Atlantis was an island where Poseidon, god of the sea lived. When Poseidon fell in love with Cleitus, a mortal, he built a dwelling in the center of the island and surrounded it with rings of water for protection. It was a center for travel and trade, so a canal was cut through the rings. The people of Atlantis were technologically advanced and had much of our modern day technology. However, the people focused too much on material things and brought about three major cataclysms. The first happened in 50,000 BCE (BC) and destroyed their major power source. The second happened in 28,500 BCE (BC) when the continent broke into three smaller islands. The final cataclysm was in 10,500 BCE (BC) when the islands sunk and the inhabitants migrated to other areas. At this time Egypt absorbed the migrating Atlanteans who then helped Egypt reach its height of glory. Egypt led the world in social programs. Eventually, Egypt, not Atlantis, was given credit for introducing the world to writing, medical science, irrigation and architecture.
This Atlantis based on Plato's dialogue Timaeus. Plato gained the information when Solon told him of a story an Egyptian priest told him. However, not a single Egyptian text or reference has been found to support this Atlantis Legend even though according to the Sleeping Prophet's dream, the information is supposed to be in a small hole, deep in the natural rock, under the Sphinx's paw. Also, there is no geographical evidence of a sunken continent in the area Plato says Atlantis was. Finally, by saying Egyptian culture was imported, people ignore previous cultures that were predecessors to Egyptian culture.
People claim that Egyptian civilization started suddenly and was in complete form 5,000 years ago. They also say that Egyptians learned "the secrets of the universe" from Atlanteans. One of the technologies the Egyptians were supposed to have learned from the Atlanteans is writing. However, hieroglyphs represent images from the Egyptian natural world and therefore are Egyptian in origin. Also, there is archaeological evidence that Egypt began earlier than 5,000 years ago. Just because there isn't a written history doesn't meant the prehistory didn't happen.
The Atlantis Legend is simply a myth that has been perpetuated despite evidence against it. There is no historical record of Atlantis, it is found only in Plato's account. There is no geographical evidence of the sunken islands of Atlantis. Finally, ancient Egyptians were not dependent on others for the development of their culture. There is a progression that led up to the great Egyptian civilization.
http://www.activemind.com/Mysterious/Topics/Atlantis/story.html
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