- Part one -
Approximately twenty two thousand years ago, this island was subjected to a serious seismic cataclysm, under the pressure of which part of the land was plunged into the sea. Terrified masses of its inhabitants migrated to the European continent along the isthmus. Before that, they were reluctant to explore the continental area due to the notorious cold and harsh conditions prevailing there, but with the gradual disappearance of the ice cap, these conditions were somewhat softened, and now the difference between the European climate and their own was small. The rest continued to support the traditions of the ancient culture, while the colonists allowed it to degenerate somewhat.
Approximately fourteen thousand years BC. e. a second cataclysm occurs, and it forces the remaining Atlanteans (Madeleine) to flee to Europe. They carry with them art, which, due to the fact that it remained and was cultivated in the ancient homeland, is significantly superior in technique and skill to the degenerated Cro-Magnon art. But later, they face the return of glaciers to Europe.
And then, apparently around 10,500 BC. BC, Poseidon and his Azilian Proto-Iberians invade Atlantis from the North African region.
It is from this moment that we can rely on the facts of the history of Atlantis. Poseidon must have been an early cultural hero, similar to those we find associated with Polynesian and Mexican migration myths. Indeed, he behaves in Atlantis in the same way as those in their territories. It now seems highly unlikely that Plato himself could have invented a story that would fit so closely with the circumstances of other and later traditions associated with cultural heroes. This is the very case when folklore helps history.
Poseidon seizes power on the island of Atlantis. He marries a local woman. He digs large canals and builds a temple on the hill. He raises twin children who later rule the island and nearby islands, establish a special caste and introduce their own religious system based on ancestor worship. These circumstances almost coincide with the legend of Hotu Matua, the cultural hero of Easter Island in the Pacific, which, like the Canary Islands, is apparently the remnant of a large, sunken ocean continent.
Isolated on Easter Island with a group of followers, Hotu Matua set about the task of rebuilding a civilized society. He erected huge stone structures, walls, crude crypts and statues. With a system of ingenious taboos, he defended and perpetuated the religion of his Polynesian ancestors.
Other myths demonstrate similar circumstances. The Criik Indians say that Esogetu Emitse, Lord of the Breath, arrived on the island of Nunne Chaha, which lies in the primeval waters of the water, and built a house there. He erected a large wall around the island and directed the waters through the canals. What else is this if not the story of Poseidon in Atlantis?
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Manibozho, the great god of the Algonquin Indians, they say, "carved the land and the sea to his pleasure," just as the Huron deity Taviskara "poured the waters into smooth channels." The Peruvian god Pariacaca arrived, like Poseidon, in a hilly country. But the people insulted him and he sent a big flood to destroy their country. Having met the beautiful girl Chok Suso who was crying bitterly, he asked about the reason for her sadness, and she answered him that the corn crop was dying without water. Then he assured her that he would restore the harvest if she gave him her affection, and when she agreed to his proposal, he irrigated the earth with water from canals. He eventually turned his wife into a statue.
Another Peruvian myth tells us that the god Tonapa, outraged by the dishonesty of the people of Yamkvisap in the land of Allasuyu, turned their city into a large lake. The people of this land worshiped an effeminate statue that stood at the top of the Kachapukara hill. Tonapa destroyed both the hill and the statue, and together they disappeared into the sea.
We find in these myths most of the elements that make up the story of Poseidon in Atlantis: a sacred hill, the creation of earth and waters, a god marrying a local girl, a disastrous flood. All this is known to the researchers of mythology as a "test for multiple tests." If one part of the myth can be found in one part of the world, and the other part, echoing with it, in a completely different place, then it is obvious that these are nothing more than fragments of a once united myth, and that those parts of it that do not correspond to each other friend, are linked together with those that correspond and are complementary to the latter.
As far as I know, there was no such widespread myth about the Mediterranean islands that could have been available to Plato. How, then, could he use material that undoubtedly existed in other lands, which he could not know about, if the general legend about the circumstances of the history of Atlantis did not spread, on the one hand, to Europe and Egypt, and on the other hand, would not have penetrated America? Legends, as we know, survive for countless centuries, and there is nothing surprising in the hypothesis that the one that mentions Atlantis gradually became known to peoples on both continents.
It is clear from Diodorus's account that Uranus follows Poseidon, just as in Plato's account. Both are described as the fathers of Atlas, to whom, for practical reasons, can be credited with a key position in the history of Atlantis. Plato leaves us in the dark about the future rulers of Atlantis, saying only that they ruled there from generation to generation. Diodorus probably had access to more information, at least in this particular area of Atlantean history. In fact, he continues the history of Atlantis up to the time of the ruler named Jupiter, who, according to him, has nothing to do with the deity of the same name.
To begin with, we have "Basileia", "great mother", "queen" par excellence - undoubtedly the same goddess, from the Mediterranean and Carthage to Canaan, revered as the Mother Goddess, Astaroth, Astarte, Diana, Vemis, Aphrodite, Isis - a great maternal deity, who had a hundred names and a hundred breasts, but still one single individuality, which can also be found in England, Ireland and Gaul and even in America, but not in Germany or among the Slavs. Its "spread" is exactly on the lines and streams of colonization and emigration from Atlantis. Wherever her name appears, something from Atlantis is also found. The invasion of the Atlanteans - Cro-Magnons and Azilians - brought her cult to Europe, as evidenced by their figurines or idols. They depict a woman with exaggerated signs of motherhood, as McAlister notes. She was a goddess and with her,as Plato notes, the Atlanteans worshiped the bull. We will return to this question in the process of studying the religion of Atlantis in the proper chapter. And the myth that tells of her insanity after the death of children in Diodorus's story, of course, implies the insanity described in many texts of classical history as an integral part of her cult - the wild, crude fury of a cruel nature. We can understand this from the story of Isis or from the story of the Mother Goddess of Scotland - Kaillich Meur. The madness of Agave after the death of Penfey is her distortion, and the despair of Cora {18} after the disappearance of Persephone is her memory.as part of her cult - the wild, brutal fury of a cruel nature. We can understand this from the story of Isis or from the story of the Mother Goddess of Scotland - Kaillich Meur. The madness of Agave after the death of Penfey is her distortion, and the despair of Cora {18} after the disappearance of Persephone is her memory.as part of her cult - the wild, brutal fury of a cruel nature. We can understand this from the story of Isis or from the story of the Mother Goddess of Scotland - Kaillich Meur. The madness of Agave after the death of Penfey is her distortion, and the despair of Cora {18} after the disappearance of Persephone is her memory.
Atlas, her brother who followed her, was, according to Diodorus, a wise astrologer, the discoverer of the celestial sphere. Today his name is associated with geography. It is very important that the whole ocean and the still existing mountain range are named after him. Nations and lands always bear the names of eponymous characters, whom people deify over time. Ellas was the father of all Greeks, the progenitor of the English was Yngve, the Scots worshiped Scotus, or Scat, whose name still lives on in the name of the Isle of Skye, the Romans took their name from Romulus, and hundreds of other peoples called themselves the children of eponyms ancestors. Therefore, there is nothing surprising in the hypothesis that the inhabitants of Atlantis named themselves after the titan Atlas, the man who once gave the country its name.
Atlas, according to Diodorus, married his sister Hesperis, and this couple raised seven daughters, after whom the planets were named. How long Atlas ruled, for lack of data, we cannot say, but, probably, it was during his time on the throne that the main city of Atlantis was founded. This place was hardly of any importance during the reign of Poseidon, the first ruler: it is much more likely that the temple that perpetuated his memory and the memory of his wife Clay was erected after his death. To this, however, it can be argued that the statues of his ten sons were also in the temple and that these were also images of deified deceased "ancestors".
Perhaps, therefore, it would be more correct to conclude that the temple and the statues of Poseidon and Kleito can be dated to the reign of Atlas, and the statues of the deified twins were placed there later.
Atlas, being an astrologer, must have used the palace on the hill overlooking the city as an observatory. But when we talk about “temples,” “palaces,” and “observatories,” the critic might say, “Let me remind you that we are dealing with an era more than ten thousand years old, and that Azili migrants in Spain did not build there. of such structures”. Maybe this is so. But the fact is also the numerous finds from the Azilian period, discovered in Huelva, in Southwest Spain, by Mrs. Elena Vishaw, from the Anglo-Spanish School of Archeology. Mrs Wishaw has succeeded in yielding numerous testimonies relating to the Tartessian civilization that flourished in southern Spain in pre-Roman and even pre-Carthaginian times. Having overcome many difficulties,she, under the patronage of King Alfonso, founded the Anglo-Spanish School of Archeology in 1914, first in Seville and later in Niebla. The museum that she has set up near a small walled city is filled with materials from her excavations from all eras - from the Paleolithic to the Arab conquest.
Most of the finds of the Stone Age, housed in this museum, belong, according to experts, to the Paleolithic or the ancient Stone Age. They are apparently unique because they are not made of flint, like the Paleolithic artifacts in most other regions, but from other rocks, including quartz, porphyry and shale, minerals that remained on the surface mainly after the last glacier disappeared. The exhibits on display also include many Neolithic objects and numerous fragments of finely polished pottery, some of which are decorated with reliefs. Also near Seville, fragments of clay burial vessels were found next to human remains, which were classified as Cro-Magnon. Thus, one can at least admit that Paleolithic man made household items in this area.
It is well known that a high-level civilization flourished in Andalusia long before the Roman conquest. The ancient kingdom of Tartessus existed long before the Carthaginian invasion of southern Spain. Perhaps the basis of this Tartessian culture was the alliance of the Libyans who lived in the Atlas region of North Africa with the Stone Age people from Spain. But this assumption does not generally account for the high level of technical skill seen in the construction of large harbors, in the erection of Cyclopean walls and citadels, the remains of which constitute the predominant archaeological background of the area and show numerous signs of pre-Artessian craft. Niebla's soil has been probed and explored 30 feet deep, and is rich in Paleolithic artifacts with no sign of depletion of the cultural layer. Among these finds are tiny quartz darts, just under half an inch in size, beautifully finished porphyry fishhooks, small arrowheads, and a host of other miniature artifacts of a type commonly classified as Azilian, the exact purpose of which remains unclear.
Huge grain grinders were also unearthed there, again made from a local variety of black quartz. None of these items could be attributed to Niebla by the current of the river.
At the same time, Mrs. Wishaw was puzzled by the lack of Cro-Magnon dwellings in the surrounding area, so rich in Aurignacian finds. On the shoals of the Rio Tinto, opposite Niebla, there is a whole system of caves, but it is quite obvious that they were inhabited much later, when Cro-Magnon man gave way to a later race. However, in the places where many of these artifacts were found, much deeper than the base of Niebla, the lower tiers of the wall were found, cut from local limestone. This wall, together with the Paleolithic finds of Aurignacian origin, clearly belongs to the craft of the Cro-Magnon race, and if we remember the excellent examples of Aurignacian carving, this assumption does not seem so incredible.
The later foundations that were excavated date back to the Bronze Age. They are located outside the walls of Niebla, facing the river from the south, and are approximately 100 feet in length. They are made of material, the local name of which is Hormazo, a primitive and crude variety of a later, typical Andalusian mixture known as Hormigon. The use of one or the other of these materials is a kind of criterion that allows us to estimate the approximate age of a particular structure in this region, and it was thanks to him that the antiquity of the Cyclopean Wall, erected along the banks of the Rio Tinto to the east of the city, was established. It was composed of huge roughly hewn stones and held together with a mixture of Hormazo.
This structure was opened to the eye in 1923 as a result of a series of floods. The river bottom was artificially deepened along the entire length of the wall in order to form a bay. And as proof that this structure was the work of ancient craftsmen, a staircase more than thirty feet wide carved into the rock was found, which led to the river from one of the five large tower gates of the city. The wall was certainly built to prevent siltation of the artificial reservoir and at the same time to strengthen the city's defenses. Ms Wishaw recently received royal approval to excavate within the walls of Niebla, and she hopes to learn more about the earliest stage in the city's history, when this research will be carried out under the guidance of experienced specialists.
However, as it is already clear now, the excavations of Mrs. Wishaw prove that the Cro-Magnon race did erect stone buildings. After all, the cyclopean wall we are considering was found together with artifacts related to their culture. And also the fact that the Azilian or proto-Iberian race built a large ancient harbor in Huelva, the walls and stairs of which seem to resemble the strange multifaceted masonry of the Incas in Peru. Indeed, Mrs. Wishaw, an experienced archaeologist, attributes the structure to immigrants from Atlantis herself, and she is now preparing a lengthy essay to be titled Atlantis in Andalusia.
Therefore, nothing will prevent us from talking about "palaces" and "observatories" in Atlantis in the time of the Atlas. The latter probably resembled the inti-huatana of Peru, the Inca and pre-Inca, and there is nothing so incredible in imagining the sage Atlas sitting in such a room and busy studying the heavenly bodies.
From the fact that Atlas was immersed in astronomy research, we can conclude that his reign was peaceful. In all likelihood, it was long enough and contributed to the growth and consolidation of power in Atlantis.
Diodorus informs us that Jupiter was the king of the Atlanteans, and since he specifically notes that he should not be confused with the god of the same name, we can conclude that man was named after a deity. But there is some doubt: who - Saturn, brother of Atlas, or Jupiter, his son - was the heir to the throne. "This Jupiter," says Diodorus, "either inherited the throne from his father Saturn, as the ruler of the Atlanteans, or overthrew him." Thus, it turns out that either Saturn first ruled, leaving the throne to his son in the usual way, or Jupiter overthrew him. The latter seems to be more likely, as Diodorus reports that "Saturn is said to have started a war against his son with the help of the titans, but Jupiter overcame him in battle and took over the whole world." He also notes that Saturn was wicked and greedy.
Thus, we can assume that the unbelieving and stingy old ruler, or leader, whose greed and obscenity became a threat to the state, was removed by a more devout and discreet son. Saturn, as it has come down to us, resorted to the titans in the fight with his son, that is, probably the more ancient Aurignacian part of the population - the tall Cro-Magnons, and, probably, the attraction of these hitherto peaceful people is associated with the later unrest on Atlantis.
We can thus assume that Jupiter was the third king of Atlantis, or at least the third of those rulers about whom we have some definite idea. It was during his reign in Atlantis that the outbursts of political unrest that were to play such a disastrous role later began to appear. But it is possible, and in fact even more likely, that four significant figures in the history of Atlantis - Poseidon, Atlas, Saturn, and Jupiter - were the founders of four separate dynasties, as well as sole rulers. This conclusion can be drawn from the words of Plato, who says that "for many centuries they observed their royal origin, obeyed all laws and duly honored the gods of their ancestors." Four reigns could not cover such a length of time, and we come to the conclusion,that the named characters were the first monarchs of the new dynastic families. This is all the more likely that they bear the names of the "classical" gods, which the informant of Plato called them due to the impossibility of giving their Atlantean or Egyptian names in a form understandable to the Greeks. The founders of new dynasties almost always remain in history as beings of divine or semi-divine origin. There are several such cases in Egyptian history. The first Frankish king of the Merovingian dynasty, the Merovig is believed to have been of supernatural origin. Romans, Greeks, and Babylonians also have similar examples.which they were called by the informant of Plato because of the impossibility of giving their Atlantean or Egyptian names in a form understandable to the Greeks. The founders of new dynasties almost always remain in history as beings of divine or semi-divine origin. There are several such cases in Egyptian history. The first Frankish king of the Merovingian dynasty, the Merovig is believed to have been of supernatural origin. Romans, Greeks, and Babylonians also have similar examples.which they were called by the informant of Plato because of the impossibility of giving their Atlantean or Egyptian names in a form understandable to the Greeks. The founders of new dynasties almost always remain in history as beings of divine or semi-divine origin. There are several such cases in Egyptian history. The first Frankish king of the Merovingian dynasty, the Merovig is believed to have been of supernatural origin. Romans, Greeks, and Babylonians also have similar examples.and the Babylonians have similar examples.and the Babylonians have similar examples.
All of the above serves as a powerful argument in favor of the fact that the first four kings of Atlantis, whose names we know, were not gods, but people who were subsequently deified. This practice seems to have been common in Atlantis to deify kings after their death, just as was the case in Egypt and Rome, and often among the tribes of ancient England and the North American Indians. This, of course, immediately explains their acceptance of gods by subsequent generations. They were them, "gods," exactly in the sense in which Numa Pompilius or Marcus Aurelius were considered "gods" after death.
Since the Jupiter dynasty in Atlantis, a revolutionary spirit appears to have spread. “Over time,” says Plato, “the vicissitudes of human affairs gradually corrupted their divine institutions and they began to behave like the rest of the children of mankind. They became ambitious and ruled with violence. Then Zeus, the king of the gods, contemplating this race once so noble and seeing now depraved, decided to punish her so that sad experience would reduce her ambitious ardor."
It is with these words that Plato's Critias ends, and I believe that it was left unfinished because of his death. I also believe that he could tell us a lot more about Atlantis if he lived longer. The fragment under consideration, it seems to me, refers not to the events that preceded the final catastrophe, but to that part of the history of Atlantis in which the spirit of rebellion first raised its head. Saturn, an avaricious and wicked ruler, obviously aroused popular indignation and alienated not only his subjects, but also the heir. The latter probably led the uprising of the masses against the old tyrant, who, unable to enlist the support of his subjects, was forced to turn to the ancient race of the Aurignacians for help. A battle followed, as Diodorus says, in which Saturn and his allies were defeated, and he himself was removed from power.
But the Atlanteans, formerly quiet and law-abiding, are now infected with the fever of internecine war. The enmity between the opposing groups must have been sustained even after the establishment of a formal peace, and its consequences were to be expressed in a general state of political unrest and in chaotic sentiments. Obviously, at this stage Zeus - through the lips of the priests, of course - presented an ultimatum to the opposing groups. Apparently, the hierophants informed them that Zeus convened a council of the gods, at which their behavior was condemned. What happened after that - we do not know, at least that's all that Plato said. There is no doubt that he would tell about harsh criticism of God and his warnings and further acquaint us with the consequences. And these consequences, I am sure, would shed light on the circumstances that put an end to the civil strife,thanks to the prudent decisions of the king and priests, who drew public attention to the conquest of foreign territories - a policy that ended with the great invasion of Europe, described by Plato in his Timaeus and recorded by archeology as an invasion of the Azilian race.
Probably during the reign of the king of Atlantis, known as Jupiter, for this reason, it was decided to invade Europe. Plato makes it clear that this invasion was not the first, arguing that the kings of Atlantis "ruled Libya to Egypt and Europe to the borders of Etruria." These boundaries, as I have shown, correspond to the spread of the Azilian or Proto-Iberian race, but certainly not the Cro-Magnons. From this we can conclude that the people of the Azilian race raided Europe and Africa even before the massive invasions of these regions.
Now, oddly enough, in order to clarify the conditions on Atlantis in the epoch of interest to us, we are forced to turn to the source, at first glance, the least suitable in order to obtain the necessary evidence. Yet, upon careful consideration, we can be sure that this particular source provides us with the information we need. I mean the ancient literature of England and Ireland, the Welsh triads, Irish sagas and folk tales. In the first case, we get the most complete and most amazing information, which may turn out to be the key to the history of Atlantis of the period in question. Before we move on, let me examine this data and select from it information that undoubtedly contains a lot of interesting information about the foggy history of Atlantis.
Lewis Spence
- Part one -