INTRODUCTION

The purpose of this compilation is to provide an A-Z guide to the past and continuing search for Plato’s Atlantis. Atlantipedia does not purport to offer an end of the search, but is a good starting point for any future investigation of the many Atlantis-related questions. As such, it is the most comprehensive English-language sourcebook available, enabling readers to follow the development of Atlantis theories, particularly from the time that interest in the topic was given such a powerful impetus by the publication of Ignatius Donnelly’s book, Atlantis – The Antediluvian World, over a century ago.

His original work is now rather dated and widely accepted to be scientifically unsound in many respects, but it is still in print and continues to be frequently quoted.

Over twenty years ago I decided to write a book as a retirement project. I thought that Atlantis might be an interesting topic, as I already possessed a few books that touched on the subject. It did not take long to realise that there was a large number of other publications available promoting a wide variety of Atlantis theories. Furthermore, the internet was offering even more material, although at that time in rural Ireland, where I lived, we only had dial-up access to the World Wide Web (WWW).

It did not take long before I realised the size and complexity of the Atlantis story. So I decided that an A-Z format might be the most suitable. My original ambition was to produce a 200-page volume, but the amount of material I was accumulating kept growing. In 2010, I had Atlantipedia published with 500 pages, but the now-defunct publishers did nothing to promote it. Around the same time I was also developing the Atlantipedia website, which today would require over 2,500 printed pages. Some may think it a triumph of quantity over quality.

However, as I am not an academic and have far-from-perfect English, Atlantipedia is no scholarly treatise. Although the book is in the form of an encyclopedia, presenting all sides of most issues, I cannot claim complete objectivity and I have not refrained from commenting on most related controversies. The reason is that, without fear of contradiction, the subject of Atlantis has generated more written nonsense than I thought possible. The internet has compounded the volume of twaddle available. So, if at times my comments seem harsh, it is the result of complete frustration at the amount of Atlantis drivel published. Although, my mode of expression may not always be perfect, the thrust of my arguments is usually quite clear and valid.

Atlantipedia is not an end in itself, but should be used as a starting point for an individual reader’s own research. I would suggest that budding researchers use the standard journalistic questions of Who, What, When, Where, Why, and How to frame their investigation.

It should be noted that some of the Atlantipedia entries were written some years ago and may require updating. Without anyone to help me, it would have been impossible to keep everything as up to date as I would like.

Hyperlinks are used throughout both the book and the website. Unfortunately, a constant problem is the fact that websites close down or change content, resulting in a broken link. In such cases, I have three options: (1) seek an alternative source for the document; or (2) see if the Wayback Machine has archived it. If no alternative is available, I leave the link in place, marked (broken link) so that there is, at least, a record of the original source; (3) check whether I have an electronic or printed copy in my own archives. This is usually indicated by a location number inside red curly brackets. If no alternative is available, I leave the link in place, marked (broken link) so that there is, at least, a record of the original source.

A third possibility is that I may have a electronic or printed copy in my own archives. This is usually indicated by a location number inside red curly brackets.

I have added the relevant Atlantis texts of Plato as an Appendix at the end of the last volume, as they are the foundation of the entire subject. The main body of the site is arranged in a recognisable A-Z format including a useful Search box. Superscript references in plain brackets(a) refer to hyperlinks at the end of the relevant entry that will bring you to a related website.

Superscript references in square brackets[0100] refer to bibliographical entries. Where there is a second number within the brackets[0100.72], it refers to the relevant page number. Less frequently, there will be in second place, a third number[0100.2.72], which refers to the particular book in a multi-volume work.

I have included another Appendix listing a chronology of Atlantis theories and their proponents.

If the mystery of Atlantis is ever to be definitively solved, it will require a multi-disciplinary scientific approach along with a large dollop of common sense applied by imaginative open minds. While it is clear that the story related by the Egyptian priests has been Hellenised to some extent by Solon and/or Plato, since by his own admission the names of the Atlantean kings have been altered, we must consider the possibility that the original account had already been subjected to similar modifications in Egypt. However, in isolation, Plato’s account must be seen as a Mediterranean story unless further evidence is forthcoming to add to the recent support for the idea that Homer’s epics had their origins along the north-eastern Atlantic or Baltic and were brought into the Mediterranean by settlers/invaders from there. If this view were to gain widespread acceptance, the Atlantis story might require a renewed look at the radical proposals of writers such as Jürgen Spanuth, whose argument, advanced over half a century ago, was found convincing by many: that the Atlantean invaders were the Sea Peoples recorded on Egyptian monuments and that they had come from Scandinavia. The debate continues with several recent books supporting the concept of a Northern European origin for Homer’s epic tales.

I suggest that any student of the Atlantis mystery first addresses the question of the credibility of Plato’s story. This is not to say that Plato did not use at least some literary licence in structuring the story, which he clearly did, but we should recognise that there are some historical facts underpinning the narrative that need to be identified and used to construct a convincing theory that definitively identifies Atlantis. This is easier said than done, due to the wide range of interpretations that can be legitimately applied to so many of the details in the relatively short sections of Plato’s text dealing with the lost civilisation.