(Alexander Wilder was a great Neoplatonist scholar and in
this article he reviews the ancient narratives about the island of Atlantis.)
THE LOST ATLANTIS (1)
(Note: This paper was written in May, 1836. The attention of the writer had
been attracted to the subject from reading a pamphlet entitled "Ancient Egypt,"
by George R. Gilddon, which contained an allusion to the region.)
Who has penetrated to the sources
of the sea, or passed through the depths of the abyss T Who can guide to the
boundaries of the ancient Darkness, or knows the path to her domain? What skald
was inspired to write the saga, narrating the exploits of those long forgotten—seemingly
lost out of the world's memory?
Gladly would we peruse some old Edda
chronicling the deeds of these master-spirits that once bustled on this earth of
ours, anterior to the dawn of the day indicated by our histories. How fraught
with interest would be the annals of the Northman race, ever aspiring to the
lordship of the universe; who, as heroes, filled Southern Europe with gods and
demigods, and peopled their mythology; who, as Hellenes, subdued the shepherd
and agricultural Pelasgians of Greece, Troy (2), and perhaps of Eastern Italy; who brought devastation to the heart of
the Roman Empire and built the monarchies of Modern Europe.
How far our explanations will
solve the enigmas of the Past, is a matter of grave question. Parchment has
proved too perishable for a record; we must interrogate the stones. Perhaps they
will "cry out" and give us a testimony. But even then, we shall need
a man who can understand their language — one, perhaps, who had "been in Eden
the garden of God."
We interrogate the naturalist — him
to whom the “elder Scripture,” (3) we would
suppose to be '”familiar as household words.” Of him we learn that Nature has
been always restless, unceasingly busy; that nothing, hardly, which we now see,
bears the same form that it once had. Our globe, our solar system, our
universe, are ever moving onward, nor know a Sabbath in their labors. Every atom
is constantly divesting itself of its older, that it may put on a newer form.
This city of Albany was once the
bed of a beautiful lakelet; the gentle Hudson river an angry torrent. We ascend
the Catskills and see there the evidences that even the ''everlasting hills'' must
inevitably crumble into dust and descend into the valley below. Every mountain seems
destined to be brought low, every valley to be filled.
Pass to the seashore, and there,
too, is change. The ocean is eating away the land, and homestead after homestead,
deeded and recorded to ''heirs and assigns forever,'' lies irrecoverably
beneath the waves. So the old worlds seem fading out of existence, while corals
are assiduously aiding to create new soils, new islands and new continents.
Geologists have brought to knowledge the revolutions which our earth has
undergone; yet, it is more than possible that they are but slight compared with
those just now commencing, which are destined to occur.
How must this world have looked when the Titans, the Nephelim and giants
of old legends, figured in its arena?
Did behemoths and mastodons then rule any of these lands?
Certainly they had their day and
passed into extinction and forgetfulness, leaving their skeletons for monuments
.to show where they once lived and disported on the earth.
We mentioned the ancient Nephelim
— "mighty men of old, men of renown.'' Concerning such as these we have not
to enquire. Moses tells of Rephaim in the frontier regions of the Promised
Land. Manetho and Eratosthenes assure us that they once swayed the scepter of
Egypt. In the stories of the book of Genesis we are told that nations of them
served King Chedor-laomer. Others of them are said to have been vanquished in Mount
Seir by Esau, the warlike son of Isaac. There is much that is not known about
these peoples but which is well worth the learning.
The legends of Athens are not
devoid of interest. Whether the early Atticans were an autochthonic race or not,
certain it is that they were of almost incredible antiquity. The dedication of the
city to the blue-eyed goddess Pallas Athena, a North-maiden in her physiognomy,
is perhaps from a fancy of a later period. The legend of her conflict with
Poseidon (4), for the supremacy is in evidence.
But the story of Atlantis, of which
Plato has given us a record, owes its preservation to a tradition of a conflict
of its people with the Athenians-a tradition, which the Athenians themselves
seem to have known nothing about. We cite the story which is said to have been narrated
to Solon, by an Egyptian priest (5).
« First of all let us
recollect that it is about nine thousand years since war was proclaimed between
those dwelling outside the Pillars of Hercules (Gibraltar) and all those within
them, which war we must now describe. Of the latter party this city of Athens
was the leader, and conducted the whole war; and of the former, the Kings of
the Atlantic Island which we said was once larger than Libya (Northern Africa)
and (Southwestern) Asia, but now, sunk by earthquakes, a mass of impervious mud
which hinders all those sailing on the vast sea from effecting a passage
hither.
To the gods was once locally
allotted the whole earth, and that too, without contention; for it would not be
reasonable to suppose that the gods are ignorant of what suits each of
themselves, or, that fully aware of what is rather the property of others, they
would try to get possession of it through strife.
Obtaining then a country, they
reared it, as their possessions, flocks and herds; and by working on the soul
they governed the mortal by leading him according to their own mind. Hephaestus
and Athena (6) having a common nature, received this region of Attika as their common
allotment, as being naturally familiar with and well adapted to virtue and
wisdom; and having produced worthy men, autochthones or natives of the soil, they
arranged the order of their government.
Of these men the names are preserved;
though through their death and the long lapse of time all memory of their deeds
has perished. The race that survived were unlettered mountaineers, who knew the
names of the ruling people, but very little about their deeds. In this way were
preserved their names without their history.
Solon said that the (Egyptian)
priests, in describing the wars then waged, gave to those who were engaged in them
such names as Kekrops, Erekhtheus, Erikhthonios, Erysikhthon; also the names of
women. Besides, the figure and image of the goddess show that at that time both
men and women entered in common on the pursuits of war; as in compliance with that
custom an armed statue was dedicated to the goddess by the people of that day-a
proof that all animals that consort together, females as well as males, have a natural
tendency to pursue in common every suitable duty.
In early times this country
(Attika) had its boundary at the Isthmus (of Corinth) and on the side of the
other continent as far as the heights of Kithreron and Parnes, with Oropia on
the right, and the Asopos, as a seaport limit, on the left. By the valor of
this region the whole earth was vanquished (excelled), because it was then able
to support the numerous army, collected from the people around.
. . .
As many and extensive deluges
happened in that period of nine thousand years, the earth that was loosened and
that fell in these times and under these circumstances, did not as elsewhere,
aggregate to form any elevation worth mentioning, but ever eddying round,
vanished in the deep. … Such was once the natural state of this country, and it
was cultivated by real husbandmen, actually practicing their calling, lovers of
honor and generous-minded, having a most excellent soil, great abundance of
water, and a climate admirably tempered. It was at this time that the city of
Athens was founded.
. . .
Poseidon, taking as his lot the
Atlantic Island, begat children by a mortal woman, and settled in a spot on the
island which we will describe. … He also begat and brought up five pairs of twin
male children; and after dividing all the Atlantic Island· into ten parts, he
bestowed on the first born of the eldest pair his mother's dwelling and allotment
about it-this being the largest and best; and he appointed him king of all .the
rest, making the others subordinate rulers, and giving to each the dominion
over· many people and an extensive territory.
To the eldest, the king, he gave
the name of Atlas; and from him as the first sovereign, both the island and sea
were termed Atlantic. … All these, and their descendants, dwelt for many
generations, as rulers in the sea of islands; and further extended their empire
to all the country as far as Egypt and Tyrrhenian. »
(Italy, Kritias: 4-9)
The wealth of this dynasty is
described as having been more abundant than had ever before been known. The
island had many mines. The orichalkon was found there — a metal not now known (7). A vast number of nutritious fruits were produced; elephants (8) and other animals were numerous. The arts were cultivated to a high
degree of perfection. The subjected peoples of Europe and Africa paid a large
tribute.
The government consisted of ten
confederated states, as established by Poseidon. For ages virtue, happiness and
wealth reigned in the Atlantic Island. At length avarice and the lust of power
swerved them from their ideal rectitude. But we will cite again the old story:
« Listen, now,
Sokrates, to a story very strange indeed, but in every respect true, as it was
related by Solon, the wisest of the seven (9).
. . .
In Egypt, in the Delta, where the
streams of Egypt are divided, is the Saitical region, the chief city of which
is Sais, whence sprung King Amasis (10). Its deity is
called in Egyptian, Neith, in Greek, Athena — and the people accordingly are great
friends of the Athenians.
Solon was received very honorably
by them. On enquiring of the priests about ancient affairs, he perceived that
neither himself nor the Greeks possessed, so to speak, any antiquarian
knowledge at all. He once undertook to describe those events which had happened
among us in days of yore, when one of the priests, an extremely aged man,
exclaimed:
“Solon, Solon, you Greeks are always
children, and there is not an aged Greek. … The transactions which you have
related differ little from children's fables. In the first place, you speak of
only one Deluge of the earth (11), whereas
there have been many before. In the next place, you are unacquainted with the
most noble and excellent race of men who once inhabited your country, from whom
your whole present inhabitants are descended, though only a small remnant of
this admirable people are now remaining (12).
Your ignorance in this matter results
from the fact that their posterity for many generations died without having the
use of letters. For, long before the Chief Deluge, there existed a city of Athenians,
regulated by the best laws both in military and other matters, whose noble
deeds are said to have been the most excellent of all that we have heard to
exist under heaven.
Your state and ours were formed
by the same goddess, yours having a priority of a thousand years over ours. The
annals of our city have been preserved eight thousand years in our Sacred
Writings. … Many and mighty deeds of your state are here recorded, and call
forth our wonder. There is one surpassing them all; for these writings relate
what a prodigious force your city once overcame when a mighty warlike power,
rushing from the Atlantic Sea, spread itself with hostile fury over all Europe
and Asia (13).
That Sea was then navigable, and
had an island fronting that mouth which you call Pillars of Hercules; and the
island was larger than Libya and Asia (Minor) put together. There was a passage
from it for travelers to the rest of the islands, and from those islands to the
whole opposite continent that surrounds the sea. For, as respects what is
within the mouth here mentioned, it (the Mediterranean) appears to be a bay
with a kind of narrow entrance ; and that sea is a true sea, and the land that surrounds
it may most truly and correctly be termed a continent.
In this Atlantic Island there
existed a powerful confederacy of sovereigns, who had conquered the entire
island, together with many others, and also parts of the continent. Besides
this, they had subjected the inland parts of Africa as far as Egypt, and of
Europe as far as Tyrrhenian (Italy). The whole of this force, being
confederated, undertook at one blow to enslave your country and ours, and all
the territory lying within the mouth. At this period your country was
universally celebrated for its courage and strength; for surpassing all others
in greatness and marvelous skill, sometimes taking the lead of all the
Grecians, and at others, left alone by their defection, and thus involved in
extreme danger, it still prevailed, vanquished the assailants, protected those
who were not enslaved, and for the rest of us who dwelt within the Pillars of Hercules
it ensured the amplest liberty.
Afterward violent earthquakes and
deluges brought speedy destruction. In a single day and night the whole of your
warlike race was swallowed up by the earth, and the Atlantic Island itself was
plunged beneath the sea, disappearing entirely. Since then that sea is neither
navigable nor capable of being explored, being blocked up by the great depth of
mud which the sinking island produced." »
(Plato, Timaos, 4-6)
This story is ref erred to by
several writers, some going so far as to declare it a fable. It would, perhaps,
be demanding too much credulity to require us to believe it all fictitious. We pause,
therefore, to enquire whether it was plausible. The story of the invasion does
not greatly conflict with those of the old irruptions into the known world of the
ancients. We have seen an attempt to show that the Atlantean people were
ancient Northmen, who had sailed, as at subsequent periods, around the European
coast and come into the Mediterranean-a circumstance which led the Egyptians to
suppose that they were from some unknown territory not far from the Strait of Gibraltar.
Others still, and we have been inclined to favor the opinion, have supposed that
our own Western Continent, older than the Eastern by ages, was the real
Atlantis that sent invaders to Europe and Africa long before history began. The
subsequent dark period, during which the memory of this great people was
well-nigh lost, would account for the declaration that the territory was
submerged by a catastrophe not widely different in character from that which
overthrew Sodom, Pompeii and Euphemia.
It is certain that in Spanish
America hoary-headed antiquity had a splendid home. Remains of cities,
architecture resembling the Pelasgic, ornaments like those worn by the Trojans
and Greeks, religious emblems (14) — an bespeak
such to be the most reasonable solution of the enigma. Stucco work and
paintings resembling Italian frescoes have been found in Central America. Trees
a thousand years old are growing over ancient palaces. In Yucatan have been
found ruins of magnificent houses, adorned with fresco paintings of blue and
green, apparently fresh. The skulls of men of the ancient races have been
examined, containing· teeth, some plugged and others artificial. Mines have
been opened which had been wrought by the laborers of that remote period. The
sacred lotus flower was also found among the sculptures.
Indeed, it must be conceded that there
are very plausible reasons for supposing that a continent or vast island, or perhaps
a former part of our continent, once occupied a large portion of the Atlantic
Ocean. Clavigero declares that between Brazil and Africa are seen remains of a
sunken body of land; that they are also seen at the Cape Verde Islands and
their vicinity, and he cites the sand-banks found by Bauche. The conformation
of our shores indicates a sinking of the land, particularly along the Gulf of
Mexico. It may be that the space now occupied by that body of water was once
solid earth, of which the West India Islands are now all that is left. It is no
great stretch of fancy to suppose the Azore, Canary and Cape de Verde Islands to
have in like manner contributed the mountainous and higher portions of the·
lost Atlantis. Immense quantities of sea-weed may be seen floating in the water
all along that region of the ocean (15).
Every student in the classics
knows of Atlas, king in the extreme West, who held the sky on his shoulders. It
may be this was a recollection of that ancient, wise and opulent people whom the
ocean buried, leaving to the storm to chant their requiem, and Tenerife to
stand as their monument. If the souls of the dead beneath the waters and their
inhabitants could speak, they might tell the story. The matter may be veiled in
the thick cloud that conceals the primeval Past. Yet it may also be permitted
to mortals to learn the matter; and the lords of the universe, restless as is Nature
herself, may yet know the secret history which old Ocean hides beneath the
waves.
Notes
1. Reference may be made to distinguished
authority, which shows that there was a region beyond Gibraltar recognized in ancient
times. Aristotle described a transatlantic Island. Theopompos represents Silenos
as discoursing about Atlantis to the Phrygians. Plutarch mentions the isle Ogygia,
five days' sail westward from Britain, and three others at the northwest. There
is "the continent by which the great sea is environed distant from Ogygla 5,000
stadia." He also tells of ships returning from the Islands of the Blessed in
that ocean. Diodoros relates the story of Phoenicians sailing westward to the Islands
of Kronos, where were high mountains and a warm climate. He also tells of an Island
In the west which the Carthaginians had discovered, and to which they thought to
emigrate. Saint Isidore, Strabo, Beda and St. Ambrose described Paradise the original
home of Adam and Eve, as being in the West. So many statements must have had a tangible
foundation, and be regarded as capable of being verified.
2. It is more probable that the inhabitants
of Ilion were of a stock akin to the Assyrians. The names of the legendary personages,
Ilos, Assaracus, and others seem to imply as much, although other appellations given
by Homer are etymologically Aryan. – Alexander Wilder.
3. Ezekiel 28:13, 14.
4. Herodotos: II, 110. "Of him
(Poseidon) the Greeks got their knowledge from the Libyans, by whom he has been
always honored, and who were anciently the only people that had a god of the name."
The regions about the Mediterranean
Sea, except Egypt, were regarded u in the domain of Poseidon after his admission into the circle of Olympian divinities. The wanderings of Odysseus or Ulysses, described
by Homer, were in the region subject to him apart from Zeus. – Alexander
Wilder.
5. When Psamtik had expelled the Assyrian
rulers and made himself king of Egypt, he set aside the former exclusive policy
and permitted the Greeks to come into Egypt. The era of the philosophers had begun,
and distinguished men were admitted to Instruction at the temples. Solon going thither
was tor a time the pupil of Sonkhis, the priest of the temple of Nelth at Sais,
then the royal residence. The account of ·Atlantis appears to have been preserved
in his family, to which both Plato and Kritias belonged.
6. These two divinities have been
generally known to us by their names as Roman gods, Vulcan and Minerva. The Egyptians
priests also attempted to identify them with Ptah, the god of Memphis, and Neith,
the goddess of Sais. But these identifications are chiefly fictitious, as the characteristics
of the several divinities do not closely correspond. Hence writers like Grote, Gladstone,
Max Muller and others disregard the practice and in most cases write the names
as they were originally used. Thus we have Zeus, Hera, Leto, Aphrodite, Poseidon,
instead of Jupiter, June, Latoza, Venus, Neptune.
7. Many conjectures have been put
forth in regard to the metal here named. The Greek term for copper is chalkos, but
this hardly meets the sense of the statement. The name, orichalkos, however, seems
to mean "desired," implying value exceeding that of gold.
8. Those who suppose Atlantis to have
been the American continent, or territory contiguous to It, may find some explanation
of this In the fact that the mammoth and mastodon, once abundant here, were of the
elephant race.
9. The Seven Sages of Greece, before
the rise of the Philosophers. The "Seven Wise Men" as enumerated by Plutarch,
were Solon of Athens, Bias of Priene, Thales of Miletos, Anacharsis the Skythian,
Kleobulos of Lindos, Pittakos of Mitylene, and Chilo of Lacedemon. Other writers
include Periander of Corinth instead of Anacharsis, who was not of Greece or Ionia.
10. Amasis or Aah-mes, the second
of the name, became king of Egypt after the deposing of Apries or the Pharaoh Hophra,
by Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon, for instigating the revolt of Zedekiah, the subject-king
of Judea. (See Jeremiah xxxvii; xliii. 10-13; xliv. 29, 30.) He took great pains
to cultivate the friendship of the Greeks, and caused the priests to admit Thales,
Pythagoras, Solon and others to their Instructions.
11. The deluge of Deukallon 11 described
by ancient Grecian writers. It was probably the opening of a great Interior sea
at the north, by an earthquake, to the Mediterranean, flooding the countries of
Greece, creating the Aegean sea and converting a large territory Into an archipelago
with numerous Islands.
12. Herodotos: I, 57. "The Athenians
who were certainly Pelasgians , must hate changed their language at the same time
that they passed Into the Hellenic body."
13. It la not altogether Improbable
that this account relates to the same event as has been preserved in the traditions
of the Amazons. They are described as coming from Mauritania or Morocco, marching
through Egypt, which contained a kindred people, and passing onward over Asia
Minor, Invading Greece. One tradition credits them with establishing Mystic Rites
in different places.
14. Not only the bird, the cross and
kindred emblems, and even the pyramid, have been noted, but the Swastika, now accredited
to the Buddhists, yet found by Schliemann at ancient Troy, and also In Norway.
15. The body of still water In the
midst of the North Atlantic Is here alluded to. It received from Spanish
navigators the name of "Sargasso Sea," on account of the vast
quantity of sea -weed with which It abounds. It is elliptical in form, and has an
area almost as large as Europe. It lies between 20° and 30° north latitude, and
between 30° and 60° west longitude from Greenwich. It is never navigated, and
in it la collected a large proportion of the drift or wreck which floats about the
ocean.
(The Word, August
1906, p.316-320)
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