Historic Cities · Greece
Atlantis through the ages
Atlantis is a fictional island mentioned in Plato's works Timaeus and Critias as part of an allegory on the hubris of nations. By describing Atlantis as a naval empire from the west that had conquered most of Europe and Libya, Plato purposely created a literary contrast with the Achaemenid Empire, the great land-based power that ruled the east.
Atlantis in 9600 BC
The Island of Atlas
This is the island as Plato records it at the height of its power: a central royal islet ringed by concentric moats and land, pierced by a great canal and guarded by walls of red, white and black stone. The walk follows the harbour and bridges into the concentric rings, passes the Temple of Poseidon and the sacred grove, crosses the fertile plain and finishes on the mountains that close the island.
A compact radial city of concentric water and land, the skyline dominated by a low central islet and its silver-clad temple; rings of land and sea step outward like carved terraces. Stone walls quarried from the moats show bands of red, white and black and gleam where faced with brass and orichalcum. Narrow bridges and a broad canal cut through the rings; crowded harbours brim with triremes, wooden masts and the dark planking of merchant ships under a bright Atlantic sky.
The route: 9 streets, squares and views
Outer Ocean View → Canal Entrance → Outer Ring Harbour → Northern Bridge → Royal Islet Causeway → Temple of Poseidon → Grove and Springs → The Great Plain → Mountain Rim View
Step inside, 5 interiors
Canal Exchange Hall · Outer Ring Shipshed · Great Audience Hall · Ivory-Roofed Sanctuary · Hot-and-Cold Spring Baths
Planned from the Wikipedia record: Atlantis.
