Rise and Fall of Atlantis
When did Atlantis begin?
Sykes estimated that the culture began about BC 18,000 — coinciding with the end of the two previous contemporary cultures of Tiahuanaco and Ethiopia. Both of these cultures perished in disasters of the classical pattern — missiles raining from the heavens; earthquakes on a vast scale; floods and fire; famine and disease. The development of Atlantis was helped by the fact that practically the whole of Europe and North America were covered with ice sheets as much as one mile thick; thus, human activities were concentrated in the equatorial belt, with Atlantis lying in a favorable position in the middle of it.
Where was Atlantis?
Atlantis was a land mass situated between the West Indies and the Canaries, and stretched from the Azores to Ascension Island, with a possible extension northwards to Greenland. Atlantis must have been about one-thousand miles at the widest part, and the entire area of the land mass was about one-million-and-a-half square miles. Plato specifically located the land mass in the center of the Atlantic Ocean beyond the Pillars of Hercules.
When was Atlantis submerged?
Easily answered. If the loss coincides with the capture of our present moon, then the answer is the time when there was no moon. There was no moon in the period between the disintegration of the pre-Luna Abyssinian satellite and the capture of our present satellite. On astronomical grounds, the date of the catastrophe is fixed at November 18, BC 9540 or 9542 (the two year difference is due to the fact that astronomers calculate elapsed time on a slightly different basis to the rest of us). According to Plato, the capture of the present satellite occurred 9,000 years before Solon; thus, 11,500 years ago. Taking into account investigations into the origin of the Mayan calendar, then the date is 11,500 years before present — approximately BC 9500. Soviet oceanographers have reported a date of BC 10,540.
Why and how was Atlantis submerged?
Sykes’ July 1967 article in Atlantis Called A Plethora Of Causes offers, "At the moment we have several different points of view, ranging from the comet hypothesis from Professor Kamienski; the asteroid hypothesis of Professor Boneff; the moon capture theory of Hoerbiger and Hinzpeter; and the stellar intruder idea of Winans et al. But these are not of necessity contradictory. The passage of the comet may have been linked with the approach of the moon, the fall of the asteroid with both, and the general disturbance with an intrusive visitor in our Solar System.”
Studying Atlantean Culture
Studying other early civilizations--megalith builders, the Maya, and the Egyptians--helps Atlantologists learn about Atlantean civilization and culture.