Things get more complicated. What are we meant to make of “3 plethra” or “l stadium”?
Assuming Critias is not just repeating some fantasy of his grandfather, Atlantis must be of amazing proportions. We need to remember several salient points:
• The gods divide the world between them. Poseidon gets Atlantis.
• About 50 stadia (5.5 miles or 9 km) from the shore there rises a low mountain which is accessible from all sides.
• Its first inhabitants are the earth-born Evenor and Leucippe. Their only daughter, Cleito, loses her parents.
• Poseidon gets Cleito pregnant.
• Poseidon surrounds the “low” mountain with strong defenses composed of alternating rings of water and earth, which are “inaccessible to human beings.”
• Poseidon and Cleito have five pairs of male twins. The oldest son is called Atlas. It is from him that the Atlantic Ocean gets its name.
• The island is rich in metals.
• The climate is subtropical (“sun-warmth and moisture”).
• Atlas and his descendants build a king’s palace or castle in the center of the island.
• From the sea is built a canal 50 stadia (5.5 miles/9 km) long, and 3 plethra (98 yards/90 m) wide, as far as the first ring.
• The largest ring is 3 stadia broad (590 yards/5401m).
• The diameter of the centre of the island is 5 stadia (985 yards/900m).
• This center is surrounded by a stone wall, which is covered in metal.
• Towers, gateways, and houses are built in different colors: (white, black, red).
• Docks are built to shelter ships, with overhanging cliff roofs.
• The wall around the central palace is coated in “gold-copper ore.”
There are already a few problems in reconciling Atlantis with Troy, but it is still not impossible. Everything ultimately depends on whether Critias is telling a pretty tale from his grandfather’s time, or a true story, and I will come back to this. If Atlantis and Troy were the same, there would have to be a defensive wall around Troy I composed of “rings of water and earth,” which were “inaccessible to human beings.” The archaeological excavations did indeed expose a defensive wall around Troy I, but not one worthy of the god Poseidon. No ring of water was found close to the center, and such a ring would not suit the type of hill it is anyway.
Once again, Atlantis ought to lie in the Atlantic Ocean, to which it gave the name. As we know, Troy is in a quite different location. The climate of Troy is not subtropical, and so far no 5.5-mile (9km) long canal has been found leading to the center of the inner ring. However, extensive excavations and measurement have not yet been undertaken on Troy’s environs.
The center of Atlantis is meant to have been 985 yards (900m) in diameter—that part could fit with Troy, though not the bit about the walls being covered entirely in metal (ore). It is possible, though, that over years metals might have been stolen or melted down, or could have been destroyed by fire. Traces would be present in the soil, which could be tested by taking samples. Schliemann claims that at a depth of about 30 feet (9m) he came across a slag layer of melted lead and copper ore, but this was never confirmed by current excavations.
Finally, there should be buildings in three different colors—which have so far not been found - and the central palace ought to be coated with a gold-copper alloy—orichalcum. There was no sign of this. All that is certain is that Homer does not mention any such thing in his epic. But Critias has not yet finished his tale:
Critias: The royal dwelling place within the citadel was arranged as follows. In the middle there was a temple dedicated to Cleito and Poseidon, closed to public view, which was surrounded with a golden wall. This was where the race of 10 princes had once been begotten and born. There, each year, from all 10 zones of the island, were brought the firstborn as offerings to each of the 10 families of descendants. The temple of Poseidon was 1 stadium long, 3 plethra broad, and a height pleasing to the eye, yet its whole form could not conceal a certain affinity with barbarism. They covered the whole exterior of the temple with silver, apart from the pinnacles which were of gold. As far as the interior is concerned, the ivory ceiling was adorned all over with gold, silver and orichal-cum, and the rest—walls, pillars, and floor—was coated in orichal-cum too. They also raised golden statues, of the god himself on a chariot, driving a team of six winged horses, and of such a size that his head touched the ceiling; and around about him 100 Nereids on dolphins, for that is the number which the people of that time believed there to be. There were also numerous statues which had been given as offerings by private individuals. Around the temple stood many other golden images—of the women and all others who were descended from the 10 kings, and many other great offerings, both from kings and private individuals, some from the town itself, some from those living beyond its borders, who were under its dominion. The altar also corresponded in size and kind to the rest of this magnificence, and the king’s quarters likewise reflected the grandeur of the kingdom. The springs, one of hot and one of cold water, provided an inexhaustible supply, and each in its own manner was of very fine taste and goodness. These waters were used in the most efficient way. In their close proximity buildings were raised, and suitable trees planted. They also constructed water containers or cisterns, some in the open air, others in enclosed rooms for taking warm baths in the winter. The bathing rooms for the king and his subjects were separate from one another, as were the rooms for women and those for horses, and those for cattle, each type of room adorned in the way which suited its purpose. The water which ran off was channeled into the grove of Poseidon, whose soil was full of goodness, and whose trees of the most varied kind grew wonderfully high. All remaining water was diverted through aqueducts over the bridges to the outer earth-rings. In the area of these water channels were numerous shrines for many gods, as well as gardens and wrestling courts, both for the gymnastic exercises of the men themselves and for exercises with teams of horses, separate ones on each of the two earth rings. In the middle of the larger island there was also an excellent racecourse, 1 stadium broad, and its length extending around the whole island to allow full scope for horse-teams to race. Around this, on both sides, were the living quarters for the majority of subjects. The most trustworthy were given guard duties on the smaller earth-ring, closer to the citadel. And those who were loyal above all others had their dwellings in the citadel itself, in the immediate proximity of the king. The docks were full of triremes and all that is necessary for equipping them. Now leaving the king’s palace and citadel behind, and passing the three outer harbors, one came to a wall which began at the sea and encircled everything, being everywhere 50 stadia distant from the largest ring and harbor, and meeting itself again where it began, at the mouth of the canal which led to the sea. This whole area was full of dwellings, and the largest harbor was chockablock with ships and traders, who arrived there from many different places, and whose shouts, din and clatter kept going day and night. I have described the town and the ancient citadel more or less as it was told to me, and now I must turn to the rest of the country and its character, and the way it was governed. The whole region was described to me as high and with steep cliffs sloping to the sea, with only the area around the town being a level plain. This plain surrounding the city was surrounded by mountains, which descended to the sea. It formed a smooth and even area, of a longish, rectangular shape, 3,000 stadia in length and 2,000 stadia in breadth across the middle. This part of the island faced south, protected from the north winds. But the mountains which surrounded it, if we are to believe the inhabitants’ hymns of praise, were greater in number, size, and beauty than any that we know now. These mountainous regions contained many places where people lived in large numbers, as well as rivers, lakes, and meadows offering nourishment to tame and wild animals of all kinds, and wooded areas whose rich variety of trees provided an inexhaustible supply of raw materials for all craftsmen. The natural formation o
f the plain, which many kings had improved over long periods, was as follows. Its shape was that of a regular, longish rectangle, and what was lacking in nature had been supplied by the hand of man in the form of a ditch dug all around it. The depth, width, and length of this sound incredible and impossible for the work of human beings to accomplish, but I must tell you what I heard, namely that it was 1 plethron deep, and everywhere 1 stadium wide. The length of the ditch, running all around the plain, was 10,000 stadia. It collected the waters streaming down from the mountains, which, encircling the plain and touching the town on two sides, ran into the sea in the following way. Straight canals were dug, most of them 100 foot broad, which joined to the main ditch and carried the water down to the sea. Each of these channels was 100 stadia distant from the next. These were used to transport wood from the mountains to the city, and also to bring other produce of the country to the ships, through connecting channels which they laid diagonally to run between the main channels, and into the city. They had a twice-yearly harvest, which was made possible in winter by the rain which Zeus provided, and in summer by the irrigation water which they diverted from the channels…. The following arrangements were made from the very beginning for governing. Each of the 10 kings ruled in his own region, and from his own city, over the inhabitants there, and made most of the laws in that region, so that he could punish and execute whom he liked. They arranged their joint ruling in the way ordained by Poseidon, as had been passed down to them by law and through the inscriptions which the primeval fathers had engraved on a pillar cast in orichalcum. This stood in the middle of the island, in the shrine to Poseidon. It was there that the 10 gathered, alternating between every fifth and every sixth year so as not to favor an odd number above an even, and talked together and took council with one another about the affairs of each region. They also looked into whether any of them had transgressed in any way, and passed judgment if this were so. If they decided to pass judgment, though, they gave each other a solemn pledge in the following way. In the holy area of Poseidon there were bulls which roamed freely. The 10, after praying to the god that he should let them catch a sacrificial offering, took part in a hunt, but one which used no iron, only sticks and cords. The bull which they caught, though, they took to the pillar and slaughtered on the top of it, above the inscription. Upon the pillar there was, apart from the inscription, also an oath which invoked terrible curses on anyone who did not abide by the laws. After sacrificing all parts of the bull to the god, they cast into the wine in a mixing bowl prepared for this purpose one drop of blood for each of them, and consigned the rest to the fire, after washing and cleansing the pillar and the area around it. Then they dipped golden ladles into the bowl, and, pouring a libation onto the fire, swore they would judge in accordance with the laws inscribed on the pillar, and pass sentence if any of them was guilty of transgression. They also swore that they would not intentionally overstep the mark in future, would rule only lawfully, and would not obey another ruler who did not follow the laws of their father Poseidon. After each of them had sworn this for himself and his descendants, he drank and dedicated the drinking ladle to the shrine of the god. Then they ate and washed. But the moment it grew dark, and the sacrificial fire had burned low, each dressed himself in a dark blue robe of wondrous beauty, then sitting by the embers from the sacrifice, and extinguishing all fires around the shrine, they received and gave judgment if any one of them was accused of misdemeanor. The judgment they passed was inscribed at dawn upon a golden tablet, which they raised as memorial there, together with their robes. There were various other laws about the rights and duties of the separate kings, but the most important were that they must never wage war upon each other, and must always be ready to give aid to each other if someone should try to destroy the race of kings. They also had to take council together, as did their forefathers, about war and other undertakings, and leave the final decision to the descendants of Atlas. But the king should not have the right to condemn one of his relatives to death, unless at least six of the 10 rulers gave their consent. This mighty and magnificent power, which held sway in those regions at that time, was later directed against our own regions in warfare, and, we have been told, for the following reason. For many generations, as long as divine nature still made itself felt within them, they remained obedient to the laws and did not deny their divine origin. For their spirits were lofty, truthful, and generous. They bore strokes of destiny with composure, and related to one another with kindness and interest. They regarded virtue alone as being of true worth, and therefore did not overvalue their goods and possessions, did not prize too highly the masses of gold and other treasures, which seemed to them more of a burden than anything else. They were thus far from being power-crazy or out of control. They had a clear, sober understanding that all this outer wealth could only be sustained when underpinned by friendship and virtue, and would disappear if all attention and value were focused on riches alone. Because of this attitude and the continuing influence of the divine nature within them, everything thrived in the way I have already described. But as the divine part of their nature increasingly vanished, diluted by frequent unions with mortals, so that a human type of thinking prevailed, they began to be uneasy with their lot. They grew degenerate and debased themselves in the eyes of all who were capable of true judgment. To those, however, who had no clear power of insight into a life based on true happiness, they appeared more and more magnificent and praiseworthy, since they began to dedicate themselves to avarice and lust for power. The god of the gods, however, Zeus, who rules according to laws, and who has a sharp eye for such things, decided to rein their excesses by punishing them, for he grieved to see such a worthy race falling so low, and hoped that they might still be brought to their senses and change their ways. So he called all the gods together into their holy of holies, which is situated in the center of the whole world, and allows the gods to see into everything which is happening everywhere, and directed to those assembled there the following words.9
What a place to end! What words did Zeus speak to them? We’d all like to know of course, not only us but also the last 2,400 years’ worth of philosophers, philologists, and Atlantis researchers. But Plato’s Atlantis dialogue ends abruptly at this point; hard to understand really, for Plato wrote other things after this dialogue. Why is the end of the Atlantis story missing? Isn’t there any alternative version from antiquity? Didn’t any other authors tell of Atlantis?
The first reference to Atlantis which I found outside of Plato was, of all places, in the Argonautica by Apollonius of Rhodes:
In the evening they came ashore on the Atlantides Island. Orpheus begged them not to spurn the solemnities of the island, nor the secrets, the laws, customs, the religious rites and works. If they observed these they would be assured of the love of heaven on their further voyage over the dangerous ocean. But to speak further of these things I do not dare.10
Unmistakable news of an island with the name “Atlantides,” where there are particular customs, and also secrets. Whereas Apollonius is usually glad of an opportunity to describe geographical and topographical features, here he falls strangely silent, not “daring” to speak more. Strange. Perhaps we should recall the fact that Atlantis was the island of the god Poseidon, and that two of his sons were on board the Argo.
Herodotus (490–425 BC) has nothing to say about Atlantis, but in Book IV of his Histories (Chapters 184 and 185) he writes about a salt area that borders on a mountain region by the name of “Atlas”:
It is narrow and circular and is said to be so high that one cannot see its summits. Clouds always wreathe it, both in summer and winter. The natives say that these mountains are the pillars of heaven. The people dwelling here are called “Atlantens” after these mountains….11
Shortly after Plato’s death, Aristotle (384–322 BC) who was one of his pupils, published a book in which he cast doubt on the truth of the Atlantis story.12 Already then! Yet the same Aristotle also mentioned an unknow
n island in the Atlantic, which he called “Antilia.” Another pupil of Plato was called Crantor of Soloi (330–275 BC). He is supposed to have travelled to Egypt, to Sais, and likewise seen there the written version of the Atlantis story. Grantor was the first to publish Plato’s dialogues.
Odyssey of the Gods Page 15
