The Lost City of Atlantis - What Plato (Actually) Said

Subscribe to our weekly email newsletter to get the latest news about lost civilizations, ancient history, myths and legends antiquity-digest.beehiiv.com/...
Many believe that the story of Atlantis was simply a work of fiction created by the ancient Greek philosopher Plato. But who was Plato? And what did he actually say about Atlantis?

[@antiquitydigest]

Subscribe to our weekly email newsletter to get the latest news about lost civilizations, ancient history, myths and legends antiquity-digest.beehiiv.com/subscribe

[@julianmarsh8384]

I have read that Plato's translation of the Atlantis story, which came to him via Egypt, was marred by a mistranslation of the land's size. The original text claimed Atlantis was 80,000 square miles but Plato's information gives it as 800,000 square miles. Knowing this to be too large to be placed within the Mediterranean Sea, Plato set it out in the Atlantic.

[@Hannibal1529]

After the destruction of Karthago Oll the informetion lost

[@Hannibal1529]

The morth afrikan Mountains are called Atlas the. Same Thing Atlantis

[@k-matsu]

1) Greeks didnt use "miles" as a unit of measure 2) Solon's story (or rather, Plato's account of Solon's story) didnt mention ANY standard of measurement. It simply said that Atlantis was the same size as "Libya and Asia Minor, put together." 3) Where did you hear this claim about a mistranslation? We have only one source here: Plato's own account. Which is actually a second-hand account of what Solon told Plato's friend Critas (Solon's grandson). SInce there is no "Egyptian original" either suggested or discovered later, the issue of translation isnt relevant.

[@k-matsu]

@@Hannibal1529 The Atlas mountans received their name from European cartographers, around the 12th or 13th century. They were given the name because - in the Roman-myth-inspired landscape of that time - they were supposed to be the place where Atlas (Hercules) stood, holding up the heavens. Medieval cartographers therefore gave them the name. So no . . . it has nothing to do with Atlantis.

[@CrownxMe7]

Atlantis is in the Sahara Desert. The exact description was found on a satellite. Makes sense right? Who would explore that massive desert which once was a giant lush rainforest type region.

[@felixpoventud3914]

Atlantis, is older then people think! Plato learned of atlantis, thousens of years after atlantis sank!

[@bindair_dundat]

What if he was just trolling.

[@kurt2612]

The reality is that the verbiage of the time was always presented in a pompous way, much like today's self-proclaimed "intellectuals." When we translate the story directly, there is no ambiguity. Plato points directly to the large area surrounding the Azore plateau. Period... The one thing that needs more exposure is the fairly recent scientific testing of the sea floor in that area. The data shows beyond doubt that the rock, currently a few thousand feet below the surface, was definitely formed "above water." The beach sand found at that same depth also was above water... approximately 12,000 years ago. These published papers are ignored by academia because they show the need for further investigation. That is a problem though... because science deemed it "myth" long ago. Due to the egotistical nature of scientists and their reliance on funding from the collective, they don't want to prove themselves wrong. They would rather spend billions looking at galaxies that we will never reach... instead of looking in our own backyard for direct evidence explaining human history.

[@mnomadvfx]

"These published papers are ignored by academia because they show the need for further investigation" Who do you think published those papers you dimwit?! Academia, THAT is who. It is not a given that just because academic A publishes research paper X that academic B needs to even read it, let alone waste his or her precious time and funding on pursuing it. Academia is mostly a voluntary thing where funding is not concerned. People study what THEY want to study - not what YOU think they should. That's what separates academia from the private sector where someone exclusively pays you to study what the company wants you to. If you want them to study something you are interested in, then by all means shower them with funding and you will get a prompt response, because academics spend so long trying to get funding that they will seldom refuse it. Until the Cayce foundation funded the effort to radiocarbon date the Egyptian pyramids (to prove Edgar Cayce's assertions about their age) the academic community was content to let the issue lie simply because there is plenty to study and excavate in Egypt that has not yet been uncovered without going into the details of what already has been discovered, not to mention the pitfalls of annoying rich people for funding for subjects they have no personal interest in pursuing and risking alienating those funding sources permanently. If you don't like how they do their VOCATIONAL jobs, then by all means fund them - or better yet, go and study the field so that you can do it yourself. "They would rather spend billions looking at galaxies that we will never reach" Newsflash genius - archaeology is a completely different field of study to astronomy. The people that study astronomy do not usually mix with archaeologists in any meaningful way and vice versa. Their funding likewise comes from different places. "Due to the egotistical nature of scientists" Something tells me that you don't actually know many scientists..... and that kind of commentary shows a plenty big ego of your own..... so glass houses, stones and all that 😏 "and their reliance on funding from the collective" What collective is this? There are numerous possible sources of funding from govmt grants and contracts, to academic institutions (universities/college), to private institutions (foundations, museums etc), to charities, to private individuals and finally crowdfunding. Occasionally you even get a Lara Croft type with their own money, and an interest in academia who can self fund without having to go begging with their hands out. Also not all academic work is dependent upon funding - much of it is salaried work like teaching positions that most academics rely on when between projects. In archaeology big funding drives are really only necessary for excavations and maintaining a staff after the season ends to properly catalogue all of the data collected. "they don't want to prove themselves wrong" Tell me you don't know anything about scientific method without telling me you don't know anything about it. Any scientist worth their salt is fine with proving themselves or anyone else wrong. Literally most of any academics life in many fields of study is just filled with discovery X or experiment Y upending something they believed to be incontrovertibly true only the day before. This rigorous and open practice is how we got from telegraph poles in 1890 sending basic Morse code at human readable speed to fiber optic data lines sending more than 1000 trillion bits of data per second in 2023. That is why science is fundamentally different from religion. Because religion is set in stone, and science is built on shifting sands by design. No astronomer is going to start a holy war because you disproved that black holes exist, nor will an archaeologist scream HERESY at you if you bring them evidence to prove that the Old Kingdom started 300 years earlier. On the other hand though...... Try going into St Paul's Basilica and shouting that you have proof that Muhammed was right and Christ was wrong........ Well let's just say you might have a problem getting out of Rome with all your limbs intact 😂

[@alphagerudo]

🤔 came across NBC stating Platos 'Tale' has inspired plenty of nonsense. This only made me even more curious since they want new gen kids to believe it should be swept under the rug Thank you for sharing!

[@spiritualarchitect4276]

Does Athanasius Kircher’s world famous Atlantis map (see 2:10) show the coast of America in Pre-Flood times? In other words, does it show the current coast of the Carolinas? Or does it actually show the now underwater, semi-continental shelf of America? Specifically, the rim of land whose peaks rise above the water between Puerto Rico and Trinidad. Where the Atlantic Plate crashed into the Caribbean Plate. Creating what we now call the Lesser Antilles. We tend to think that the east coast of America sits across the Atlantic from Spain. BUT, if one were to draw a straight line across the globe - from Spain through The Great Meteor Seamount and beyond - that line would not go to North America, it would go straight to the Lesser Antilles. We do not know if Kircher simply placed outliers on his copy of the map for reference, or if the outliers were on the original Egyptian map. This harkens back to an old legend, that once said that Athanasius Kircher, a founder of Egyptology, found a map in the Vatican. This ancient map was created in Egypt and brought to Italy by the Romans sometime around 30 BCE. Kircher made a copy of the map and published it circa 1664. We have all seen it. But what most do not see, is that Kircher’s Atlantis map appears to be a map of The Great Meteor Seamount. The problem is people think they are looking at a Continent, not an Island. This means the outliers on the map (Spain, America, etc.) are NOT in scale, they are merely location markers showing where the island sat in the ocean. Which is right where Plato said Atlantis was ~ in the Atlantic in front of the Pillars Of Hercules. Kircher’s coast of Spain is not very accurate compared to what we know today. So did he draw that coast himself, using sailor maps from the mid 1600’s? Or did he make an exact copy of the original Egyptian? This accuracy relates to the coast of America as well as the island itself. Great Meteor does resemble Kircher’s Atlantis, though the 2 small islands sit in different positions when compared to current maps. Were those 2 islands on the original map? Are they actually the 2 seamounts next to Great Meteor? Or did Kircher place them there to match Plato’s story which tells of islands between Atlantis and the outlying continent? Of course, without the original map, we cannot know the answers to these questions, we can only ask them. But they are interesting to ponder. The Egyptians could not have made a map of something if it was always underwater. That The Great Meteor Seamount could be Atlantis is very simple. If a landmass currently underwater was mapped in ancient times, that means that it was once above water. And not just above water but right where Plato said Atlantis was ~ in front of the Pillars Of Hercules. It has been said that Plato’s Atlantis is supposed to be 5,000 kilometers from Athens. So sits The Great Meteor Seamount. Plato said, “10 islands for 10 kings”. As seen on Kircher’s map, Great Meteor has 2 small islands next to it. Today these seamounts are known as Little Meteor and Closs. If we count these 2, as well as Great Meteor itself - and the giant Azores mass - we have a total of 10 islands. The others being the seamounts named Hyeres, Irving, Cruiser, Tyro, Plato and of course… Atlantis.

[@mnomadvfx]

The more precise version of the video title: What Critias (not fully defined by the text) said in Plato's dialogue in which Plato does not appear and therefore says nothing. People need to stop saying "Plato said x, y, z about Atlantis" because he didn't write the dialogues from his own perspective or in his own words.

[@antiquitydigest]

Not the most catchy or succinct title suggestion. Thanks for the feedback 🙏

[@Insectoid_]

I think he was talking Athens.

[@saigonmonopoly1105]

was it atlaan and atlantis?

[@saigonmonopoly1105]

as if it not never happened

[@saigonmonopoly1105]

atlantic is the cold ocean

[@blackheart4360]

The richat structure is Atlantis

[@antiquitydigest]

Why do you think it’s Richat Structure? Are you a fan of @brightinsights

[@geogeo1261]

@@antiquitydigest Who has anyway copy a small part of my work.

[@senkodan]

voiced by eleven labs?

[@saigonmonopoly1105]

islnd city states trded with athen libya centric round carthage designed alike could be in the straight of hercules or out of it

[@saigonmonopoly1105]

larget thn dasi is it island then? collapsed in 1 night

[@franushbloodaxe6408]

Buy a vowel.

[@sadeeshaalagiyawanna4439]

Atlantis - Ata Lanka

[@elgad82]

Plato did not saw the atlantis.,he just Heard to some else.,

[@kucing_oyen6839]

Yeah your right., Before your American has found (?) where is the atlantic ocean?! (dark age and a monster?). I'll said, wrong places! Write and remember this Atlantis = Nusantara as Antar/Antara pulau At = Antar Land'tis = Pulau/Nusa Antarctica, Mesopotamia (Between the river) Between same as the Antara Always denied about who's the first of civilization (y'all typically)

[@me-ds2il]

It was originally a continent in the Atlantic (for which the Atlantic is named) eventually broken up into 5 large islands and *NOT* a city

[@egyptwasblack2]

Nope. It was Mauritania

[@me-ds2il]

So bc you like to believe it was Mauritania, it was? Alright then, if I say it was a giant potato, prove me wrong. Some American Indians believed it was a giant turtle surrounded by water from which they originated.

[@egyptwasblack2]

@@me-ds2il because the island of atlantis was the richat structure.. the only place in the world that fits plato's description

[@me-ds2il]

@@egyptwasblack2 Richat was NOT Atlantis. Richat type formations of all sizes have been found all over the globe. Therefore they served a function. Meanwhile rock at the base of the Antilles (which Columbus named for Atlantis, btw) has been found to have once been above water. Also a certain DNA/haplo group has been found to be on both sides of the Atlantic. Probably bc there was very occupied land area in the Atlantic . So there..I'll go with the haplo group

[@egyptwasblack2]

@@me-ds2il nope. 1)Richat structure has the same dimension of the city of Atlantis. 2) Both have a hot spring in the center 3)Both were crossed by a river that came from the moutain of the north 4) both were surrounded by a plain that were oblong 5) Both have a moutains in the north that descended towards the sea and sheltered the plain 6) Both places sunk under a mudslide/landslide 12,000 years ago. 7) Both places are near Gadire ( Cadix and/or Agadir) 8) Both places are near the Pillars of Hercules 8) Both had elephants 9) Both place had lakes, forest and marshes outside the plain 10) Both have the same mineral ressources

[@dnabart]

2:10

[@saigonmonopoly1105]

pompeii serveis ethana heraacluean hercleon ceaseriean crete all collapse all meditereanean atlantis why the hell not?

[@fozzz-vb5oj]

Come On.... My Time is not Worthless IS YOURS Waste of MY time

[@dp5-1]

Plato would not have told the story being a great philosopher, a man of science and different forms of quite complicated math, ect... The story or history he speaks about is quite specific... Ergo his research would have included viable books of resources, and other renowned people concerning the subject topic at hand... Especially taking on the burden of writing on such a subject. So? no, he was not delusional. There is no moral topic concerning this vid. You would have to ask? Where are all the writings, of the books he has read and studied from?. That he was indeed privied? indeed had access too? Most likely they were and are by majority, hidden away from the public in some vault out there, some where.. . **Just like many other important documents scrolls and books down through history. All be it this video was like a teaser short?? It was good. 👍👍👍👍👍

[@maximsteelusa4855]

YES. PLATO WAS NOT KNOWN FOR FICTION!!!

[@dp5-1]

@@maximsteelusa4855 Sooooo? What's bothering YOU?... With all the caps and exclamation points? Can you articulate?

[@mnomadvfx]

You start from a false assumption that it is not a philosophical parable wrapped inside a historically and mythically based story. Bear in mind that in Plato's time the Minoan's of Crete had long since been assimilated into Hellenic Greek culture, and almost certainly disseminated tales of their great downfall in one form or another. Archaeological study of Crete shows that the Minoan's continued to exist on the island long after the Theran eruption that devastated their civilisation and ended their dominance of the Aegean sea. They were essentially annexed by the growing Mycenaean civilisation and became subservient to them - in time they would have integrated just as the Etruscans integrated into Rome as full citizens centuries after its conquest.

[@mnomadvfx]

@@maximsteelusa4855 "YES. PLATO WAS NOT KNOWN FOR FICTION!!!" He was known for philosophy though, not historical treatise. If he was writing history you would expect some discourse between him and Herodotus given they were contemporaries for decades. You would certainly expect any of his historical writings to follow a format closer to that of Herodotus. Yet they do not - they follow a format EXACTLY like his other philosophical dialogues which you are conveniently ignoring because it doesn't suit your narrative. If it walks like a duck, and quacks like a duck - chances are pretty damn high that it IS a duck. I'll tell you what was known too - Socrates being put to death by poison by the Athenian elites for teaching his philosophies to the populace. Plato had to hide his philosophical writings within stories like Atlantis to insulate himself for criticism if not death.

[@TheMoneypresident]

Athens was a serious threat to Atlantis in the story. Why zero information there? They didn't exist when story was set.

[@k-matsu]

The Egyptian sources told Solon (Plato's source for the story) that there was an advanced civilization in that area (ie Greece/southeastern Europe) at the time Atlantis existed. However the cataclysm that destroyed Atlantis also destroyed the civilization in southwestern Europe. The Greeks of Solon/Plato's time had forgotten their history. In actual archaeological fact, there do appear to have been early civilizations in the area that borders the Black Sea on its west (including Macedonia which is part of historical Greece).

[@mnomadvfx]

Precisely. That is the key to demonstrating it was a philospical parable, and not a historical treatise. Plato may have used historical, mythical and legendary sources to frame the story - but it was almost certainly not a truly historical text by design. The Athenian army represents the Athenian elite - and the enlightened people of Atlantis represents his beloved mentor Socrates who they sentenced to death in such a horrible fashion as forced suicide by poison. Through this veiled narrative he is trying to teach the elite of his time that they are demonstrating hubris by acting as if they alone know and can adjudicate for the gods on the matters that Socrates was teaching about. They were threatened by Socrates' influence on the Athenian populace, and they took him out.

[@mnomadvfx]

@@k-matsu "The Greeks of Solon/Plato's time had forgotten their history" That's not how memory works 🤦‍♂🤦‍♂🤦‍♂🤦‍♂🤦‍♂🤦‍♂ Stop reading Graham Hancock for the love of all that is good and holy 😂 The guy is a master of writing mysterious slop and getting a crowd to listen, but beyond that he is a snake oil salesman whose only aim is to get you to buy more of his books.

[@k-matsu]

@@mnomadvfx I actually havent read much Hancock, though of course I am familiar with his underlying hypothesis. Im not interested in defending HIS ideas -- he seems capable of doing that quite well, himself. Let me just identify a few concrete, established scientific facts and ask you one very simple question. There is an abundance of archaeological evidence - literally thousands of large man-made structures located in sites all over the world which share a single common and undisputed characteristic: They are underwater. And all geological evidence in the area - all of today's most modern scientific examination and analysis - suggests that they have been underwater since roughly 10,000 BC. Now . . . people like myself (and apparently Mr. Hancock as well) are working on the assumption that SOMEBODY ... it doesnt matter who ... built the structures right where they currently are, and the sea came along AFTER they were built. Of course, if that assumption is true, then these structures (which are real, have been measured and photographed,, and are clearly the work of human engineering) MUST have been built some time prior to 10,000 BC. If so, then there must have been some advanced civilizaton that predates the Lesser Dryas. Whether it was called "Atlantis" or whether any other details correspond to Plato's story is a matter of conjecture. But if I am correct in the assumption about how so many archaeological sites ended up below sea level, then clearly the "Atlantis legend" is based on at least some concrete historical reality. But Im open to alternate suggestions. How do YOU think they got down there? Perhaps built by a race of avid skin-divers? Or maybe they were constructed on land and carried out to their current location by barge? Oh I know ... geology is a pseudoscience and it cant really determine where sea levels were 10,000 years ago. By all means, tell me if Ive missed some obvious explanation for how human-built structures got to a place that hasnt been above water in ten thousand years. While youre pondering your response, let me point out that in Plato's own version of the story, the priests specifically TELL SOLON that the Greeks "have forgotten your own history..." so no, that isnt Hancock talking, nor is it my editorial addition. Im just relaying what the story ACTUALLY SAYS.

[@Hannibal1529]

Atlantis ist Amerika Oll the sivilisaon from Karthago 3000 years

[@Jane-nc2fr]

What?