The story of continents inhabited by advanced civilizations and subsequently sunk into the sea has excited the minds of historians since the time of Plato and even earlier.
Atlantis, popularized by the Greek philosopher Plato, is probably the most famous, but far from the only sunken continent. There are legends about other continents submerged under water, one of them was called Lemuria, the other - Mu. In addition, there are several sunken land masses that have been scientifically proven to exist, such as Zeeland, Doggerland and the Kerguelen Plateau.
The existence of Atlantis, the most famous sunken continent, has been debated for centuries. The main source of information about Atlantis is the dialogues of Plato "Timaeus" and "Critias". Plato did not use the term continent, he was describing the history of the island.
The influence of Atlantis extended into the Mediterranean region, beyond the Pillars of Hercules, which is now known as the Strait of Gibraltar. It is believed to have been larger than Libya and Asia combined.
According to Plato, the rulers of Atlantis were the descendants of Poseidon, the god of the sea and earthquakes.
The sun rises over the Ponta de São Lourenzo peninsula in the Atlantic Ocean on May 11, 2012 in Madeira, Portugal. It is possible that Atlantis was located near southern Spain. Photo: Dean Mouhtaropoulos
Atlantis was a powerful empire, its influence extended to Italy and Egypt. During the war with the ancestors of the ancient Greeks, Atlantis was destroyed by earthquakes, volcanic eruptions and floods, about 9000 years before Plato described these events in 360 BC.
In indicating the source of the legend, Plato referred to the ancient Greek historian Timaeus. According to the Atlantis Quest, Critias heard this story from Solon, Plato's ancestor and Greek legislator, during a trip to Egypt in 590 BC. Apparently, in the city of Sais, he heard the legend about the sunken earth from the Egyptian priests.
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It is interesting that about Solon's journey to Egypt is mentioned in the work of Plutarch "Solon", written about 75 AD.
The location of Atlantis is still controversial. Some historians believe that the land masses off the coast of Crete are Atlantis. The most recent hypothesis is put forward by the physicist Rainer Kuehne, who believes that Atlantis was located in southern Spain and was destroyed by a flood between 800 BC. and 500 BC, according to National Geographic.
"Satellite imagery shows rectangular structures and concentric circles, which is consistent with Plato's description of the city and palaces of Atlantis," Kuehne told National Geographic. His research was published in the journal Antiquity.
Atlantis Quest brings up another curious theory. The continent could have been part of the Azores Plateau and quickly sank due to the subsidence of the seabed. The most interesting thing is that the time of these geological changes coincides with the period given by Plato.