Atlantis found (again)! And exasperated scientists (again) raise their eyebrows

Almost 2,400 years ago, the philosopher Plato described Atlantis as a powerful state endowed with 10,000 tanks, advanced technologies, a large number of elephants and bulls and a series of complex channels. And now, in a new documentary, a group based in the United Kingdom claims to have discovered the ruins of this once flourishing society on the present Atlantic coast of Spain.

But an archaeologist said the ruins would probably belong to another culture, and several researchers interviewed by Live Science could barely contain their exasperation when they heard the news of another Atlantis discovery. (People have made dozens of such claims over the years, establishing the legendary society in Antarctica, Bolivia, Turkey, Germany, Malta, the Caribbean, and elsewhere.)

"Bless their hearts – They're right, that would be great, "said Ken Feder, professor of anthropology at Central Connecticut State University. "But here's my problem: as an archaeologist, I know that I always need to be in the company of my bullshit detector, and these guys, they've done everything that's going on." They could trigger my bullshit detector. " [Images: Lost Medieval City Discovered Near Angkor Wat]

Seen from Space

One may wonder if Atlantis existed or not. Plato described ancient society around 330 BC. By writing that a politician named Critias had heard of the company through a historic phone game going back to ancient Egypt. Atlantis is the perfect example of a society corrupted by its material wealth, advanced technologies and military might. Then, the gods destroyed Atlantis about 9,000 years ago during a cataclysmic event, writes Plato.

For centuries, scholars viewed Plato's writings on Atlantis as an allegory. But this perspective changed in 1882, when the American representative of Minnesota, Ignatius Donnelly (1831-1901), published the book "Atlantis: The Antediluvian World" (Harper & Brothers), claiming that Atlantis was a real place . 19659002] Since then, people have been searching for the sunken remains of the city. In the most recent example, Merlin Burrows' employees pointed out, two years ago, what Atlantis could be in Spain, said Bruce Blackburn, CEO of Merlin Burrows, at Live Science. The company, based in North Yorkshire, England, uses historical recordings and satellite data to find archaeological sites.

The Blackburn team uses data from commercial satellites, such as Landsat 5 and Landsat 8 (which also provide data for Google Earth), to find the site in the Doñana National Park in Spain. "Obviously, it's a very daring thing to say," said Blackburn, who has a background in business and finance. "Everyone will have [one of] two opinions.The first is:" It's fantastic.Let's see it in detail, "and the third will be:" C & # 39; is a pile of waste. " [The 25 Strangest Sites on Google Earth]

What they found

Researchers the company chose to search the site in Spain after reading Plato's two dialogues about Atlantis. Blackburn said. They also looked at another text, but Blackburn does not say which one. "We will not share this in a public forum at this stage," said Blackburn, adding that he expects however that the writing be subject to control "as soon as possible" .

The text of these documents includes Plato's descriptions that "under the mouth that you, the Greeks, call, as you say," the pillars of Heracles ", was an island that was larger that Libya and Asia together. " Such descriptions led Merlin Burrows to the Spanish coast near the Strait of Gibraltar, Blackburn said. The team found several archaeological evidence: large circles that may have formed the basis of ancient towers, the ruins of what the team claims to be the temple of Poseidon and a greenish blue patina covering some of the ruins – all the details included in Plato in his dialogues, Blackburn said. [10 Biggest Historical Mysteries That Will Probably Never Be Solved]

The team also discovered the remains of a long dyke, as well as the signs of a tsunami, which could be evidence of the cataclysmic event that drowned the company, Blackburn said.

"The Cities of Atlantis, Blackburn explained that" those who are very detailed in Plato's writing are really within everyone's reach, "said Blackburn.

Merlin Burrows then drew samples of material – probably man-made concrete, from the circle-shaped foundations and the possible ruins of the temple.The company handed these samples to a materials badysis laboratory in Italy, which made them Blackburn said Blackburn did not specify the methods used by the laboratory to date the concrete.

Merlin Burrows and Ingenio Films have directed a two-hour documentary titled "Atlantica" on the discovery, and Blackburn said he expects the companies to do more documentaries.

"What we really want to do, it is that you We could make the discovery, "said Blackburn. "We want to make a lot of money, and with that money, we want to support the archaeological community."

Ancient Remains

Merlin Burrows is not the first group to claim that Atlantis is located in southern Spain. In "Atlantis Rising," National Geographic announced that the network had found evidence of the location of its network in the Doñana National Park, as well as a 2004 study in the journal Antiquity. And Elena Maria Whishaw, director of the Anglo-Hispano-American School of Archeology, published the book "Atlantis in Andalucia" (Rider & Company), published in 1929 and which presumed that the area was a colony from Atlantis.

Spain is a place of interest because people lived there a long time ago. In a new study published in the December issue of the Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, researchers discovered that humans lived in the current Doñana National Park there are about 5,000 years, according to an badysis of pollen and microscopic remains in the sediments of the region. [19659002] This study revealed that the park was above sea level at certain times, especially in neolithic and copper periods. The researchers also discovered that Doñana National Park was based on Holocene sediments that began to accumulate about 7,000 years ago. "Below these sediments are pre-Holocene sedimentary deposits and layers of fossilized sand dating back thousands of years," said Juan José Villarías-Robles, co-investigator and deputy director of the Institute of Literary Literature and Anthropology of the Center for Human and Social Sciences in Madrid.

If the dating of actual specimens dating back 10,000 to 12,000 years, reported by Merlin Burrows, is accurate, then these specimens could come from pre-Holocene formations, Villarías-Robles said. But, at least for this place, this date does not correspond to a company like Atlantis, he said. "However, baduming that the material is made by man (which is a great hypothesis), the date leads us, from the point of view of culture to history, to Paleolithic and post-war. Paleolithic, "Villarías-Robles explained to Live Science in an email. "This is the era of hunters and gatherers, not the creators and leaders of a large-scale maritime policy focused on agriculture, livestock and livestock [like Atlantis]." [In Images: An Ancient European Hunter Gatherer]

Choose and Choose

Meanwhile, Feder (anthropologist from Central Connecticut State University) asked why Merlin Burrows had not submitted her findings to a peer-reviewed journal, which which would give other scientists the opportunity to approve the research. "This immediately triggers my bullshit detector when someone, instead of doing it, makes the announcement through a press release, a press conference, a web page or a documentary," Feder said.

In his book "Encyclopedia of Dubious Archeology": From Atlantis to Walam Olum "(Greenwood, 2010), Feder recorded 53 specific descriptions of Atlantis in Plato's dialogues, including that the city had bridges connecting rings of land, as well as a central island surrounded by a stone wall on either side.The descriptions also indicated that the Poseidon temple in Atlantis had an ivory roof, silver walls and walls. pinnacles in gold It is common for American scientists to tick some of these boxes, but few people consult the entire checklist, said Feder. [How Plausible Are These 20 Imaginary Worlds?]

The region is "a very interesting place" , but this fact "obviously" is not news, said Mark Adams, author of "Meet Me at Atlantis: My Quest to Return to the 2000 Years" Sunken City "(Dutton, 2015). Archaeologists have known for years that southern Spain was a nerve center of maritime trade in ancient times, said Adams Live Science.

"Does that make it [this area] Atlantis? I can not say with certainty," no, "but me" I see no new evidence that allows me to "badert," said Adams, after having watched the new trailer "Atlantica". Like Feder, Adams said a few aspects of the site abided by the Atlantis checklist, including that the region had experienced catastrophic earthquakes and floods, but that it was lacking in the area. other aspects.

Adams stated that he would take the proposal of Atlantis more seriously. The key details of Plato's dialogues, including the city's unique layout in concentric circles (like a bull's eye) of sea and dry land. (These concentric circles are different from the dot-shaped circles that Merlin Burrows found in the landscape.) Perhaps archeologists will find an inscription on Atlantis in an Egyptian temple, where, according to Plato's writing, the original description was found, said Adams.

"What a lot of people do, is that they're going to take on the role of Plato's story – and there's tons of information in there, c & rsquo; That's why it's so fun to play with – it's really like a treasure map – and they take the parts that fit their badumption and they silently leave out the parts that do not match their hypothesis, "said Adams. [Rumor or Reality: The Creatures of Cryptozoology]

In reality, it is likely that Plato twisted elements of stories and different myths that he had heard, sculpting this source material into the likely fictional history of society of Atlantis, an advanced but corrupt society that the gods created. destroy. "[Plato] did not write this as a surveyor's report that people could follow 2400 years later," Adams said. "He used that to argue a philosophical argument."

In other words, "people very often claim to have found Atlantis," Live Science told a clbadical archaeologist in England, who refused to give his name. "But if they read the text, they would realize that it was a legend, not a place."

Originally published on Live Science .