Sofia,

Atlantis is first mentioned in Plato's Republic and appears to be a cultural memory of Cretan/Minoan civilisation, which was one based on trade, sea-trade in effect. It may indeed have had an empire and appears to have had deep connections with Ancient Egypt. Wall paintings found on Santorini and Knossos, although subject also to archaeologists imaginative interpretation, were influenced by Egypt.

It may have been badly affected by the eruption of Santorini and the consequent tsunami.

It's feasible. We know that the Mediterranean during the ice age was composed of two inland lakes, both with shorelines much lower than they are at present. When the region flooded to its modern dimensions, which we can infer, all signs of life and civilization would have been swept away. If there was a civilization along the two inland seas, memory of their culture would explain not only the advanced technology behind the Great Pyramid and the story related by Plato, but the widespread flood myths of the Mediterranean region.

I like very much this topic and read a lot of articles in Internet. In the regions inhabited today by south American tribes - not very advanced technologically - were found constructions that people of these tribes say that were bult in much, much older times - or that were built by gods. Therefeore, constructions are reminiscent from old, lost civilazations. Indeed, those contructions require techniques of lifting and transporting huge blocks of stones from afar, that even today we couldn't do.

The somehow frightening story is that the very advanced empire of the Atlants disappeared in a terrible short time, not leaving them the possibility of relocation to another land.

Another issue is, where at all was the Atlants' empire? Not only that it seems to have had influence on the ancient Egypt, but also on south America, where were also found ancient pyramids, It seems that the crust of the earth moved during the time. So, the continents moved. There are opinions that the continent Antarctics was once a in a warm region of the Earth and that it may be that the Atlants' empire was on that continent. Of course, there are other claims by which the empire occupied other regions.

The flood stories may far better be explained by problems of flooding in ancient Sumeria or perhaps even the formation of the Black Sea c5000. Egyptian pyramids are not necessarily unusual technology, but fit common attempts to build high in stone age or chalcolithic cultures.

What South American constructions do you mean in particular that are reminiscent of lost civilizations?

Tijmen,

Just browse in Internet for ancient technologies hard to explain today. For instance

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W2mYFKTxsvE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W2mYFKTxsvE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4VlM1ar_LlE

You would find more.

Most of the stone, used in the monuments in Peru, is quarried at the site itself. The quarry of the Machu Picchu is next to the city...But aliens...come on.

Tijmen, we don't know today to lift up such huge stones. The stones do not lay on the ground, but there are constructions.

Moreover, did you watch the "Unexplained artifacts Top 15" ? The strange things hinting of an advanced civilization disappeared, are not only constructions.

Tijmen, would you look at this lecture?

Advanced Ancient Stone Cutting That Is Impossible to Replicate Today https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7H1-9SMVxVI

Maybe it could reply properly to your comment about the monuments of stone blocks. Not only that the blocks are huge and heavy - granit - and brought from a distance, then lifted one upon the other. Dome of them are very finely carved.

Best regards

By giving aliens the credits for things we can't explain today or when we don't understand what we see these people in this YouTube videos do short to ingenuity of human beings (like claiming that the Antikythera device could not be made because they did not have the skills to do it, is simply a false statement. Ancient Greece during that time was a very complex and advanced society at the time and they did have the skills.). Complex and advanced societies have been coming and going for the past thousands of years (like the ones in ancient Greece, The Roman Empire, The Mayas and Incas and many more). When they collapsed most of them took a lot of their knowledge with them. Some techniques were remembered others unfortunately forgotten.

I like to believe that there is a lost city containing a wealth of information out there, but I hate seeing people crediting amazing technology and architecture to aliens. Humans are pretty amazing, why are we so quick to say aliens did it? aliens have just replaced the concept of god, in the fact of using some external force to explain the mysterious.

My point exactly...we need more research though.

I very much incline to agree with Danielle. One argument against visit of aliens is that for such people to be able to live on Earth, they have to have come from a planet similar to the Earth. Most essentially, same mass as the Earth or less. People comming from a very light planet, would be crushed on the Earth by their own weight.

So, let's put proportions on the appealing idea of visits and influence of extraterestrians.

But do you really believe in aliens? or are you making a joke now? Your answer confuses me a bit...putting it in proportion I really don't find it that appealing that aliens had any influence. I really don't see a reason to believe that anything like that ever happened nor do I see any hard proof. Only really suggestive claims. The whole discussion gets this Erich von Däniken-feel from the 1960's and 1970's.

Tijmen, who is joking? I am not. Aliens can come only from a planet similar to Earth. It is very improbable. Same mass, same atmosphere, same temperature, same type of radiation from their Sun, etc. Where is such a planet? There may be such planets, but very, very, far.

You see, the history of science is a series of discoveries which, each one of them was almost occasional. Thus, an ancient civilization may have discovered, also occasionally, some techniques that our civilization didn't.

I agree with you. I also believe that there have been civilizations that have discovered techniques that are unknown to us at the moment. I only just don't believe that these unknown, or forgotten, techniques have been given to us by extraterrestrials.

I seriously dislike it when people, or scientists, start looking for explanations outside themselves when they can not explain or understand what they see.

Dear Tijmen,

There is big truth in your words

"I seriously dislike it when people, or scientists, start looking for explanations outside themselves when they can not explain or understand what they see."

To attribute all sort of facts to extraterrestrians, is to choose the easy way, which spares the effort of doing serious research.

Don't forget that the Atlantis story came out from only one story mentioned by Plato. Nobody else in ancient Greece seemed to know about the demise of Atlantis.

If you see the Minoan palaces with heated floors, flushing toilets and air vents built before 1,600 BC you will be amazed at the technology of this probably oldest civilization in Europe. The tsunami caused by the explosion of the Thera volcano was responsible for the (temporary?) end of this civilization which many researchers think it was Atlantis itself.

I think the reason why the ancient Greeks did not know much about the Thera explosion is because its effects did not spread to the north but to the east and southeast. Naturally, the Egyptians would be the ones who would remember the effects of this explosion and tsunamis.

Dear Sofia,

We both are scientists. We can not choose the easy way. There will always be an explanation. And there are no certainties.

I'm glad we agree.