APIFantasy | Myth and Folklore Anthology

Cypriot Mythology - Legend #3: The Legend of Atlantis and Cyprus

Atlantis is a fictional city first mentioned by Plato in his works Timaeus and Critias. He portrays it as an antagonistic naval force that attacks "Ancient Athens" (which is depicted as the ideal state by Plato). The latter repel this attack which was something no other state had been able to do. Following their defeat, Atlantis fell out of favour with the deities and submerged underwater.

While Plato made a brief mention of Atlantis, using it as an example of nations growing too ambitious and greedy for their own good, the lost city became a powerful and prevalent symbol throughout the years. Researchers became fascinated with the mystery of it, trying to locate the exact location of the drowned city. On the other hand, literature became fascinated by Plato's allegory of greed drowning a powerful nation and even with a possible rise of a fallen nation.

The Myth of Atlantis

Atlantis was said to be an enormous island inhabited by demigods hailing from Poseidon's lineage. Using that connection and the abundance of resources found on the island, Atlantis developed rapidly until it was way ahead of its time. Despite their immense wealth and power, the Atlanteans hungered for more which led to naval explorations to different nations where they encountered little to no resistance. They plundered, looted, and enslaved these nations until they came across the Greek city of Athens.

Not only did the Athenians resist the Atlanteans, but they also drove the latter back to where they came from. Following this defeat, the Atlanteans fell out of favour with the gods who sent a catastrophic earthquake and flood to their nation. Unable to bear the onslaught, Atlantis was destroyed and eventually drowned.

The Location of Atlantis

... for in front of the mouth which you Greeks call, as you say, 'the pillars of Heracles,' there lay an island which was larger than Libya and Asia together...

— from a fifteenth-century Latin translation of Plato's Timaeus

Even though Plato makes the barest mention of Atlantis in his manuscripts - in the Atlantic Ocean, near the Pillars of Hercules - his descriptions of the mighty nation have created an unquenchable curiosity. Historians try to place Atlantis on modern maps, taking clues from Plato's accounts. Over the years, it has been placed across various locations, but the most comprehensive evidence points to a location near Cyprus.

Robert Sarmast's Claims about Atlantis and Cyprus

Robert Sarmast declares that the lost city of Atlantis was actually in the Mediterranean Sea within the Cyprian Basin. He believes that not only does sonar data show man-made structures a the bottom of the sea corresponding to Plato's descriptions, but local festivals, names, presence of copper in Cyprus all prove this hypothesis. He also claims that what is now Cyprus was once just the mountain tops of Atlantis.

Sarmast has said that his findings are a result of scientific evidence gathered through sea-bed sonar scans. He claims that the story of Noah also lends credibility to his beliefs. He has undertaken several expeditions to further his research to prove his hypothesis.

Some Other Theories About Atlantis

While some support Sarmast's theory or give enough credence to it based on the multitudes of similarities, others deny the connection entirely. Most of the proposed locations are islands in or near the Mediterranean Sea such as Sicily, Sardinia, and Crete among others. Some are drawn to locations nearer to the Atlantic Sea due to the obvious similarity of the name, naming the Canary Islands as the ideal site. There are also several hypotheses placing Atlantis in the Doggerland due to historic accounts of a mega tsunami sweeping the area, falling in line with the mythical story of Atlantis. There are yet others who draw parallels between the myth of Atlantis and other lost cities, the Bermuda Triangle and the lost city of Kumari Kandam off the coast of India being two of the more popular options.

Despite proving to be as elusive as it has been, Atlantis continues to have a major draw for historians, archaeologists, artists, and more which is why several expeditions continue in search of the lost city including Robert Sarmast himself.

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