Atlantis’ Tragic Tale: What Is the Truth Behind the Myth?

Undoubtedly, Atlantis was the most famous legendary place in the ancient world, and it has remained one of the most enduring ancient myths. Immortalized by its narrator, Plato, the story of Atlantis is a tantalizing tale: An advanced civilization that went too far in its greed, provoking the wrath of the gods who erased Atlantis from the face of the earth in one day and one night.

While the end of Atlantis came quickly, the legend persisted, becoming more popular as centuries passed, sparking the imagination of generations of scholars, explorers, artists, and pseudoscientists. As a result, this sunken island that once played only a minor role in Plato’s work has risen to become an integral element of our cultural landscape, a symbol of long-lost Utopia, still waiting to be discovered. A unique adventure beyond our wildest dreams! Although it seems that the story of Atlantis is nothing more than a moralistic tale, Plato, its creator, was inspired by historical events. After all, history can be much more fascinating than fantasy…

Atlantis: The Fabled Sunken Island 

One of the legendary cities of Atlantis, as imagined by Geza Maroti, 1933, via Wikimedia Commons

The story of Atlantis, history’s most enduring and probably, most influential myth, is a fascinating tale. To start with, every mention of this fabled place sounds like a blend of fantasy and science fiction. Atlantis was an enormous island, “larger than Libya and Asia combined.” It was populated by a race of demigods, led by powerful kings, who could trace their origins to none other than Poseidon, the mighty god of the seas and oceans. The Atlanteans made most of that connection, creating an advanced civilization and building enormous cities during a period when the rest of the world was still in the Neolithic. It helped that they lived in a veritable cornucopia, enjoying abundant resources, especially metals: silver, gold, and most importantly, orichalcum, the most precious gold-red metal.

As usually happens with those who have too much wealth and power, the Atlanteans also wanted more. In their lust for power, this advanced civilization declared war on all the peoples of the Mediterranean. Unsurprisingly, the Atlanteans’ mighty navy encountered little resistance and conquered and enslaved most of their technologically inferior neighbors. Yet, in their hubris, the Atlanteans underestimated one Greek city. The people of Athens not only resisted the invaders but managed to send their would-be conquerors back from whence they came. In the end, Atlanteans fell out of the gods’ favor. In a single day and night, Atlantis was destroyed by an earthquake and flood. Once a beacon of culture and civilization, the fabled island vanished under the waves, along with all its inhabitants.

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