Atlantis

What are the different hypotheses on Atlantis’s Existence? What is the available physical evidence on its existence?

There are three main hypotheses on its existence:

-it’s fictional

-it’s an exaggeration based on the fall of the Minoan civilization and the destruction of the island of Thera, a blend of fact, fiction, and error.

-it was real, and the account is entirely factual and unerrant.

Here is a brief summary on each suggested theory.

FICTION – it was made up to suit the purposes of Plato’s dialogues

This is the easiest answer, because there is nothing to prove. Timaeus and Critias are simply stories. Kevin Christopher, Public Relations Director for the Committee for the Scientific Investigation of Claims of the Paranormal says that, “Yet all evidence shows, I will argue, that Plato’s Atlantis account is beyond a reasonable doubt entirely fictional – a Utopian myth concocted to vividly illustrate Plato’s political philosophy.” Some of the ancient philosophers viewed Atlantis as fiction, including Aristotle. Even some of the great thinkers of our time have theorized that Plato’s writings concerning the lost continent of Atlantis were nothing more than stores to fuel his political career. Supporting this idea is belief that Plato’s Timaeus and Critias are just stories. However, against this opinion is the fact that in the story, it is stated a numerous amount of times that the story is true and that its information supports a detailed knowledge of the subject rather than a fabricated story.

Blend of fact, fiction, and error

There are some compelling similarities between the destruction of Thera and the destruction of Atlantis. For instance, around 1500 BC, Thera, a volcanic island that showed signs of trade and shared a culture with the Minoans, was destroyed in an explosion which caused more than half of the island to be submerged. Artifacts found on the island indicate a sophisticated culture, probably part of the Minoan civilization.

Archaeologists like Christos Doumas discovered the city of Thera in 1967. They discovered plumbing, toilets, bathtubs, rattan beds, ceramics, frescoes, and lots of luxury items. The city was also honeycombed by sewage systems, water supplies, etc. It must have been a very well-developed culture. They kept on digging and digging and they found more artifacts, and the more the idea developed that the island might be Atlantis. Plato’s descriptions fit well. He wrote in Timaeus 112 about “a land carried round in a circle and disappeared in the depths below. By comparison, to what then was, there are remaining in small islets only the bones of the wasted body, as they may be called, all the richer and softer parts of the soil having fallen away, and the mere skeleton of the country being left.” He only mentions the geography of Atlantis here. In Critias 113c-114a, 117a-c, he also describes the fortunate water supply of Atlantis. “They had fountains, one of cold and another of hot water, in gracious plenty flowing; […] there were the baths of private persons […] and to each of them they gave as much as adornment as possible […] the remainder was conveyed by aqueducts.”