The Lost City of AtlantisReality or Myth?

By Eeshan Bendre

Some Forethoughts

This city is said to be

Imaginary, fictional and not real.

A myth, an illusion, a thought.

There are many theories about this Lost City.

Let us look at some of the prominent ones…….

Plato’s Theory on Atlantis

Plato was the first to write about this somewhat magical

island. In Plato's account, Atlantis was a naval power lying "in front of the

Pillars Of Hercules" that conquered many parts of

Western Europe and Africa 9,000 years before the time of Solon, or about 9600 BC. After

a failed attempt to invade Athens, Atlantis sank into the

ocean "in a single day and night of misfortune".

Underwater Theory

Some Volcanologists and Seismologists gathered data and said Atlantis was destroyed by a cataclysm which is a violent upheaval that causes great destruction or brings about a fundamental change.

A volcano erupted ending in up in Atlantis’ burial underwater

Atlantis was a mythical retelling of the Black Sea flood

Another theory is that Atlantis and the great Deluge told by Plato was a mythologized account of another historical event that took place thousands of years before Plato, the breaching of the Bosporus by the Mediterranean Sea and the flooding of the Black Sea around 5600 BC. Anumber of civilizations may have flourished on the shore of the Black Sea (then a fresh water lake) only to find it all immersed under hundreds of feet of sea water. Such an event had traumatic effect on the people of the region. As they escaped the rising waters and emigrated to other regions, each carried with them their own highly mythical account of the flood that came upon them, creating the inspiration to Plato’s story.

Where was Atlantispossible locations

The Location According to Plato, the island of Atlantis was the top of an under water volcano and shaped like a doughnut and that is where the king built his temple. When the volcano erupted, the island was destroyed but the continent remained joined.

Famous psychic, Edgar Cayce believed the remains would be found off the coast of Florida near Bimini Island.

While others believe that it’s somewhere in Central America, the China Sea or Africa.

Atlantis (the continent) was originally located in the Atlantic Ocean and the Island of Atlantis was located just of the south coast.

The legend of Atlantis, a lost island, that is said to have sunk beneath the sea sometime during the Pliestonce Ice Age.

The Secrets

The secrets of a lost city that may have inspired one ofthe world's most enduring myths – the fable ofAtlantis –have been brought to light from beneath thewaters off southern Greece.

What was found

The exploration revealed a world of buildings, courtyards, main streets, rock-cut tombs and religious structures.

The seabed was filled with thousands of shards (broken pieces) of pottery.

There is now no doubt that this is the oldest submerged town in the world," said Dr. Jon Henderson, associate professor of underwater archaeology at the University of Nottingham. "It has remains dating from 2800 to 1200 BC. There are older sunken sites in the world but none can be considered to be planned towns such as this, which is why it is unique."

To conclude

• It is the first time a sunken city has been discovered in Greece that was found before the time that Plato wrote his tale of the sunken continent of Atlantis.

• "Atlantis was a myth but it is a myth that keeps underwater exploration going.

• Less than 1% of the world's ocean floors have ever been surveyed. This is a marvelous find but there is still a lot more down there that has to be found.

Thank YouEeshan Bendre

IX ECentre Point School, Dabha, Nagpur

eeshanbendre@yahoo.com