1. The Lost City of Atlantis
Reality or Myth?
By Eeshan Bendre
2. 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…….
3. 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".
4. 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
5. 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. A
number 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.
6. Where was Atlantis
possible 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.
7. The Secrets
The secrets of a lost city that may have inspired one of
the world's most enduring myths – the fable of
Atlantis –have been brought to light from beneath the
waters off southern Greece.
8. 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."
9. 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.
10. Thank You
Eeshan Bendre
IX E
Centre Point School, Dabha, Nagpur
eeshanbendre@yahoo.com