Mark Oliver, blogger and correspondent for Listverse, doubts that we will be able to find Eldorado, Atlantis or Shangri-La country. The reason is simple - they never existed. These geographical objects are a figment of the imagination and an attempt to represent the limits of the possibilities of human civilization. “But there are also real settlements, whose stories are in no way inferior to fictional cities,” says Oliver.
Legends of cities wiped off the face of the earth like Atlantis have been passed down by word of mouth for hundreds of years. Over time, people no longer knew how true these stories were. "Even the most incredible legends can be true," says a Listverse correspondent. His selection includes ten lost cities, stories about which have long been considered myths.
Gelika - a city with the fate of Atlantis
“Atlantis was not the only Greek city that, according to legend, went under water,” recalls Oliver. The walls of Gelika suffered the same fate. The history of this city is exactly like the fables of Atlantis.
According to ancient Greek myths, Helika was destroyed by an angry Poseidon. Once the locals expelled from the city a tribe of Ionians, faithful admirers of this sea deity. Upon learning of this, Poseidon became angry and dropped the settlement under water overnight.
The story of Helika, destroyed in 373 BC, for many centuries was considered nothing more than a beautiful parable. In the late 1980s, two archaeologists set out to find this city. The search lasted about ten years, until it was crowned with success. It turned out that the mythical city of Gelika is buried underground.
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Scientists have discovered that the catastrophe that destroyed the city was not the fault of Poseidon. Although at first glance it might seem that this is his handwriting: the solid ground under the feet of the unfortunate Greeks really turned into a slime. The real cause of the tragedy is the earthquake. The city collapsed into an underground lake formed due to strong vibrations.
Dvaraka - home of Krishna
For any Hindu, Dvaraka is the holiest city on earth. This is the ancient home of the god Krishna, who lived on Earth 5 thousand years ago. The divine architect built Dvaraka at the personal request of Krishna, who supposedly demanded a city of crystals, silver and emeralds. In addition, the customer ordered the construction of 16,108 palaces - one for each of its queens. According to legend, the wondrous city was destroyed during the great battle between Krishna and King Salva, who destroyed the architectural wonder with energy explosions.
“Having heard such a legend, you are unlikely to look for even a drop of truth in it,” writes Oliver. However, having found out the presumptive location of the mythical city, stubborn archaeologists began to search - underwater. The research team actually discovered a city that matched the description of Krishna's home. Of course, 16,108 silver palaces, like other fairy-tale elements, were not found there by scientists. However, everything else was in agreement - a large ancient city with the layout of Dvaraka opened in front of them, the description of which has survived to this day.
Great Zimbabwe - medieval castle in Africa
At the dawn of the 16th century, Portuguese explorers of the territory belonging to modern Zimbabwe began to report that they had heard from the local population about some kind of African castle. The natives talked about a certain stone fortress, towering over the trees. The locals called it "Simbao", but did not know who built it. One researcher noted: “When and by whom these buildings were created is unknown, because people at that time did not know how to write. They argue that these structures are the work of the devil, because people do not know how to build such."
For centuries, Europeans thought that Simbao was an invention of superstitious indigenous people. Later, in the 19th century, researchers still discovered the legendary massive castle with 11-meter stone walls. In 900 A. D. this fortress was built by the disappeared African civilization. Inside the complex were found relics from all over the world: ancient Arab coins, Persian pottery and even artifacts from the Chinese Ming dynasty. Apparently, the inhabitants of the African castle actively traded with other countries, including China.
Xanadu - Kublai Khan's palace
Returning from the Middle Kingdom, the traveler Marco Polo never tired of describing the powerful empire of Hublai Khan. The strongest impression on the guest was made by Xanadu - the marble palace of the great khan, surrounded by a huge park packed with fountains, rivers and wild animals. According to him, on the territory of Xanadu, the khan kept 10 thousand white horses in a golden palace guarded by dragons. “In short, it was heaven on earth, one and only,” explains Oliver.
In 1369, long before travel to Asia became commonplace, the legendary Chinese palace was destroyed by the Ming army. Many Europeans never managed to share the enthusiasm of the Polo traveler. As the centuries passed, Xanadu became a legend. He was mentioned only in fiction. The news that archaeologists have discovered the remains of this palace caused a sensation. It turned out that at one time this palace was really beautiful and majestic. The Khan's dwelling was twice the size of the Washington White House. The palace was indeed surrounded by a huge park, which, according to experts, once housed a menagerie with wild animals from all over the world.
As Marco Polo described, pens for horses were provided in every part of the palace. Moreover, there were indeed yellow dragons sitting next to them - painted statues attached to pillars.
Sigiriya - the eighth wonder of the world
In the 5th century A. D. Kasapa, King of Sri Lanka, built a palace on top of a 200-meter cliff. According to legend, it was one of the most incredible castles in the world. To get inside, the guest had to climb a long staircase that led into the mouth of a giant lion, made of brick and plaster.
Myths say that King Kasapa did not enjoy life in a wonderful palace for long. The construction was completed, and almost immediately after that, Mogallana, the king's brother, attacked Sigiriya. Kasapa's army left the palace in fear for their lives, and his wives fell to their deaths by jumping off a cliff.
Sigiriya was captured, but not destroyed, keeping it as a monument to the narcissistic king-conqueror. For some time the fortress was used as an outpost, then briefly transferred to a Buddhist monastery. Soon the once important building was forgotten.
When European archaeologists took a closer look at this story, they learned that the castle really exists. The lion's head gate was also no invention. The real interior of the building turned out to be cooler than what was described in the legends. For example, the castle has a sleek white parapet that served as a mirror, allowing the ruler to admire himself while walking through the palace.
UNESCO declared Sigiriya the eighth wonder of the world. Now the palace is extremely popular with tourists.
Leptis Magna - a Roman city buried in the sand
A large Roman city in Libya, which once served as a transit point and center of trade, was completely covered with sand during a storm. It was here, in the city of Leptis Magna, that the Roman emperor Septimius Sever was born. This ruler turned his small homeland into a metropolis and one of the most important points on the empire map. When Rome fell into decay, Leptis Magna also began to fade. It was plundered by raiders, later it was almost completely destroyed by the Arabs. The abandoned ruins have not been restored. Later, they were covered by drifting sands, and no one remembered Leptis Magna.
The city hid under the sand dunes for 1200 years. Archaeologists unearthed it in the 19th century. “This time, scientists got into the hands of something more than a couple of broken jugs, because thanks to the sand the city is very well preserved,” notes Oliver.
The amphitheater, baths, basilica and even the circus have survived. All buildings look like they've just been built. After all, the lost city is just a city that has been forgotten. It doesn't have to be running.
Vinland - a land of plenty that belonged to the Vikings
In 1073 A. D. e. German priest Adam of Bremen contacted the Danish king Sven Estridson to inform him of important news: the Vikings swam across the Atlantic Ocean and found a distant fertile land. The Reverend Father called her Vinland because "the vineyards grow there without needing any care."
The German priest was not the only one spreading this story. Generations of Vikings told their descendants tales of a wonderful land, having reached which the Vikings fought with the local population. The indigenous inhabitants of the legend were called scrylingers. It was argued that opponents of the Europeans wore white robes and lived in caves. They fought with long spears.
Vinland has been considered one of the Scandinavian myths for centuries. Nothing changed even after the Spanish discovered America. It was only in the 1960s that it became clear that this was true. On the island of Newfoundland, in L'Anse aux Meadows, archaeologists have discovered the ruins of a Viking settlement dating back to the 11th century.
Heraklion - the sunken Egyptian city
Heraklion appears in almost every ancient Greek myth. It was with him that Hercules' African journey began. It was there that Paris and Helen hid from Menelaus until the beginning of the Trojan War. But modern historians had absolutely no idea where this all happened.
It turned out that one of the most important Egyptian ports is not accidentally included in the list of lost places. About 2,200 years ago, Heraklion fell victim to an earthquake or tsunami and sank.
At the dawn of the 2000s, divers noticed a strangely shaped stone off the Egyptian coast. Trying to get it out from under the water, they found that they had found a fragment of some antique statue. The divers dived deeper to see if there was anything else unusual at the bottom. Soon, divers found entire statues, decorations and even the sunken ruins of an ancient Egyptian temple.
A huge part of the city was covered with silt. Nevertheless, the divers managed to find huge steles, on which the rules of taxation in Egypt were painted in hieroglyphs. In addition, divers saw full-length statues of ancient Egyptian gods.
Ciudad Perdida - Lost City in Colombia
About 1,300 years ago, the ancient people of Tayrona built an incredible city in the Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta. According to legend, the god Tayrona himself ordered people to build on the top of the mountain, since the patron wanted his people to live closer to the stars.
The city flourished for about 700-800 years, until the Spanish conquistadors arrived in America. Although the invaders never made it to this city, the locals were destroyed by infectious diseases brought by the Europeans. When the last inhabitants died, the city was left unattended, and the whole civilization was forgotten for hundreds of years.
Ciudad Perdida was only discovered in the 1970s when it was stumbled by a group of bandits making their way through the jungle. Quite by accident, they found themselves in an ancient overgrown city full of gold jewelry and jade figurines.
The criminals plundered the city. They took everything they could with them, after which they sold the artifacts on the black market. This attracted the attention of archaeologists. Scientists soon found a place known as the "Lost City" that had been forgotten for 500 years.
Ciudad Blanca - City of the Monkey God
In pursuit of gold, conquistador Hernan Cortes heard stories about the greatest city hidden from prying eyes in the jungles of Honduras. Some called it the White City, others - the City of the Monkey God. And all as one assured: the one who gets there, will receive unthinkable wealth.
Cortez never found him. But the legend has not disappeared anywhere. American pilot Charles Lindbergh claimed to have seen this city during one of the flights. Rumors have surfaced that the pilot knows where Ciudad Blanca is, but for some reason does not want to tell others about it. And then archaeologists found him. A group of researchers set off along the route indicated by one of the madmen, who swore that he had already been to this city. To everyone's surprise, they actually found a pyramid in the rain forest, built by a people who disappeared a thousand years ago. Inside were found stone sculptures and impressive architecture that, by the standards of neighboring tribes, were signs of incredible wealth and power.
Based on materials: Listverse. Translation by Anna Sinyashchik