Brandenstein, Wilhelm *

Wilhelm Brandenstein (1898-1967), was a Viennese classical scholar, who wrote a detailed commentary^[196] on Plato’s Atlantis and thought, “The theory that Plato simply invented the Egyptian derivation, while at the same time showing an extensive knowledge of sources, and constantly reaffirming that it was all pure truth, cannot be sustained”

He considered the Atlantis story to have been inspired by Minoan Crete although Spanuth claims that Brandenstein wrote to him with the conclusion that the story told to Solon related to the invasion of the Sea Peoples.

In 2013 Thorwald C. Franke published an English translation^(a) of his 2006 paper on Brandenstein’s contribution to atlantology. It is interesting, but not altogether convincing, to read that

“Brandenstein believes that Solon erroneously linked two separate accounts to one: From Egypt he had knowledge on the Sea Peoples wars, from Athens he had traditions on the confrontation of Crete and Athens, as they are indeed documented in known myths. With this Brandenstein believed that only a part of the Atlantis tradition came from Egypt.”

While Franke’s paper is very welcome, it is to be hoped that a translation of Brandenstein’s entire book will be on offer at some point.

In 2023, Heinz-Günter Nesselrath published a paper attacking Thorwald C. Franke’s consistent support for Brandenstein’s Atlantis theories. Franke duly responded in his Newsletter No. 212^(b).

^(a) https://www.atlantis-scout.de/atlantis_brandenstein_engl.htm

^(b) https://www.atlantis-scout.de/atlantis_newsl_archive.htm

^(c) (99+) Revisiting a Flawed Atlantis Classic: W. Brandenstein, Atlantis, Größe und Untergang eines geheimnisvollen Inselreiches, 2023 | Heinz-Günther Nesselrath – Academia.edu *