According to Plato, the island of Atlantis was beyond the Pillars of Herakles and in the Great Ocean. It describes where and how big the island was and why it was referred to as a continent. Perhaps not as big as Australia as an island continent but a significant size.
Courtesy of Wikipedia
“This power came forth out of the Atlantic Ocean, for in those days the Atlantic was navigable; and there was an island situated in front of the straits which are by you called the Pillars of Heracles; the island was larger than Libya and Asia put together, and was the way to other islands, and from these you might pass to the whole of the opposite continent which surrounded the true ocean; for this sea which is within the Straits of Heracles is only a harbour, having a narrow entrance, but that other is a real sea, and the surrounding land may be most truly called a boundless continent.”
Plato, Timaeus
There have been a number of theories put forward as to the site of Atlantis, some are more credible than others. Many of the proposed locations have met with the same catastrophe as Atlantis, but as yet not proven to be the lost continent.
Here’s a list of suggested sites:
• In the Mediterranean-Sardinia, Crete, Santorini, Cyprus, Malta, Ponza (island states); and Troy, Turkey
• Black Sea-Bosporus, Sinop, Ancomah
• Atlantic region-Cadiz, Azores, Canary Islands, Bimini, Caribbean, South America
• Further afield-Antarctica, Indonesia
• Middle East-Sahara desert
• North Sea-shallow areas off Holland, Germany, England and Scandinavia
• Ireland
Wikipedia
The fact is many of these places suffered a cataclysmic event, though no one has been able to prove which one is the historic Atlantis. Having said that, there are a few that meet the “criteria” of suffering a flood, the time period the island submerged and a disastrous end.
The world has seen many great natural disasters, flood, fire and the ice age are the prevalent events that changed the geography. We can look back in recent years such as the earthquakes and tsunamis that hit Japan and Indonesia. The ocean is rising and many of the cities near the water will be submerged. The shifting tectonic plates shape the Earth and create geomorphic changes. What happened to Atlantis can occur again.
Not to end on such a doomsday note, I do think Santorini is the site of Atlantis, as it was as Plato wrote a sophisticated society and a sea power. Malta is another possibility as archaeologists have found evidence of an ancient civilisation dating back to 9000 BCE. However there’s new evidence to suggest Cadiz may be the remanent island of Atlantis plus it ties in with the description and location given by Plato. I will be following these new theories and be interested to learn what they uncover.
EOS photo NASA, public domain
My next post will look the early maps that were drawn of Atlantis and the world.
In my second book of Servant of the Gods Series, Santorini or Thira as it was called, my intrepid travellers happen upon the site of Akrotiri.
Thank you for tuning in and reading.
As always, your comments are valued and welcomed.
Accursed Women
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Historical fiction fantasist Luciana Cavallaro, a secondary teacher, meanders from contemporary life to delve into the realms of mythology. Subscribe to her FREE short story
Sources:
Atlantis “Evidence” Found in Spain and Ireland By Stefan Lovgren for National Geographic News August 19, 2004
Atlantis Location Hypothesis
Has the real lost city of Atlantis finally been found… buried under mud flats in Spain? By DAILY MAIL REPORTER
Shocker: 9 Reasons Atlantis May Have Been Real By Katherine Neer
Top 10 Possible Locations for Atlantis by David Hatcher Childress Atlantis Rising Issue 9 from Atlantis Rising Website
Luciana Cavallaro 
Reblogged this on Apollo's Raven and commented:
Fascinating Series on Atlantis The Elusive Location of Atlantis Part 1
JANUARY 16, 2015 / Luciana Cavallaro
According to Plato, the island of Atlantis was beyond the Pillars of Herakles and in the Great Ocean. It describes where and how big the island was and why it was referred to as a continent. Perhaps not as big as Australia as an island continent but a significant size.
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Thank you for reblogging Linnea 😀
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The only potential site listed that makes me really sit back and scratch my head is Antarctica – just can’t picture that one working. As always, educational and awesome post! 🙂
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I know! I did the same thing when I read it. Weird what you find 😀
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The story is becoming more and more fascinating as you dig into and mine out newer facets from the sands of available data and research. If Plato has inferred presence of a continent equating to combined size of Libya and Asia, then most certainly the numerous islands and tinier nation states stringing Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans point to possibility of these being remnants of bigger land masses that may have gone under water due to geomorphic changes. The depleting ozone layer, global warming and steadily rising ocean levels are not fully reversible as these are part of natural cycle trending towards evolutionary destruction and subsequent regeneration. Stating it as such is not a doomsday prediction. Keep going Luc…season’s greetings and best wishes…Raj
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Thank you Raj!
It is fascinating the story behind the legend and the various facts that pop up. As you’ve mentioned, the cyclic nature of the planet has been occurring over and over for thousands and millions of years. The planet as we know it will change and we will not recognise it if we were to come back.
Hope you have a great 2015 Raj.
best wishes
Luciana ;D
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Stunning post!~ A must read I would say cara Luciana!…
The location of the Atlantis is certainly a compelx issue and “elusive” is an adjective that fits it well…
There are many theories about where Atlantis was—in the Mediterranean: Thera, Chales Pellegrino and Walter Friedrich, Cyprus (Robert Sarmast ), Central or South America (Ivar Zapp and George Erikson ) even under what is now Antarctica (Colin Wilson). And the list goes on : http://www.bibliotecapleyades.net/atlantida_mu/esp_atlantida_17.htm
As many believe that Plato was basing his account of Atlantis on the history of the Minoan civilization… I am for Santorini… ⭐
Great post amica. Abbraccio!, Aquileana 😀
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Grazie cara Aquileana!
I agree with you that Plato based his writings on the Minoan Civilisation given the recent destruction of Thira/Santorini.
Thank you as always for your insightful comment 😀
Abbraccio
Luciana
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I hadn’t realized that Ireland was a potential site. I look forward to learning about the maps now! You tell us what the next post is so that we want more – and we are hungry readers 🙂 Great post, L!
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Thank you Christy!
I must admit to being surprised by some of the locations for Atlantis, a few outlandish ones but it makes for interesting discussions! 😀
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[…] the previous post, The Elusive Location of Atlantis Part 1, I wrote about the possible locations of Atlantis, and the strongest theory to emerge was it was in […]
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[…] Pillars of Herakles and is as big as Libya and Asia put together. See Elusive Location of Atlantis Part 1 and Part 2 for further details. The geography of the land as it stands today is not the same as was […]
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