's like a "fish story", where every time the story is told, the fish becomes far bigger and spectacular. Atlantis could have been the island of Crete, an island of higher standard than any other in the Mediterranean area, where Greece was. Crete is an island south of Athens, Greece, in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea. People who live in Crete are called Minoans, after King Minos, who was once their ruler a long time ago. Nobody really knows who came up with the idea about Crete being Atlantis.

Some people think that Solon made a mistake translating the amount of years during the time he heard about Atlantis. In Egypt, they used a calendar that suggested that one year was to scale as one month. Instead of 9000 years, it would be about 900 years, a lot more realistic. This also matches up to Crete, who in 1500 B.C. was a Minoan Empire (during the time King Minos ruled) that ruled the Eastern Mediterranean with a very strong military. This could the strong army Plato was talking about. But how did it get the name Atlantis? Possibly, Atlantis was a word used sort of like Utopia, or a paradise land. Many countries had places just like it, except Crete was actually real.

Excavations showed that the Minoans of Crete were very rich in culture. They were known as one of the most advanced civilizations in Plato's day. Architecture, agriculture, brilliant art, engineering genius; you name it, they had it (not quite as amazing as Plato's idea, but advanced for their time period, nevertheless). This incredible place even had an extensive structure of government were women were treated equally as men were—at that time, one of the only places in the world like that — and a very complex irrigation system.

Just like Atlantis, though, this powerful and wealthy island was destroyed—though not as fast and swift as Atlantis. Ten miles north of Crete, a disaster occurred that could very easily have extinguished Crete. An island, Santorinas, was formed by a huge volcano a long time ago, and in 1500 B.C, its time came. It blew up, literally. The scale of the explosion is far too great to compare it with equal destruction (and it wasn't recorded, though evidence proves Crete's destruction), so many people describe the force of it with the most powerful volcanic disaster people have ever recorded. In 1883 there was an eruption on another island, Krakatoa. Because of it, a titanic sized tsunami roared outwards of Krakatoa. It was 120 feet high, and it demolished close-by islands, killing more than 36,000 people. Along with the wave, ashed spewed from the top of the volcano, darkening the skies for 72 hours. People could hear the eruption from as far away as 3,000 miles, about the distance from America to Europe.

Santorinas' explosion was about four times as strong as Krakatoa's. Four times as much destruction. Four times as much ash. The wave, four times as tall. The Minoans would have been swept away with the tsunami, and if it didn't, ash and other debris would have finished them. Not to mention the havoc Santorinas would of had to endure. All that remains of the Santorinas — well, there wasn't much. This is almost exactly how Plato described Atlantis' destruction. Is Crete really Atlantis? We might not ever find out. But for today, it is the most believable story for most people.

 The Culture of Atlantis Atlantis was many Greek peoples' idea of what the future was like. A twist was that their future existed in the past//.// This makes the legend of Atlantis very strange and mystifying, apart from any other legend. Atlantis has a very incredible culture; everything about this place is like nothing else. The City of Atlantis had a design so great, many people forget that there was a whole island filled with places like it! Plato described Atlantis' geography as "...a great and wonderful empire which ruled over the whole island and several others..." Plato also equips the civilization with tunnels, bridges, springs, canals, and many other architecture marvels. Atlantis is a rectangular continent, with the center city in the exact middle of the land. The city begins with an outer ring of water were huge ships and other boats lay, able to depart into the sea at any time with a canal that eventually leads to the sea. After the water ring there is a ring of land, holding a few houses, plenty of lush gardens, a gymnasium, and a horseracing field that runs all the way around the circuit of expanse. Next is the second, middle water ring. More boats are in it, but they're smaller, though, because the ring does not have as much width or depth. Yet another land ring follows the middle water ring, but the amount of land is too small for much at all. The final ring of water guards the circular city of Atlantis. Acting as a radius to the ringed city, running south, is a main bridge, passing all of the rings of land/water, it leads out of the city. On either sides of the bridge the bridge is a canal, though instead of stopping at the end of the city, it keeps going all the way to the sea, and gives any boat in any harbor in the water rings access to the ocean at any time. Very near the start of the first of the rings of water is the guardhouse. At the very center of the rings is an island, the central isle, which slopes upward as it gets closer to the center. Near the top it flattens off, leaving room for a luxurious palace, a golden temple, and a citadel, leaving plenty of room for houses, forests, and other customary parts of a city. This whole arrangement looks similar to a bulls-eye.

The people of Atlantis loved having gold, silver, and many other rich minerals that surrounded their daily lives. Plato even says himself, "The outside of the temple was covered in silver, apart from the pinnacles. Inside the roof was made of ivory, decorated with gold, and other precious metals. . ." A huge golden icon of Poseidon in a chariot harnessed by half a dozen winged horses was in their temple. . .golden statues—there was Poseidon himself, standing in a chariot pulled by six winged horses. . .of such a size that he touched the roof of the temple with his head. . ." The temple's roof probably would surpass the height of a church's today. That's one big statue! And this is only the temple! Think of how the whole island must have been!

And for some strange reason, there were tons (literally) of elephants. Elephants were a big part of Atlantians' culture. They were very rare and prized in Plato's time. Elephants even were in their army! "There was a great number of elephants in the island. . .the animal which is the largest and most voracious [which means greedy for food] of all" say Plato. This is probably because of their amazing size, which makes them very robust, which could be useful for war. The elephants would also scare off enemies. The people of Atlantis also loved the sport of bullfighting. Not as much as elephants, though. Elephant-fighting? Too hard, I guess. Also, pyramids were also an important part of Atlantis' culture, sort of like Egyptians. They were perhaps their "signature"—like the big heads on Easter Island.

World Connections, Other Theories
Just about everybody has heard of the Lost City of Atlantis. And many people have researched the topic, trying to find evidence to prove that it's real, or just a fantasy. Only a few researchers have even found any evidence, and none of it clears the topic for sure. Here are some of the most authentic. Note: some of these are smaller theories that give the idea that Atlantis really does exist, others are real "World Connections" while others are smaller "Theories"

Continental Drift Theory Similar to a puzzle, the continental drift theory is an idea that all the continents were fit together into one giant land mass. Have you every noticed that South America matches up almost exactly into the southwestern side of Africa, in the southern Atlantic Ocean? This is true for all continents, except for two (though it may not be as easily seen as South America and Africa). USA (though the rest of North America does match) doesn't intertwine with any other country, west or east, which is the same for Western Europe. An idea is that Atlantis would fill the missing hole in the Atlantic Ocean, connecting Western Europe with the USA.  Eel Migration This relation has to do with eels. Leaving their typical homes, a river, European eels go on a whopping 3,600-mile long journey across the Atlantic Ocean, ending up at the Sargasso Sea, a rich environment in the southwestern part of the Northern Atlantic Ocean. Why do they come? To breed! But German Scientist Otto Muck explains it using Atlantis. On the ride home, the elvers (young eels) ride all the way back to freshwater territory in the warm waters of the Gulf Stream, a current in the Atlantic that leads back to their habitat. Muck points out that if the Gulf Stream circled around Atlantis, the passageway would be a much shorter and faster ride. He says that when Atlantis sank, the pathway broke and the venture became much longer, which is why they might still use this less-efficient route today.

 Atlantis Everywhere Lots of civilizations have their very own Atlantis story of how there was an unknown island that was a perfect paradise that later sunk. Also, the names are remotely similar. The Aztecs talked of a place called Aztlán. In the Canary Islands the name is Atalaya. The Basques of Northern Spain talk about a place called Atlaintica. Did the Native Americans have one? Yes, Azatlán. North Africa calls it Attala. Even the Vikings have an Utopian island, Atli.

My //Own// Theory While doing this research project, I thought up of a whole new theory. //If// Atlantis //did// exist, and that it existed the time Plato said, about 12,000 years ago (actually he said Atlantis was destroyed 12,000 years ago), then the world would be covered in ice, The last Ice Age (see "Elephants?", Holes in the Myth of Atlantis). This time was about the end of the Ice Age. If the people of Atlantis were //used// to the cold, then when the Ice Age ended, they wouldn't have had time to adapt to the heat. There goes Atlantis. This is only the start of a //real// theory, but it's still just as good as the thousands of other theories out there today.

Atlantis Today Today, many things are called Atlantis. Here are a few: Atlantis—what this Wiki is about Atlantis—a space ship/space shuttle Atlantis—a water park/hotel in the Bahamas Atlantis—a casino/resort/spa Atlantis—the Atlantic Ocean Atlantis—a movie Atlantis—a different movie (the Disney one)

 Holes in the Myth of Atlantis
The Myth of Atlantis is a very shaky topic, and lots of ideas concerning Atlantis can be very easily classified as a hoax, which also keeps the legend alive. In this topic, many of the most well built theories and explanations are demolished (or at least part-way) by confessions that //almost// prove that there is no such thing as Atlantis.

9,000 years ago? When Plato says that Atlantis was alive with people 9,000 years ago, it throws off many people. To show how long ago this is, well. . .about 9,500 B.C. . .about 12,000 years ago. . .the Ice Age was just ending. . .10,000 years before the Vikings. . .3,000 years before the first Pharaoh of Egypt. . .it is a question if humans were even //living// back then. Even if they were, almost everyone doubts they had that amount of architectural and engineering skill back then. Better than today's, supposedly! It is just not very probable, it seems. Of course there's the fish story idea (see The Theory of Crete) Elephants? Either a misplaced exaggeration or an actual fake, Plato's story of Atlantis is let down with this false material. According to Plato, elephants were a very special in the Atlantic culture (see Culture of Atlantis, paragraph four). Atlantis was up and about maybe... 12,000 years ago? No one had even heard of the word "elephant" at that time, if people were even living back then. The correct term would have been "mammoth" or "mastodon", something Ice Age-ish. If the continent were even there back then, the "elephants" would be big (maybe 10 tons, 15 feet tall), hairy, and wild and very vicious. Even so, 12,000 years ago there were still a bit of glaciers, the Ice Age was still ending. Could Plato have been talking about the mammoths? Probably not. This makes Atlantis seem like an urban legend, and promotes Crete to the name. A counter to this argument is that in Plato's time, they would've not known what "mammoths" or "mastadons" were, and would have just called them elephants.

 Greek Mythology?

If Atlantis was created by Poseidon, and destroyed by all the Greek Gods, isn't Atlantis all some more Greek mythology? Greek Gods aren't believed in much today, so how could Atlantis be real? Of course, Plato could have said that just to explain how Atlantis got destroyed, there //is// a Greek god that controls tsunamis, one for volcanoes, etc. The whole thing could just be a figment of Plato's imagination, used to prove a point (that's what pupils of Plato say)!

<span style="color: #000080; font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; font-size: 90%;">Circular Crete? Plato says that the City of Atlantis is circular, right? So if Atlantis is Crete, Crete's main city is circular. Not true. Back then, the biggest city in Crete would probably be Knossos. Circular? Not really. Crete isn't circular, either. More or less shaped like a splash of water in the shape of a spiky hot dog, an oval, maybe. Plato said the whole island of Atlantis was shaped like a perfect rectangle, too. //The Continent (A.K.A. Island) of Atlantis is a giant, perfect, rectangle. The// City //of Atlantis is a city inside Atlantis the Continent; both are named "Atlantis."//

<span style="color: #000080; display: block; font-family: 'Arial Black',Gadget,sans-serif; text-align: center;"> Sources
http://www.buzzle.com/articles/the-lost-city-of-atlantis-fact-or-fiction.html http://home.flash.net/~manniac/atlantis.htm http://www.lost-civilizations.net/theories-about-atlantis-page-3.html http://www.unmuseum.org/atlantis.htm http://theshadowlands.net/atlantis/index.html __Atlantis__ by Ann Lewis ©2002 by The Rosen Publishing Group, Inc. __The Mystery of Atlantis__ by Holly Wallace ©1999 by Reed Educational and Professional Publishing