Did the Great Plain of Atlantis Really Exist?

Plato’s account of Atlantis contains numerous fascinating features. Scholars acknowledge that many of these features may well have been inspired by real places and events. One particularly notable part of Plato’s description is the fact that Atlantis supposedly had a great plain. What did he say about this great plain of Atlantis, and is this based on a real place?

Minoan Crete, the biggest inspiration for Atlantis

Some scholars believe that Plato’s story of Atlantis is a distorted account of the Bronze Age Minoan civilization. Many others believe it is completely fictional, but even they acknowledge that Plato likely drew on real places and events to create his account of Atlantis. For them, the Minoan civilization is usually recognized as likely being the greatest inspiration.

For example, the idea of Atlantis being a mighty naval civilization that ruled over one main island, several others, and parts of the continent matches the Bronze Age Minoans. The idea of them engaging in some violent conquests in the Mediterranean also matches. Notably, they were overthrown in a war against the Greeks, just like Atlantis. Even the general description of the metropolis matches the important Minoan island of Santorini.

This being the case, it is tempting to think that we might be able to identify the great plain of Atlantis with a real location within the Minoan civilization. In fact, a number of scholars have argued this is definitely the case. What do the facts show?

The Great Plain of Atlantis

Firstly, let us consider what Plato said about the great plain of Atlantis. According to Plato’s dialog Critias, written in the fourth century BCE, the great plain was a very prominent part of the island. Plato wrote:

“Looking towards the sea, but in the center of the whole island, there was a plain which is said to have been the fairest of all plains and very fertile.”

From this initial description, we can see that the great plain of Atlantis was in the central region of the island. It was an exceptionally fair and fertile plain. Furthermore, Plato describes it as:

“…surrounded by mountains which descended towards the sea; it was smooth and even, and of an oblong shape, extending in one direction three thousand stadia, but across the center inland it was two thousand stadia. This part of the island looked towards the south, and was sheltered from the north.”

Plato also goes on to describe the fact that rivers would descend from these mountains and flow through the plain. Furthermore, the plain was irrigated with many canals, each separated from each other by 100 stadia.

Crete’s Messara Plain

In many respects, we can easily see how this description fits the reality of Crete, the main island of the Minoans. Approximately in the center of the island of Crete lengthways, there is the Messara Plain. This is a rectangular plain, just like the great plain of Atlantis.

The Messara Plain also fits Plato’s description of Atlantis’ plain as being very fertile. According to one modern source about Crete, the Messara plain “is very fertile and has always been the main granary of Crete.” This is not just a phenomenon of modern times. As the Messara Museum explains, this plain was an important agricultural center for the Minoans, as well.

What about the canals that flowed through the great plain of Atlantis? Can a match for these be found on the Messara Plain? This likely refers to the many streams that flow through the Messara Plain and the associated regional unit. Although not artificial canals, these many rivers and streams crisscross through the countryside, creating the appearance of what Plato described.

The size of the plain

One major difference between the great plain of Atlantis and the Messara Plain is their size. Plato describes the great plain of Atlantis as being 3000 stadia in length and 2000 stadia in width. On the other hand, the Messara Plain is about ten times smaller than that in length and even smaller still in width.

There are two points to be made regarding this. The first is that, according to Plato, this story derived from the Egyptians. A priest of Sais told the story to Solon in the sixth century BCE. Therefore, it is entirely possible there have been errors in translation.

As it happens, the Egyptian demotic script from the time of Solon used very similar figures for hundreds and thousands. In fact, the key difference was the fact that the ‘tails’ of the hundreds were longer than those of the thousands. However, the thousands were sometimes given longer tails than normal, and this could cause confusion.

For this reason, a number of scholars have suggested that Plato’s figures of 3000 stadia and 2000 stadia might have originally been 300 and 200 instead. This would fit the length of the Messara Plain very well.

Regarding the width, this fits perfectly when we include most of the rest of the Heraklion regional unit of Crete, rather than just the Messara Plain within it. That entire region, as topographic maps show, is very much flatter in comparison to the surrounding area. When we take this into consideration, the measurements match Plato’s corrected figures exactly.

Surrounded by mountains

Plato said that the great plain of Atlantis was surrounded by mountains, although he gave particular attention to the plain being sheltered from the north. This fits the Messara Plain very well. It is indeed surrounded on most sides by mountains.

Towards the north, the Messara Plain is sheltered in part by the mountain range on which we find Mount Ida. This is the most prominent mountain on Crete. However, it is not an isolated peak. It is part of a large range of mountains that shelter the Messara Plain to the north. There is a similarly large mountain range on the eastern side of the plain.

Not only the placement but also the size of these mountains matches what Plato wrote about the great plain of Atlantis:

“The surrounding mountains were celebrated for their number and size and beauty.”

Thus, in many respects, the great plain of Atlantis matches very well with the Messara Plain on Crete.