One aspect of the
Atlantean Story that needs to be addressed and I now think can be
addressed is the aspect of historic time. What is meant by that is
the upper and lower bounds and their rationale. First we note that
the original Story after Plato gave an antiquity that provided a
lower bound of around 9000 BC. This never made much sense and was
further confounded by the failure to properly recognize the Santorini
eruption a thousand years earlier. Whatever the validity of the
details, the dating aspects were not understood by Plato. This is
completely acceptable and common in ancient records.
Putting that aside, he
did deliver recognition of the existence of an ancient civilization
based on the Atlantic littoral and it has been our task to flesh out
its history in ever greater detail. That has been advancing
wonderfully.
1 The big event was the
building of the Great Pyramid itself around 2420 BC. The importance
of this cannot be overstated. It fueled demand for high quality
bronze metal that could only be satisfied by the native copper
quickly found in Lake Superior. I suspect the same impulse –
remember Jason and the Argonauts? - took Minoan seamen into every
cranny around the globe in search of metal supplies.
2 This led to a burst of
station building and that included additional demand for the
construction of ceremonial platforms in many of these locations.
There is evidence of astronomical significance on location choices
besides.
3 What needs to be
understood though, is that this was a sea connected polity that was
palace based. Because these palaces relied on copper as currency,
their local impact was quite different than what we normally expect.
I see no evidence of a raw feudalism at work here and we must presume
that the locals accepted merchant princes into their midst for the
obvious spending benefits they brought.
4 Seen in that light, the
spectacular platforms make a great deal of good sense. They consume
taxes and employ the better part of the local population in something
other than killing each other and their 'benefactors' The tax was
mostly in the form of a labor tax in any event and the metal was most
likely an exclusive preserve of the new elite.
5 The fact that they were
built everywhere the Minoans/Atlanteans encountered large
populations, but never built in their homeland pretty well tells the
story. Egypt must have had a special place in the hearts of these
canny traders. Whatever the initial impulse was, it is clear that
the idea was pushed everywhere just as today we supply obsolete arms
to all comers however ridiculous it may seem.
6 Prior to 2420 BC, the
Bronze Age had evolved in the Middle East at least in some form or
the other. Yet quality was certainly a huge problem that blocked wide
adoption and usage.
The Bronze Age, once it
got its Atlantean sea legs facilitated movements of peoples,
development of cities were the economics supported it and a general
development in time of the idea of money. It triggered the rise of
some form of literacy that evolved into the present systems.
That leaves us with the
problem of the prehistory of this world from around five thousand
years ago when shipping became common place and possible to just
after the collapse of the Ice Age. The archaeological record shows
an unrelenting stone age world with scant urban development. That
was the back ground tapestry at least and it entailed little movement
of peoples. The reason is simple. There were no trade goods that
made it worthwhile.
To put this in
perspective the stone age world of the Pacific Northwest had easy
shipping routes from Alaska through California. There was a large
population in various deltas. Yet in real terms, movement was slight
for nine thousand years. There was simply little available that
could not be produced at home.
It took a giant pyramid
to fire up the forges of the Minoans and to bring about Atlantis.
Once the ruling class got it, it became a world wide phenomena.
One other conjecture is
also worth noting. I have noted that agricultural man appears as a
deliberate establishment around nine thousand years ago in at least
several separate locales on Earth. It is plausible that their rapid
spread absorbed the indigenous non agricultural populations over the
next few thousands of years. In that case, metal working may have
been a specific advantage in their tool kit.
I bring this up because
it is not apparent that the hunter gatherers go willingly into the
farm life way. Thus a population genetically predisposed to do just
that would expand and through inter marriage soon absorb that
tendency in smaller surrounding populations. There are plenty of
original populations that have shown a complete inability to adapt
however willing. The Eskimos in particular cannot come south and
prosper. That is an extreme case but it does suggest we need to put
thought to it.
Whatever the original
situation, it is true that general inter marriage has mostly
succeeded in eliminating any such genetic issue and it is also pretty
clear that our general imposition of literacy and late maturation has
massively improved our general adaptability.
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