The Temple Underwater City of Heraklion: Is It Really The Same Atlantis

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

Our world is full of unsolved mysteries and amazing secrets / Every person at least once in his life has heard the legend of the lost mythical city - Atlantis. Few of us know that there are hundreds of such legends and lost cities in the world. Historians all over the world have been struggling to unravel these mystical secrets for years, but sometimes ancient documents and archaeological finds give more questions than answers. The story of the great temple city of Heraklion, discovered in 2000 by Frank Goddio, turns all myths about Atlantis into reality.

Many ancient chroniclers, such as the Greek historian Herodotus (5th century BC), wrote about Heraklion. A great city built in honor of Amon Ra, the Egyptian sun god, the most important of the gods of the Egyptian pantheon.

This is an ancient city where, according to legend, Paris and Helen the Beautiful hid before the Trojan War. The city that arose according to the legend described by Diodorus. It says that Hercules blocked the course of the Nile and saved the inhabitants of the coast. People expressed their gratitude that they founded a city on this place and named it in honor of the hero-savior. Also in the city a large beautiful temple was built in honor of Hercules.

Heraklion was described by the Greek historian and geographer Strabo. He claimed that the city was east of Canopus, near the mouth of the Nile River. It was built around the 8th century BC. The soil on which it was built was sandy and clayey. According to the theory of the researchers, due to the numerous rise and fall of the sea level, earthquakes, which are very frequent in this area, Heraklion ultimately went under water to a depth of about half a thousand meters.

In 2000, archaeologists from the European Institute of Underwater Archeology, led by Frank Goddio, explored the area in search of the sunken ships of Napoleon's fleet. They were sunk by the British under the command of Admiral Nelson in 1798. As a result, by pure chance, Goddio's team discovered the ruins of an ancient city under water.

A superficial examination already gave the right to assume that this is a very large commercial city. Majestic temples, beautiful statues of Greek gods, many residential buildings and marinas for merchant ships. A huge amount of gold and precious stones were also found. On a black granite slab found in a mysterious city, "Heraklion" was carved.

Research work was carried out for six long years before Frank Goddio announced that he had discovered the legendary lost city. He himself had never believed in its existence before. This majestic ancient city was an important trading port of Ancient Egypt.

The Egyptians called him Tonis, and the Greeks - Heraklion. Trade flourished here, the townspeople lived an idle rich existence. It was here that the great Queen Cleopatra herself was crowned.

Alexander the Great conquered Egypt in 331 and founded Alexandria thirty kilometers from here. Alexandria became the largest and most prosperous city at the time. Thanks to its world-renowned library, the city was considered an important scientific center, attracting scholars such as Archimedes and Euclid, according to the Encyclopedia of Ancient History. As Alexandria grew in influence and status, Heraklion faded away. He began to slowly decline and became completely secondary.

The treasures of Heraklion are not so numerous and rich, but they are perfectly preserved under water. Studying these artifacts, you can get a very clear idea of the life of the Greeks and Egyptians at a time when it was a large bustling port.

The incredible treasures raised from the seabed include a five meter high red granite statue. Researchers believe that this is the Egyptian pharaoh Ptolemy II. Also, identical statues of the goddess Isis and the god Hapi were delivered to land. In addition to large finds, archaeologists have discovered hundreds of amulets, small figurines of gods and sarcophagi with animal mummies sacrificed to Amon.

Heraklion is one of the largest cemeteries of ancient ships. Goddio and his team found more than six dozen anchors lined up like a parking lot. Among the destroyed ships were found piles of gold, jewelry, gold coins, bronze and lead weights, and ceramic items. Also in the port were found perfectly preserved steles and columns with Egyptian hieroglyphic inscriptions. The stele registered ships that entered the port, as well as taxes and duties that they must pay.

Many canals were built in Heraklion, making it look like Venice. Residential buildings were built in places far from the city center. Surprisingly, many of the finds were of Greek origin with Egyptian inscriptions and vice versa. This underlines the incredibly close trade and economic ties that existed between Egypt and Greece.

Thus, the age-old mystery associated with the cities of Tonis and Heraklion was revealed. The city is actually one, there are just two names - Egyptian and Greek. So far, archaeologists have explored only a small part of the city, which, according to Frank Goddio's estimates, is three times the size of Pompeii. He predicts great and exciting discoveries in the coming years.

Read about other sunken cities of the ancient world in our article 10 sunken cities that, unlike Atlantis, actually exist.