Vladimir Obruchev

THE LEGEND OF ATLANTIS

An excerpt from the story

1. Strange find

I spent my summers in a small resort on the Atlantic Ocean in Brittany. Actually, it was not a resort, but a small fishing village, to which people from big cities came in the summer, looking for complete peace and relaxation in direct contact with nature. This is not given by any resort with its crowd of people who are being treated or simply having fun, with its kursaal, music, an exhibition of women's toilets, and if it is on the seashore, then a beach on which there are more people than grains of sand.

To give rest to the nerves, weary of city life, is possible only in a place where there is neither a kursaal, nor music, nor a city crowd.

Such truly "resorts" can be found in the most remote corners of the coast of France, known to a few nature lovers. Along with modest housing and sufficient, albeit monotonous food (milk, eggs, fish), they also have a beach, although a small one, and the sea, and picturesque rocks, clean air and complete peace. The fishermen have already adapted to summer guests: they rent out the best room in their hut [at home], moving to a barn or under some kind of shed for the summer, if they have only one room.

It is enough to move a quarter of a mile from the village - and you will find yourself completely alone on the seashore, on the sand or among the rocks, or in the expanse of fields extending inland, and you can enjoy hours of communication with nature and unperturbed peace.

I spent the summer in one of these villages: it consisted of a dozen huts [houses], half of which were occupied by the same lovers of real relaxation as I was. Knowing why each of us chose this place, we tried not to interfere with each other. Everyone had their favorite place on the seashore, which others did not occupy. Only during dinner, and especially after sunset, did we gather for an hour or two on the edge of the village to chat, exchange Parisian news before going to bed, and the fishermen, if they were not busy, took part in conversations and informed us of their "sea » news about fishing, storms and bad luck. We were often present at the unloading of fish from boats and learned to distinguish all kinds of fish that we had no idea about before, knowing them only as an integral part of the restaurant menu.

I often went several versts from the village, climbing over rocky headlands, at the foot of which the surf was noisy; rested on the sand of a small bay formed between them. The entire coast of this area consisted of such an alternation of picturesque rocky headlands protruding into the sea, and soft, more or less wide bays. In calm weather, lying on some block, you can look for hours into the neighboring transparent-green depths, follow the underwater life, watching how fish glide in groves of green and red algae, sparkling with sharp turns with silvery scales, how crabs crawl, how various shells open and close their doors; or, in a strong wind, watch the waves crashing against the rocks, weaving an ever-changing lace of foam, listening to their lulling noise. In the bays, stretching out on the sand under a receding cliff, you can bask in the sun for hours, throwing off your shy clothes, watching the clouds floating across the blue sky, or the waves crashing onto the beach. And at low tide, when the sea recedes dozens of fathoms, what a pleasure it is to wander barefoot on hard, wet sand, collecting rich curiosities left by the sea - shells, jellyfish, fish, catching crabs and then hurrying to the shore before the coming surf, flooding your feet.

On one of these long-distance excursions, I lay down on the sand of a small bay, bounded by two far-protruding capes. The eyes are tired of the glitter of the waves, the hearing is tired of the sound of the surf. I lay down with my back to the sea and sank into dreams of half-drowsiness. Between the capes, the bay was bounded by a cliff three fathoms high, over which stretched a rare pine forest, battered by storms. It was possible to get into the bay only through the rocks of one or another cape, since the cliff was almost sheer, so the bay was visited very rarely. During storms, waves rolled up to the very foot of the cliff, maintaining its sheerness. Everything that accumulated during the constant destruction in the interval between storms and could eventually smooth out the cliff was carried away by the waves.

Lying facing the cliff, for the first time I paid attention to its composition: in the lower part, the same rocks that made up the rocks of the capes came out, but at the top, on their uneven surface, a thickness of pebbles leaned, one and a half to two fathoms, a product of the work of the waves of bygone times when the sea level was higher than it is now. Large and small boulders and pebbles formed irregular layers, alternating with gravel and sand; this material was connected to each other quite firmly, which is why it was held vertically.

Following mechanically the individual layers of pebbles and boulders in their whimsical combination, I noticed in one place a boulder of some strange, completely quadrangular shape, as if the sea had not done any work on it to round off its sharp corners and edges. It was almost directly above the rocky part of the cliff, in the lower layer of boulders.

"I'll have to check it out sometime," I thought, and fell back into my daydreams.

A few days later, going on a regular walk along the coast, I remembered this strange boulder and grabbed my geological hammer, which at first I always carried with me, but then, having studied the composition of all the rocks, I left it at home as unnecessary, preferring to take a net for catching crabs . So, armed with a hammer, I reached the bay and climbed up the slope, strewn with boulders, to the foot of the cliff.

The mysterious boulder stuck out over my head at a height of two feet, and I hardly got it out with a hammer. The first light blow struck me. It sounded muffled, like I had hit a tree. I began to examine the boulder attentively, now at close range, and was even more surprised - it had the shape of a regular rectangular parallelepiped, a foot and a half long and up to one foot high, matte black in color, except for ocher-brown streaks and spots that sometimes hid its real color.

“Probably a fragment of a beam of some ship,” I decided; and since this was no longer of geological interest, he stepped off the cliff and lay down in his usual place on the sand, indulging in his lazy dreams.

But then the thought returned to this wooden boulder. He was buried under two fathoms of pebbles and boulders, and this circumstance made me think. Such a thickness could have accumulated over a very long time even when the sea level was much higher than now. Consequently, the fragment fell into place a very long time ago, not centuries, but many [?] millennia have passed since then. And if this is part of the ship, then some ancient Vikings, Normans, maybe the Romans of the time before the birth of Christ. And although I was not engaged in archeology, it seemed interesting to me to examine this fragment closer. But how to get to it? There were no stairs or any material for scaffolding nearby. I had to postpone the inspection until the next day.

But the next day, in the morning, a violent storm broke out, and the road along the seashore became inaccessible. Huge waves roared over the rocky headlands and burst into the bays one after another, like green monsters with a curved neck and a white mane. The rocks trembled under the blows of this frenzied attack, the spray flew up in fountains above the crest of the cliffs. Admiring from above the various pictures of the furious surf, I completely forgot about my yesterday's find, and when I saw how high the waves poured into the bays, I thought that I would never see it again - it must have been washed out by the surf and carried away.

Only two days later the storm subsided, the sea calmed down and was only slightly agitated under the warm rays of the sun, as if tamed by someone's imperious hand during a frenzied gust. I took the usual route to a distant bay, secretly hoping that the fragment of the ancient ship had not been carried away by the water and, perhaps, even remained in its shelter, in which it had lain for so many centuries. But the hope was so weak that I did not take with me a small ladder, which I looked out for in the attic of my master's hut [house].

Descending from the rocks to the bay, I already noticed from a distance that in the place where this fragment was supposed to be, some kind of dark object protruded strongly in the cliff. I quickened my steps - and in a few minutes I was already at the foot of the cliff. What happiness! The fragment not only remained in place, but became unexpectedly easily accessible - it had already been freed by three-quarters or more from the surrounding pebbles, washed out to its full height by the impacts of the waves. It stuck out, keeping its narrow end in the cliff, and it was clear that one more such storm - and he would find himself in the waves.

I touched it with a hammer and felt it yield slightly to pressure. A few light blows to the right and left on the protruding part - and the fragment fell out, accompanied by a bunch of boulders and pebbles, to the foot of the cliff. I even had to jump back so that my leg would not be hurt by a hail of stones. I managed to notice that these stones, falling on the fragment, made dull sounds, as if they were hitting a hollow object. This, of course, increased my curiosity, and, barely waiting for the end of shedding, I rushed at the prey, like a kite at a gaping chicken. Throw away stones, shovel sand - it was a matter of a few seconds. And here lies something really strange in front of me. This, of course, is not a fragment of an ancient ship, but something incomparably more interesting. It was immediately evident that this something was sewn into a coarse, tarred cloth, the threads of which stood out clearly thanks to the light dust that had accumulated in the cells.

“Have I found some ancient treasure? I thought. - How did he get here? Who buried it and when?

Inspection of the cliff above the depression, which was left after the object fell out, showed me that there could be no question of a buried treasure. The layers of pebbles and boulders were passing normally, there was no visible disturbance of the structure, which would be revealed inevitably if people dug a hole to lower this object into it. Therefore, the only possible explanation for his presence was that he was thrown out by the waves back then...

History of Atlantis: myths, conjectures, riddles and real facts

More than one generation of researchers has been arguing about the existence of Atlantis, a mighty ancient state that once and for all disappeared from the face of the Earth. Interest in this topic arose after the works of the ancient Greek philosopher Plato saw the light. It was Plato who first wrote about Atlantis, described the ancient civilization, the strength and power of the Atlanteans. Whether it was a deliberately and skillfully created myth, or we are dealing with a description of the real facts of the ancient history of human civilization - remains a mystery. Neither before nor after it was possible to obtain and find evidence of the existence of the Atlantean state. The secrets of Atlantis remain unsolved to this day, forcing historians to put forward new hypotheses, and researchers to look for the place of the disappeared island-state on the map of the planet.

The civilization of Atlantis is a source of controversy

Today, a huge number of works have been written about the disappeared mighty civilization of the ancient world, starting with poetic essays and literary descriptions, ending with serious scientific treatises. In each individual case, you have to deal with a huge set of assumptions and hypotheses that the ancient world looked different than today's map of the world looks like. Another new hypothesis gives rise to a new myth, which instantly acquires new details, assumptions and details. Another thing is the complete absence of facts capable of answering the question: did Atlantis exist in reality or not. This meager research material remains the lot of science fiction writers and atlantologists. Skeptics believe that the history of Atlantis is an artificially created phenomenon in modern historical science.

It is necessary to consider the problem of Atlantis in two aspects: from the point of view of the historical epic, and using a scientific approach. In the first case, one has to deal with the evidence base and materials, the existence of which is never disputed by anyone. The palm in this area belongs to the works of Plato. The ancient Greek philosopher mentioned the mighty state of antiquity in the dialogues Critias and Timaeus, which were compiled on the basis of the diaries of another prominent ancient Greek philosopher Solon, who was Plato's great-grandfather. With the light hand of Plato, the name of the ancient state appeared, and its inhabitants began to be called Atlanteans.

In his notes and books, the ancient philosopher relied on a legend according to which the ancient Greeks fought against the state of the Atlanteans. The confrontation ended with a grandiose cataclysm that led to the death of Atlantis. According to the ancients, it was this catastrophe that led to the fact that the city-island of Atlantis disappeared forever from the face of the planet. What catastrophe on a planetary scale has led to such consequences is still not known and has not been proven. Another question is that in the scientific community at the moment there is a point of view that 12 thousand years BC. the world really suffered a major catastrophe that changed the geography of the planet.

Plato's dialogue "Timaeus" quite accurately indicates the location of the country of the Atlantes, is full of descriptions of the details of the culture and life of the Atlanteans. Thanks to the efforts of the ancient Greek philosopher, the lost civilization is being persistently searched for in the Atlantic Ocean. Just one phrase "opposite the Pillars of Hercules", recorded by Plato, indicates the location of the legendary country. More accurate data on the location of the mysterious ancient state are not available, so many researchers on this topic believe that Atlantis could be located in any other part of the ancient world.

The inconsistency of many of the facts set forth in the works of Plato raised a number of questions for subsequent generations. The main secrets of Atlantis are as follows:

• whether there is a high probability of the existence of an island of such a large size, traces of which are almost completely absent today;
• what catastrophe that occurred in antiquity could lead to the instant death of a large state;
• could there have existed in such ancient times a civilization with such a high level of development, which is attributed to the Atlanteans by ancient and modern researchers;
• why today there are no real traces from the past, indicating the existence of Atlantis;
• whether we are descendants of a highly developed culture of the Atlanteans.

How did the contemporaries of the ancient Greeks see Atlantis

Studying Plato's writings, we can briefly summarize the information that has come down to us. We are dealing with the history of the existence and mystical disappearance of a large archipelago or a large island, which was located in the west of the then ancient world. The central city of the superpower was Atlantis, which owes its name to the first king of the state, Atlantis. The island location explains the state structure of the empire. Probably Atlantis, like many cities of ancient Greece, was a union of island rulers united under imperial rule. Perhaps there was a different state system in Atlantis, but Plato's dialogues give the names of kings, after whom other islands of the empire are named. Hence, ancient civilization took the form of a union or confederation.

Another question lies in Plato's detailed description of the life order of the mysterious power. All the main buildings and structures of the state are located on the central island. The acropolis, royal palace and temples are protected by several rows of earthen ramparts and a system of water channels. The inner regions of the island are connected to the sea by a huge shipping channel, so we can safely say that the power of Atlantis was focused on achieving sea power. Moreover, according to Plato, the Atlanteans worship Poseidon (the ancient Greek god, the ruler of the seas and oceans - the brother of Zeus). In Plato, the temples of the Atlanteans, their architecture and home improvement shine with luxury and wealth. Reaching the shores of Atlantis, surrounded on all sides by water, and the path to the island lay only by sea, was not an easy task for sailors of that time.

Plato in his narratives is very fond of describing the improvement of the capital of the Atlanteans. The most interesting thing in this aspect is that the descriptions of the ancient Greek philosopher strongly resemble the descriptions of other ancient Greek cities found in other ancient sources. The described infrastructure, weapons, ships, religion and lifestyle of the inhabitants of Atlantis look like the height of human perfection and a model of well-being.

The mystery of Atlantis in Plato's descriptions is present at every turn. Is it not surprising that people live far from the centers of civilization known to the then world, but they have a fairly high level of development, they can make long sea voyages, trade with everyone around, eat spices and other cultures. The Atlanteans have a powerful army and a numerous fleet capable of confronting the armies of the ancient states of the Mediterranean.

This should be the point. Only Plato was able to describe the life and structure of the legendary state in such a clear and detailed way. To find other sources that would point to such facts was not, is not, and probably will not be. Neither the Sumerians nor the ancient Egyptians say anything about a large state in the Western Hemisphere. The ancient ruins of the Indian civilizations of North and South America are silent about interaction with the mysterious and powerful state. How many years ago could such a powerful civilization be located in the central Atlantic, about which there is still no real evidence.

Secrets of Atlantis: myths and legends against real facts

Some researchers continue to feed the world with illusions that Atlantis really was. Following the lead of Plato, who pointed out the exact location of the island, researchers in search of Atlantis check the territory in the Azores, in the Bahamas. This is facilitated by the consonance of the names of the Atlantic Ocean and the legendary island.

According to one version, Atlantis was located in the Azores. Studies of the seamount Ampere, located on the way from Europe to America, and the adjacent areas of the Atlantic mid-ridge did not give any results. The geological and morphological structure of the seabed does not give grounds to believe that a large geological formation existed in this area of ​​the earth's crust in ancient times. Even a gigantic cataclysm that wiped out such a large island or archipelago from the face of the earth would have left behind indisputable evidence. If the island sank as a result of a successive chain of earthquakes and floods, then its remains could be found today.

Modern scientists do not have data on a major geological and tectonic catastrophe that befell the earth in antiquity. The biblical data about the global flood that befell the Earth and mankind take us to a completely different era. All information, events and facts that speak in favor of the existence of Atlantis in this part of the globe do not stand up to criticism, if you rely on the theory proposed by Plato.

Supporters of another hypothesis, the Mediterranean one, have stronger evidence in their favor. However, there are also a number of points that cause controversy. What were the real boundaries of such a powerful union, and where could such a large island or a small mainland be located. The western border of the world known to people of that time lies along the Pillars of Hercules - now the Strait of Gibraltar, connecting the Mediterranean Sea with the Atlantic. Why, with such eventfulness and closeness, the ancient world did not have cartographic data on the location of a large state that influences the political and economic structure of the world. On maps compiled by the ancient Greeks, Phoenicians and Egyptians that have come down to our times, known areas are limited to the Mediterranean region, the territories of Southern Europe, the Middle East and North Africa.

Many atlantologists increasingly agree that a civilization of this size could exist in the Eastern Mediterranean, in the explored sphere of political and economic interests of ancient states. The disappearance of the island and the death of the country of the Atlanteans can be tied to the catastrophic eruption of the Santorin volcano, which erupted around the 17th century BC. This hypothesis takes place, since it is during this period that the heyday of the Cretan state falls. According to this theory, the volcanic eruption not only destroyed half of the island of Thera, but also destroyed the numerous city-states that existed in this region. If we put aside the question of names and the link to Plato's statements about the Pillars of Hercules, such a picture of the ancient world has the right to life.

In this context, the version about the existence in ancient times of a powerful state that competes with the ancient Greek cities-policies coexists perfectly. The facts of the strongest cataclysm of that time were also noted in ancient sources. Today, volcanologists and oceanologists reasonably consider this version of the death of Atlantis to be quite real. Scientists have found evidence that the Minoan civilization really had a huge military power and had a high level of development, allowing it to confront the Greek states.

Sparta and Athens are located 300-400 kilometers north of the islands of Thira and Crete, which are ideal for the location of the Atlantean state. The explosion of the volcano, which destroyed a mighty state in one night, destroyed the balance in the world that existed until that moment. The consequences of such a large-scale disaster affected the entire southern Europe, North Africa and the coast of the Middle East.

Versions in favor of another location of the legendary power today have no basis. Researchers are increasingly linking the existence of Atlantis with Plato's philosophical view of the existing world. This is echoed by other sources in which the land of the Atlanteans is associated with other mythical territories and states that existed in the imagination of the ancient Greeks.

Hyperborea and Atlantis - ancient mythical states

When asked where to look for Atlantis today, the answer may sound prosaic. You have to search everywhere. Relying on ancient sources is possible only in those cases when the question is raised about the cultural heritage that has come down to our times. In the sense in which we perceive Atlantis today as an imaginary country and highly developed civilization, the ancient Greeks at one time represented Hyperborea. This mythical country, located in the far north, a thousand kilometers from the coast of Ancient Greece, was considered by the Greeks as the habitat of the Hyperboreans, the descendants of the gods. Is this not the Atlantis that Plato wanted to tell the world about when writing his treatises?

Hyperborean lands, according to modern scientists, should have been located on the territory of the current Scandinavian countries: in Iceland or in Greenland. The Greeks directly pointed out that even Apollo himself, the god of the sun, was considered the patron of this people. What are these lands, do they really exist? It was assumed that Hyperborea is a fictional country for the ancient Greeks, where perfect and powerful people live, the gods rest. The country that Apollo regularly visits may be the same Atlantis - the state that the ancient Greeks aspired to in their development.

The mystery of Atlantis is described in many works, both adventure novels and serious scientific research. To date, scientists and enthusiastic researchers have put forward more than 1,700 hypotheses about the location of this mysterious continent and the reasons for its disappearance without a trace. However, not so unimportant.

One of the most prominent scientists of ancient Greece, Plato, in the works "Critias" and "Timaeus", mentions Atlantis, referring to data from the diaries of his great-grandfather, the no less famous Athenian poet and statesman Solon. An Egyptian priest told him about the existence of a large country of the Atlanteans, which fought with the Greeks as far back as 9000. According to this fragmentary information, the land of the Atlanteans was somewhere on the other side of the Pillars of Hercules. According to Plato, according to Solon, Atlantis was a large and rich country with large cities and a very developed economy at that time. The picturesque territory of the country, covered with dense forests, was cut by numerous irrigation canals. Atlantis was a federation of ten kingdoms. The Atlanteans hoped to expand their territory and tried to enslave Athens and Egypt, however, they suffered a crushing defeat in the fight against the Athenian army. According to the same data, as a result of a terrible earthquake during the day, the mighty Atlantis disappeared forever under water.

Scientists to this day have not come to a consensus regarding Plato's story about this mysterious country. Perhaps Atlantis was just a product of one of the ancient Greek legends? This assumption is supported by the fact that not all of Plato's stories were believed even by his contemporaries. According to these scientists, in such ancient times, 9000 years before the birth of Plato, such a highly developed culture could not have existed. It could not for the simple reason that at that time the end of the ice age had just come. Many scientists agree that at one time cavemen and highly developed Atlanteans could live. And can it be that an entire country suddenly disappeared without a trace. However, most scientists argue that Atlantis could well exist in reality, because the legends had to have at least some basis, and most of the myths reflected the events that took place in reality.

After all, the ruins of the once mythical ancient Troy, which was also considered a figment of the fantasy of blind Homer, were found by archaeologists. And not so long ago, the fact was scientifically proven that the ancient Greeks could make quite long long journeys on their ships, and, like Odysseus, reach the shores of Colchis, the country of the Golden Fleece. As for the huge and destructive power of earthquakes, then, according to geologists, it is really capable of burying a vast territory in a short time.

True, if we assume that Atlantis really existed, another rather important question arises. Where should researchers go, where should they look for this mythical land? Scientists from different times and countries could never come to a consensus. Some of them believed that the mysterious Atlantis sank to the bottom of the central part of the Atlantic Ocean - somewhere between two continents, Europe and North America. This statement is based on the words of Plato, who noted that the mysterious land was located in front of the strait, called the Pillars of Heracles (framed by the rocks of Abilik and Kalpa), which was located near the Strait of Gibraltar. In addition, many of the same species of animals and plants live in these lands. In addition, not so long ago, the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, located in the depths of the Atlantic Ocean, was discovered. A vast plateau with a number of ridges adjoins the ridge, the peaks of which form the Azores.

It is likely that this area was once land and about 12 thousand years ago, during a geological catastrophe, it sank to the ocean floor. This period just coincides with the alleged time of the existence of Atlantis. After that, the warm Gulf Stream finally reached the shores of Northern Europe, and as a result, the ice age ended in our part of the world. This version of warming in Europe was put forward by the Russian scientist N.F. Zhirov, as well as some other researchers. It is likely that the Azores and the island of Madeira are the very remnants of the lost mainland. According to some scientists, not all the inhabitants of Atlantis died during the collapse of their mainland - some survivors reached the shores of America, while others reached Europe. It was they who laid the foundation for the greatest civilizations of Mexico and Peru, as well as Egypt and Mesopotamia. This explains the striking similarity in their architecture, traditions and religions, all the more surprising because the countries were far from each other.

Indeed, the inhabitants of both sides of the Atlantic equally worshiped the Sun, and believed in the myth of the global flood, which was widespread both in Mesopotamia and among the Indian tribes that inhabited South and North America. It is amazing that the language of the Basques living in the north of Spain in the Pyrenees mountains is absolutely different from other European languages, but at the same time it is very similar to the languages ​​of some Indian tribes. And the ancient pyramids created by our ancestors in Mexico and Egypt have a lot in common.

In addition, in both countries there is a custom of mummification of the dead, moreover, the same objects are placed in their graves. But the main thing is that in the places where the burials of the Mayan tribes are located, archaeologists find jewelry made of green jade, the deposits of which simply do not exist in America. Maybe he got there from Atlantis?

According to a legend widespread among the Indians of Peru and Mexico, which tells about the white god Quetzacoatl, he arrived on the mainland on a sailboat from the edge of the early sun - that is, from the east. God taught the Indian tribes construction and craft, revealed laws and religion to them, and then mysteriously disappeared. The Peruvians, who did not know about the existence of the Aztecs, believed in the same legend, with one amendment - their god was called Viracocha. Perhaps these people came from Atlantis? It is believed that their images are found on the walls of the cities of Chichen Itza and Tiguanacu.

Scientists refer to the evidence of the existence of Atlantis and the ruins of ancient Indian cities, the remains of which are located in the Peruvian Andes and the impenetrable jungle of the Yucatan Peninsula.

In the autumn of 1970, while inspecting the coastal waters of the Bahamas in the Atlantic Ocean from a seaplane, D. Rebikov, a French archaeologist and aquanaut, noticed strange ruins of some buildings on the ocean floor near the island of North Bimini. Divers who went down under the water found giant walls more than a hundred meters long. They were built from giant blocks, each of which weighed about 25 tons. By whom were they built? Perhaps Atlanteans? True, it was soon discovered that these "walls" arose as a result of cracking of coastal rocks that had gone under water due to the gradual sinking to the bottom of the Bahamas.

They are also looking for Atlantis in the Mediterranean. The most plausible is the opinion of the Russian scientist A. S. Norov, who considered the island of Crete and many small Greek islands to the north of it to be the remnants of a continent that had sunk into oblivion. The well-known Soviet geographer L. S. Berg agreed with this opinion. Today, this theory is supported by the vast majority of scientists. This version is supported by recent studies in this area and in the Atlantic Ocean.

When studying the area of ​​​​the alleged death of Atlantis at the bottom of the Atlantic Ocean, scientists found that the average thickness of sedimentary rocks in this zone is about 4 meters. At the same time, at the current rate of accumulation of such rocks, which is 10-15 mm per thousand years, this will require at least 300 thousand years, and certainly not 12 thousand, as argued by supporters of the Atlantean origin of the mysterious Atlantis.

In addition, according to evidence from oceanographic studies of recent times, the Mid-Atlantic Ridge is the result of a geological event during which the continents of Africa and South America were “torn apart”. Scientists separately noted the features of the coastline pattern: the western line of the African mainland and the eastern line of the South American.

Accordingly, in order for Atlantis to be located in the Atlantic Ocean, there is simply no place in it. But then what to do with Plato's message about where the disappeared country is located, allegedly located in front of the Pillars of Hercules, that is, the Strait of Gibraltar? Under the name "Pillars of Hercules" before Plato could mean a completely different place. What is it? Disputes of researchers do not subside until now.

Regarding the Mediterranean location of Atlantis, assumed by most scientists, they provide a number of fairly weighty evidence.

For example, it has been established that on the island of Thira (Santorini), located in the Aegean Sea, about 3.5 thousand years ago there was a volcanic explosion of destructive power, similar to the one that was noted in 1883 on the island of Krakatoa in the southeast Asia, including the islands of Indonesia. Apparently, it was the greatest geological catastrophe in the entire history of our planet.

In terms of its strength, the explosion of the Santorin volcano was equal to the explosion of about 200 thousand atomic bombs, identical to those that were once dropped on Hiroshima.

Scientist Garun Taziyev gives the approximate date of the explosion - 1470 BC and claims that as a result, about 80 billion cubic meters rose into the air. m of crushed rock, and the waves that arose in the process reached 260 m. Danish scientists reasonably believe that the explosion took place in 1645 BC. e., - almost 150 years earlier.

Just at that time, the islands located in this part of the Aegean Sea were ruled by the Minoans, who achieved great success in science and handicrafts. As a result of a powerful volcanic explosion, as it was found, one of the developed cities on the island of Thira and the center of the civilization of the Minoans, located on Crete - Knossos, perished.

Most of the territory of the state was absorbed by the Aegean Sea. Probably, it was this event, the echo of which reached Plato through the centuries, and was reflected in his story about the country of the Atlanteans. True, in the interpretation of Plato, the size of the sunken continent is much larger, and the time of the catastrophe is shifted many thousands of years ago.

In other words, according to the opinion of the fans of this hypothesis, in the descriptions of Plato we are talking about the state of the Minoans. Indeed, according to his data, Atlantis was a developed maritime power, and the same could be said about the country of the Minoans, which had an impressive navy. Plato said that fat herds of sacred bulls grazed on the island of Atlantis, of which the Minoans had a lot, and they were also considered sacred. A ditch was discovered on the seabed near Tyra, similar to the one that, according to Plato, protected the fortress in the capital of Atlantis. Now the island of Thira is a fragment left after the explosion of a giant volcano. Excavated in 1967, the ruins of the Minoan city lay under a thick layer of volcanic ash and, like Pompeii, are perfectly preserved. Archaeologists have found many colored frescoes and even wooden objects here.

In 1976, the famous French scientist and aquanaut Jacques Yves Cousteau discovered the remains of an ancient Minoan civilization at the bottom of the Aegean Sea near the island of Crete. According to his calculations, it was destroyed during the crushing eruption of the Santorin volcano, which occurred in 1450 BC. e. Nevertheless, Cousteau always considered Atlantis a beautiful fairy tale by Plato.

The authority of Cousteau's opinion forced many scientists to "return" again to the hypothesis of the Atlantic Atlantis. The impetus for this decision was the discovery of a group of seamounts to the west of Gibraltar, which have table-like peaks, located only 100-200 meters below sea level. Many scientists consider these mountains to be the remains of a vast archipelago that sank in ancient times.

Pictures taken by a researcher at the Institute of Oceanology of the USSR Academy of Sciences in 1973 became a sensation. At that time, he took part in an expedition on the vessel "Akademik Kurchatov". Looking at eight underwater photographs taken by him, you can see the ruins of the fortress wall and other buildings on top of one of the seamounts.

As a result of the conducted in 1983-1984. research, scientists of the research vessels "Akademik Vernadsky" and "Vityaz" with the help of underwater vehicles "Paisis" and "Argus" confirmed that Mount Amper is an extinct volcano that once sank to the ocean floor. Well, the notorious ruins are far from the creations of human hands, but ordinary natural formations.

This means that the unsuccessful search for Atlantis in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean only confirms the conclusions of scientists looking for traces of her presence in the Aegean Sea. True, some disagreements arose in their orderly ranks. The reason for this in 1987 was the Russian scientist I. Mashnikov. He logically rethought the works of Plato and put forward a new hypothesis.

First of all, he disputes the time of the death of Atlantis, as well as some other data of Plato. For example, the number of land and sea forces of the Atlanteans. Judging by the words of Plato, the Atlanteans had a huge armada - 1200 ships, as well as an army, according to experts, amounting to more than a million soldiers. Accordingly, the Greek army that defeated the Atlanteans should have been no less numerous. According to Mashnikov’s quite logical reasoning, during the ice age such a huge army simply had nowhere to come from, given that at that time the number of inhabitants of the entire planet was no more than 3-4 million people, while being at a fairly low level of development.

Accordingly, we are most likely talking about a different, much later time. Mashnikov says that ancient people recorded nine thousand as ten thousand minus one thousand, and, accordingly, nine hundred as one thousand minus one hundred. In the system of calculus adopted in Egypt, a thousand was denoted by the sign "M", and in the ancient Greek system "M" meant ten thousand. Apparently, Solon simply rewrote the Egyptian signs from ancient Egyptian documents, and Plato understood them in ancient Greek. Thus, 9000 appeared instead of 900.

Considering that Solon "stayed" in Egypt (560 BC) 900 years after the death of Atlantis, the approximate date of the disaster is 1460 BC. e. plus a possible error of 100-150 years.

Scientists, looking for Atlantis in the Atlantic, according to Mashnikov, took a false trail, because they did not doubt that the Platonic Pillars of Hercules, behind which this land was located, is the Strait of Gibraltar. But, under the Pillars of Hercules, apparently, some other place was meant. However, Plato has direct indications that allow you to determine the location of Atlantis. Plato says that along the Pillars of Hercules the maritime border between the country of Atlantis and the Athenian state was laid. And this means that these pillars could only be in the Aegean Sea. In another place of his story, Plato directly indicates that Athens opposed the state of the Atlanteans, which can be interpreted not only as a war, but also as a geographical one, that is, they were on the other side - on the peninsula of Asia Minor. At that time there was the land of the Hittites. In addition, according to the author, only here the cities were built according to a circular plan, creating canals, as if outlined by a compass.

But after all, Plato spoke of Atlantis as a large island that sank to the bottom of the sea. It can be assumed that part of this state was indeed located on an island, though not as large as Plato claimed. Probably, it was this island, and by no means the whole country, that perished as a result of a volcanic eruption or an earthquake, as a result of which only a chain of islands remained, which is now called the Sporades. It turns out that Atlantis is actually Hittia or its island part. In addition, Plato, in his retelling of Solon, claimed that Atlantis was at war with Athens. And from the sources it is known that in the XIV century. BC e. Egypt waged war with the Hittites, and after a while Athens entered the war, according to the historian Herodotus, inflicted a heavy defeat on the Hittites and captured 13 of their cities. Subsequently, the Hittite empire collapsed.

According to I. Mashnikov, the war between the Hittites and Athens is the key to unraveling another mystery. Obviously, "Atlanteans" is not a nationality, but a contemptuous name for an enslaved people. The sculpture of the enemy, who became a slave and propped up the cornice, was a symbol of the courage of the winners and the humility of the vanquished. The defeated Hittites were turned into slaves and became Atlanteans, their fallen state began to be called Atlantis. "Perhaps these arguments are not far from the truth.

An unusual version of the origin of Atlantis was put forward in 1992 by the German scientist Zangger. Some researchers consider his book about the secrets of Atlantis simply brilliant. According to Zangger, Plato's narrative is a distorted memory of the once fallen Troy. This ancient city, which was located near the Dardanelles and was described by Homer in the XII century. BC e. as fallen under the onslaught of the Greeks, was considered a myth. But, in 1871, the ruins of Troy were found by the German scientist G. Schliemann. At the same time, Zangger provides quite a lot of weighty evidence for this hypothesis, especially if we take into account the coincidences in the descriptions of Homer and Plato of the area in which Troy was located.

But what about the fact that Plato does not speak of a plain, but of a large island? Zanger believes that Solon is to blame for this. When reading hieroglyphic inscriptions on a pillar when visiting the main temple in the residence of the Egyptian pharaohs, located in Saisi, he made a mistake. Allegedly, these hieroglyphs denoted a sandy strip or coast. A serious mistake was also made in the designation of the place where Atlantis was located on the other side of the Pillars of Hercules. It is possible that this name was borne by the Dardanelles.

According to the author of this version, another serious mistake crept into Plato's story, which consisted in incorrectly determining the time of the catastrophe. After all, on the column of the Egyptian temple, a story is written that nine thousand years ago the Greeks overthrew a powerful state - Atlantis. This hypothesis also has a weak side - inconsistencies, which the author explains by the mistakes of the ancient sages. In addition, the justification for determining the date of the war is rather unconvincing.

In general, each of the hypotheses has a certain rational grain, and which of them will eventually turn out to be true, only time will tell. Or a new hypothesis - after all, the mystery of Atlantis has not been solved so far.

Chapter 1. The Legend of Atlantis

“Atlantis is supposed to be discovered, but not in the Atlantic, but in the Aegean,” was the title of an article in the Norfolk Ledger-Star of July 19, 1967. linked to Atlantis" appeared in the New York Times the same day. The articles are devoted to the discovery of the city of Minoa, buried under a 9-meter thickness of volcanic ash on the island of Thira in the Aegean Sea. The excavations were supervised by Dr. James W. Mavor of the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institute and Emily Vermeuli, professor of art and Greek at Wellesley College. Mavor and Vermeuli connected their discovery with Atlantis, since evidence of the existence of a highly developed civilization, as well as its sudden and violent death, was found on the island ... Pay attention to both headings. The value of these messages was seen not only in the discovery of a practically preserved city that flourished about 1500 years BC, but in its possible connection with the mythical Atlantis. This was the latest attempt to make the legend of Atlantis a reality by changing its location and time of existence.

The most ancient and known to us references to Atlantis are contained in Timaeus and Critias, two dialogues of Plato, which date back to the 5th century BC. BC Plato introduces information about Atlantis into a conversation between Solon and an Egyptian priest in Sais. It is spoken of as a large island in the Atlantic Ocean, which sank into the water as a result of a volcanic eruption about nine thousand years earlier.

Since the time of Plato, mostly in the last two hundred years, hundreds of books and articles have been written about Atlantis. Some have tried to prove that Plato's story of Atlantis is not only possible but probable. Others argued that Atlantis was just a myth, or they considered it as a historical fact, but correlated it not with the Atlantic Ocean, but with other places and with a later time.

A significant proportion of the literature on Atlantis is the numerous works of esotericists of various persuasions, as well as the chaotic production of eccentric personalities. The attention paid to the legend of Atlantis by pseudo-scientists and adherents of various cults was the reason why representatives of official science avoid even discussing this issue.

Several medieval authors mention this legendary country, probably the best known and most popular is Ignatius Donelly's Atlantis: The World Before the Flood. First published in 1882, it was corrected and edited by Egerton Sykes in 1949. None of the books published before or after it contains such a volume of geological, archaeological materials, information from legends and does not present so many simple, unsophisticated and eloquent arguments. confirming the legend of Atlantis.

Donelly's arguments are based largely on the obvious similarities between the culture of ancient Egypt and the cultures of the Indians of Central and South America. On both sides of the Atlantic, a 365-day calendar was used, the embalming of the dead was practiced, pyramids were erected, flood legends were preserved, etc. Donelly argues that both the ancient cultures, the Egyptian and the American Indian, were the offspring of Atlantis, and when it was destroyed, spread west and east. Donelly suggests that the heritage of Atlantis can explain the fact that the Basques of the Spanish Pyrenees differ in appearance and language from all their neighbors. (“The Basque language is the only non-Aryan language in Western Europe.” The Lincoln Library, vol. 1, p. 516). Also, the inhabitants of the Canary Islands bear little resemblance to any African people and had a custom of mummifying the dead. Donelly says that Spain, Portugal and the Canary Islands could be a likely refuge for settlers from the dying Atlantis. He compared the names of the cities of Asia Minor and those cities of Central America that already had names by the time the first European explorers appeared:

ASIA MINOR CENTRAL AMERICA

Chol Chol-ula

Colua Colua-can

Zuivana Zuivan

Cholina Colina

Zalissa Gzalisko

According to Donelly, it would be too bold to attribute such a similarity to a coincidence. He cited 626 references to sources. Despite the weaknesses that critics found in his argument - and he was accused of "building a mountain of assumptions on the molecules of facts" - this work was an amazing achievement. Donelly's arguments are interesting to read even today, so it would make sense, using modern methods, to do the work of separating fact from conjecture in his intriguing book.

Egerton Sykes, an Atlantean explorer who has probably the world's richest collection of Atlantis literature, claims that thousands of books and articles have been written on the subject since Plato's time. However, only a few authors have added anything significant to Donelly's arguments. For example, an article supporting the possibility of the existence of Atlantis appeared in the November 1948 Science Digest. Originally published in MIT's "Technical Engineering News" in June 1948, it again addresses Donelly's strongest arguments regarding the possibility of the existence and sinking of an island nation. The article discusses the presence at the bottom of the ocean of a relief close to continental, namely, mountains, valleys, plains with troughs and depressions, similar to the channels of rivers and lakes. Interestingly, a relatively small deformation of the earth's crust (amounting to 1/8000 of the earth's diameter) can lead to a large area of ​​the ocean floor rising above the water level and submerging other parts of the land. Confirmations of such phenomena that occurred in the past are discussed in detail in the article. In 1898, the crew of a ship that was laying a submarine cable in the Azores region tried to find this cable, lost at a depth of about 3.7 km, with the help of "cats". The rugged rocky bottom of the ocean complicated the task, and the tool often had to be cleaned of adhering pieces of soil. I further quote from the article: “It was determined by microscopic examination that these pieces of soil are lava, which had a vitreous structure and, therefore, should have hardened under atmospheric conditions. (Lava that hardens under water has a crystalline structure.) Since over the past 15 thousand years the lava has significantly weathered, we can assume that at that time the surface covered by it was located above sea level. This is another recent confirmation of the existence of land in the Atlantic. An article by R. W. Kolbe in 1957 (“Science”, vol. 126.) reports on studies of a deep-sea core recovered from a depth of 3.7 km in one of the sections of the underwater Mid-Atlantic Ridge. Findings of exclusively freshwater diatoms in sediment samples confirm that the studied section of the ridge was above sea level.

The legend of Atlantis - a sunken island on which a highly developed civilization once existed, a strong, enlightened and happy people - the Atlanteans - has been worrying mankind for more than two thousand years.

The only source of information about Atlantis is the writings of the ancient Greek scientist Plato, who lived in the 4th century BC. e., written in the form of conversations-dialogues. In two such dialogues - Timaeus and Critias - Plato cites the story of his contemporary, writer and politician Critias about Atlantis - "a legend, although very strange, but completely reliable", which Critias heard in childhood from his grandfather, he - from the "wisest of the seven wise" Athenian legislator Solon, and Solon - from the Egyptian priests.

Egyptian priests, based on ancient records, said that once in the "Atlantic Sea" (as the ocean was then called) lay a huge island - "larger than Libya (that is, Africa) and Asia taken together." On this island “a great and formidable power of kings developed, whose power extended to the whole island and many other islands (...). In addition, they (...) owned Libya to Egypt and Europe to Tirrenia ”(as Italy was called at that time). The legend of Atlantis tells that in the original times, when the gods divided the earth among themselves, this island fell into the possession of Poseidon, the god of the seas. Poseidon settled there his ten sons, born of an earthly woman, Clito. The eldest of them was called Atlant, after his name the island was named Atlantis, and the sea - the Atlantic.

From Atlantis came a powerful and noble family of kings of Atlantis. This family "gathered such huge wealth, which had not yet happened before in the possession of kings, and later on it will never be easy to form such."

Earth fruits grew in abundance on the island, various animals were found - “both tame and wild”, minerals were mined in its depths, including “one breed, which is now known only by name, (...) - the orichalcum breed, extracted from the earth in many places of the island, and after gold, which had the greatest value among the people of that time.

The inhabitants of Atlantis built beautiful cities with fortress walls, temples and palaces on their island, built harbors and shipyards.

The main city of Atlantis was surrounded by several rows of earthen ramparts and canals - "rings of the sea". The city walls were covered, "like mastic", with copper, tin and orichalcum, "which emitted a fiery sheen", and the houses were built of red, white and black stone.

A temple to Poseidon and Clito was erected in the center of the city. The walls of the temple were lined with silver, the roof was covered with gold, and inside “there was an ivory ceiling, colored with gold, silver and orichalcum. They also erected golden idols inside the temple - a god that, standing in a chariot, ruled by six winged horses, and himself, due to the enormity of his size, touched the crown of the ceiling.

The Atlanteans carried on a lively trade, the harbors of Atlantis "swarmed with ships and merchants from everywhere, who in their mass day and night deafened the area with screams, knocks and mixed noise."

Atlantis had a strong army and navy, consisting of one thousand two hundred warships.

The code of laws that Poseidon himself gave to the Atlanteans was inscribed on a high orichalcum pillar, installed in the middle of the island. Atlantis was ruled by ten kings - each with his own part of the island. Once every five or six years, they gathered in front of this pillar and "conferred about common affairs, or they sorted out if anyone had committed any misconduct, and they held judgment."

The Atlanteans were distinguished by their nobility and lofty way of thinking, “looking at everything except virtue with disdain, they valued little that they had a lot of gold and other possessions, were indifferent to wealth as a burden, and did not fall to the ground in the intoxication of luxury, losing power over himself."

But time passed - and the Atlanteans changed, filled with "the wrong spirit of self-interest and power." They began to use their knowledge and the achievements of their culture for evil. In the end, Zeus became angry with them and "in one day and a disastrous night (...) the island of Atlantis disappeared, plunging into the sea." According to Plato, this happened in the X millennium BC. e. Modern scientists are of the opinion that the death of the island was caused by a catastrophe caused by some of the man-made achievements of the ancient Atlanteans.

Disputes about whether Atlantis really existed or was invented by Plato began in ancient times. The ancient Greek philosopher Aristotle, a friend and student of Plato, argued that Atlantis is completely fictional (according to legend, it was on this occasion that Aristotle uttered the famous saying: “Plato is my friend, but the truth is dearer”). However, many believed that Atlantis really existed and traces of it could be found.

Interest in Atlantis over the following centuries faded, then awakened again, but never completely disappeared.

It is estimated that about 3,600 scientific papers have been written about Atlantis to date (not to mention numerous works of fiction). Atlantology has become an independent branch of science. Scientists-atlantologists expressed many guesses about the location of Atlantis and the reasons for its death, put forward a hypothesis about the influence of the Atlantean civilization on the development of world civilization.