Destruction Of Atlantis [Hardcover]

I was rewarded beyond my expectations. "The Destruction of Atlantis" is nothing short of absolutely fascinating.

Frank Joseph takes all the latest research results available to us, especially those that have been aided by modern technology and combines them masterfully with geological data and -of course- mythology accounts to provide overwhelming evidence not only of the existence of Atlantis but of thorough details of its civilisation and the characteristics of its inhabitants.

But more impressively, the account on how Atlantis was destroyed is hair-raising. These days it's not more a scientific crime to utter the dreaded A-word. Well, not for the most openminded scientists out there. Atlantis is being again revisited and re-researched with a vengeance by a new generation of historians, geologists and astronomers, especially those that understand the concept of looking at mythology as a definitive account of history and not a collection of allegories.

The theory presented here in entirely convincing manner is that Atlantis was located where today's present day Canary Islands are and that it was devastated by the cataclysmic force of a cosmic storm. That included the raindown of asteroids very probably originating from the Taurides. An asteroid of massive size that fell in the Atlantic was responsible for global catastrophe of unimaginable proportions. Tsunamis that rose to 300-500 meters and oblitarated not only that island but most of the coastal civilisations of Greece and Egypt coupled with powerful chain-earthquakes and intense volcanic activity resulting in millions of dead and the freezing of those civilisations. This would then account for the up-to-now puzzling gaps we have about the Bronze age era.

Atlantis itself sank really in one day and night -as Plato had described in "Kriteas"- taking down with it one of the most compelling civilisations of those times.

Reading about such an event is at the very least humbling. Inevitably it makes you think about our current arrogance as a species and the parallels with the arrogance that the Atlanteans themselves had displayed are chilling.

Frank Joseph happens to be incredibly charismatic not only as a researcher but as an author as well. Normally, books dealing with such issues are not always easy to read. Many are riddled with heavy erudite overscholarly styles and dry language, but Joseph's language and descriptive style is a sheer treat.

He provides his own account of that macabrely monumental day when Atlantis went down already in the opening of the book complete with his version of the Atlanteans trying to flee only to be engulfed by behemoth walls of water or to boil alive from the volcanoes on the island spilling surreal amounts of lava into the sea.

He then goes on to detail about the latest data we have concerning the theory he puts forward. His inevitable listing of global myths commemorating a world-deluge is absolutely necessary as it concretely shows that the "allegory approach" of such accounts is naive. The first parts of this book are already capturing but even as you reach the middle and the end of it it only gets better and more intimidating.

The idea of a cosmic disaster of such a magnitude was, is and will remain one of the biggest threats humanity has to face. Recent evidence from the crashing of comet Levy-shoemaker have emphatically demonstrated the type of danger we are dealing with and how powerless we might be against it ultimately.

But coming back to Atlantis, this issue remains one of tremendous importance as it is eventually bound to change the dogmas about ancient history in a rather uncomfortable way for those who approach history in the dry monodimensional way it has been dealt with up to now. The legacy of that civilisation is seemingly haunting in a very interesting way. It dissapeared but never really died. Its implications remain as significant as hey could ever be.

A chilling, intimidating wonderfully researched and presented book and a must for anybody with interest in "alternative archaelogy" even if that term is beginning to lose the quotation marks by now. There's nothing "alternative" about the existence of Atlantis. Nor with other even more intimidating matters. Reality was never "alternative" but it's everfascinating...

The book is centered around the idea that Atlantis sank to the bottom of the Atlantic during the early days of November 1198 B.C.E. after a meteor struck the ocean setting off a huge cataclysmic event. Joseph explains how the world was reaching the height of civilization when a horrific deluge ensued, knocking back humanity and destroying the Bronze Age.

This book is wonderfully written and I encourage any Atlantean fanatic OR skeptic to check it out; it is definantly worth it.