The Legend of Atlantis
Did Atlantis exist at some point in the past or was it merely a fictitious story written by Plato? The only known historical record of its existence comes from Plato’s Critias, written in 360 BCE. According to Plato, the story of Atlantis had been passed down from Solon, an Athenian statesman and poet. Solon met with an old Egyptian priest in the temple of Neith in the city of Sais around 560 BCE. The location was a type of hall of historical records, and it allegedly contained accounts of Atlantis. Here, Solon translated the Egyptian text into Greek and discovered that Atlantis existed 9,000 years earlier.
The information was passed down from Solon and eventually came into the hands of Critias two hundred years later, or so the dialogue states. Could the accounts be true? Most scholars and historians today believe Critias was nothing but a work of fiction. Many think Plato created the story as a way to present his theories about morality, human nature and corruption.
There are several issues with the story of Atlantis. The year that it allegedly existed is perhaps one of the most troublesome. Civilizations and structures from 9,000 BCE have been discovered by archaeologists, namely Göbekli Tepe in modern day Turkey. Agriculture was beginning to spread during this time period and pottery was becoming more common, yet this was the beginning of the Neolithic Era and metal smelting had not yet been discovered by humankind. Atlanteans were fully capable of melting and forming all types of metals.
One could argue that this is what made Atlantis so advanced. However, there is another dilemma that should be addressed. Critias states that Atlantis was at war with Athens, but Athens did not exist until the 4th millennium BCE. Unless there were other advanced civilizations that existed in the 9th millennium BCE and have yet to be discovered, then the year is most likely incorrect.
Fortunately, there is an alternative hypothesis to explain the year. It has been theorized that Solon mistranslated the Egyptian hieroglyphic for 100, and thought it said 1,000. If that was the case, then Atlantis would have existed 900 years earlier, rather than 9,000. This would have put it around 1,500 BCE. For literary reasons, this happens to be the approximate year that The Eye of Trileon takes place.
The location of Atlantis has been debated for hundreds of years and nearly every site on earth, from Crete to Antarctica, has been proposed as its resting place. Critias explained that Atlantis sat within the Pillars of Heracles. Unfortunately, this does not help determine the location without knowing where the pillars were. Between 1,620 and 1,500 BCE, the island of Thera was destroyed by a massive volcanic eruption. Prior to the eruption, an advanced Minoan civilization thrived on Thera. Archaeological studies have shown that the island was completely evacuated before it was destroyed and that they most likely had advance warning through geological activity on the land and underwater.
Thera seems to be the most likely theory in the ongoing debate about Atlantis. Alas, we encounter yet another complication. Critias stated that Atlantis was larger than Libya and Asia combined, which is immense, to say the least. It was sunk under the ocean by an earthquake. Surely if Atlantis existed and it was that size, it would have been discovered by now. Although, new discoveries are made each day and the ocean is still a great mystery.
Since most scientists do not believe the story of Atlantis was factual, why has it survived in people’s hearts for nearly 2,400 years? Atlantis captures our dreams and fantasies. It is the romantic notion of a highly advanced utopian civilization that could have existed in our past. It is a story that inspires hope, while at the same time cautions corruption. It is a great story, which is why I chose to write about it in my first novel.
Orichalcum
According to Plato's Critias, orichalcum was a metal only found in Atlantis. It was dug out of the earth in many parts of the island and it was more valuable than anything except gold. He later goes on to state that the inner wall of the island “flashed with the red light of orichalcum.” Orichalcum coated the walls, pillars, and floor on the inside of the temple of Poseidon, which was situated in the very center of the city.
The first known recorded use of the word was made by Hesiod in his hymn to Aphrodite. It has also been used several times in other ancient writings. According to P. Vergilius Maro's Aeneid, orichalcum was gold and white. Cicero states that orichalcum is gold-colored, but it is worth far less than gold.
In Greek Latin, orichalcum is derived from the word oreikhalkos, meaning 'mountain copper.' The Romans transliterated the word to aurichalcum, which translates to 'gold copper.' Pliny the Elder, an author and naturalist with a fantastic name, wrote of aurichalcum in his encyclopedia, Naturalis Historia. According to Pliny, aurichalcum was a type of copper. He stated that it was highly sought after due to its excellent quality, but it hadn't been seen for a long time.
The varying descriptions of orichalcum have sparked debates as to the true nature of the metal. The most commonly held belief is that it is a gold and copper alloy, which is found naturally on earth. Other historians have hypothesized that it is a gold and silver alloy, copper and tin alloy, or an early form of brass. None fully explain orichalcum satisfactorily. Perhaps this strange metal only existed in the past, or maybe the writings exaggerated its true appearance.
In The Eye of Trileon, orichalcum is a fiery red metal with hues of gold. It almost appears to be ablaze when the sun shines down upon it.
Did orichalcum only exist in the past or is it an alloy still in use today? We may never know for certain.
The History of 1,500 BCE
Multiple chapters in The Eye of Trileon take place outside of the lost island of Atlantis. When not in Atlantis, our characters travel along the Aegean Sea and throughout ancient Greece, then consisting of many city-states. Although Atlantis has the luxury of not needing to closely follow historical records, I attempted to ensure the rest of the world was relatively accurate. I should note that I did make several major changes, but it was my goal to keep the essence of 1,500 BCE intact.
Few written records exist from this time period, which is beneficial from a literary standpoint. Mycenaean Greek was the language spoken throughout mainland Greece and the islands of Crete and Cyprus. The Mycenaean civilization began to thrive in 1,600 BCE, where it continued to grow until its downfall in 1,100 BCE.
All of the city-states and regions in The Eye of Trileon existed during the time. Athens, Argos, Megara, Mycenae, Nafplio, and the Bay of Phaleron all prospered in the time period the novel is set. Large stone walls, usually made out of blocks of limestone, surrounded most of the cities. It is true that I may have exaggerated the size of the cities and structures, yet they were still quite large. Later on, when architecture became more advanced, homes were built taller. Fires were quite common; therefore, the lower class people usually lived on the higher levels of the homes because they were more likely to perish during a fire. Meanwhile, the wealthy lived on the lower level. While this is not a pivotal story arc, I find it interesting and decided to incorporate it into my novel.
Unlike some cities, which had a booming trade industry, the majority of the Mycenaean city-states used conquest to increase their wealth with strong military rulers. In Greek mythology, King Cranaus ruled Athens in 1,500 BCE. According to the legend, he was born from the earth and he decided to make Athena their patron deity. Although he is part of mythology, it is possible that he did exist as a ruler of Athens. In The Eye of Trileon, Cranaus was the king of Athens, but he is only a man.
Metallurgy is able to be considerably more advanced in Atlantis, but ancient Greece was in the middle of the Bronze Age. Iron smelting does occur in the story, however. While the Iron Age didn’t begin until 1,200 BCE, current archaeological evidence shows that iron smelting most likely began in the Middle East in 3,000 BCE. The earliest known artifact is an iron dagger that was found in a tomb in Anatolia dating back to 2,500 BCE. By 1,500 BCE, the time of our story, iron smelting had become increasingly more common in Egypt, Anatolia, and Mesopotamia. Even still, bronze tools and weapons still remained in the majority until the end of the Bronze Age. Iron smelting is considerably more difficult than bronze, which explains why it took hundreds of years of bronze smelting to perfect the technique.
Paved stone roads were prevalent throughout civilizations in history dating back to 4,000 BCE. Chariots were utilized for transportation and battle, and archery has been used since prehistoric times. However, the crossbow was not invented until the 5th century BCE and they are in the novel. It wasn’t a necessary invention to include in the story, but I took creative license if for no other reason but to add variety.
A defined priest class has not yet been discovered, but I changed that fact because it is important to the story. Speaking of priests, it seems that the traditional Greek gods known today were only beginning during 1,500 BCE. This was the time period where the foundations for the myths were starting, and it appears that some of the gods and legends were not created until much later. Heracles (Greek equivalent of Hercules), for example, most likely didn’t exist in legend until 1,200 BCE. The Pillars of Heracles are an important element in Plato’s Critias and The Eye of Trileon, although it is possible that the legendary hero was named after the pillars, rather than the pillars after him. Considering Plato’s writings about the Greek gods, and because I could ascertain little information about their origins in history, I decided it was best to make the beliefs of the Mycenaean civilizations as important as those of the Atlanteans.
Lastly, artwork and painting were important aspects of the culture. Most buildings were painted, mainly in black, blue, and red, which were the most readily available colors at the time. Even the columns of the Parthenon were painted colorfully, but the paint has washed away with time. Because most marble and granite ruins are white, it can be hard to imagine that they were all actually painted quite extensively. The Parthenon was a temple of Athena and the city’s treasury. It was not built until much later (circa 438 BCE), but several temples stood in its place before it was erected.
I believe I have included the major historical elements addressed in The Eye of Trileon. As you can see, I did make some changes, but I hope that I was able to paint a relatively accurate picture of the past in my story. I hope you found this to be informative and that you enjoy The Eye of Trileon as much as I loved writing it. Feel free to review the other resources and links available on this site, including purchasing the ebook here.