Customer Reviews

The Destruction of Atlantis: Compelling Evidence of the Sudden Fall of the Legendary Civilization

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Any quick search either here at Amazon or in google about books dealing with Atlantis will show that there's a vast number of them out there. The reason i picked this one was that I'd previously read another book by this author (Synchronicity and you) which I found mindblowing.

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...

This is a very good book on Atlantis. The primary new theories in this book say that the destruction occurred around 1200 b.c., rather than around 10,000 b.c., as in the lore, also that Atlantis was an island, rather than a continent (no two writers will ever agree on anything to do with Atlantis). I am unconvinced on those two counts, but much of the research the author has brought forward is really interesting. The book starts out fine and I couldn't put it down for the first hundred pages. There's a section where Atlantis and the Great Flood is examined through various ancient myths in the world where the book slows down a little, the material is helpful, but can't help but to be repetitive. And then, in the end, in the summary, it goes back to being more involving again. There's even a section in the Bible, in Revelations, that might be a reference to the destruction of Atlantis, under a different name. Also of note, that the fair-haired Guanche civilization once on the Canary Islands claimed to be descendents of Atlantis. It even touches on the recent underwater ruins discovered off the coast of Cuba. This book takes the topic of Atlantis seriously, without bias, and is a good reference book for people that want to look for the facts so far on the subject, not be flooded with a writer's own natural prejudices. Read it, between this book and certain others, somewhere probably lies a more complete story...

Frank Joseph's new book presents a well reasoned if not always flawless arguement that Plato's Atlantis existed during the Late Bronze Age in archaeological terms , being destroyed ca.1200 B.C.. His choice of dates is not entirely unique. lt was first presented by the late Jurgen Spanuth in a series of books between 1956 and 1979. several other authors such as James Baily [ 'THE GODKINGS AND THE TITANS',1973 and 'SAILING TO PARADISE',1994],J.M.ALLEN ['ATLANTIS:THE ANDES SOLUTION',1999],Eberhard Zangger [THE FLOOD FROM HEAVEN; DECIPHERING THE ATLANTIS LEGEND 1992], and Peter James [THE SUNKEN KINGDOM,1995] all accept the chronology but dissagree on the location. (actually P. James is a chronological revisionist who would reduce the date to ca.925-950 B.C.,though for the same archaeological period.) Mr. Joseph tries his best to set Atlantis where Plato appears to put it - right outside Gibraltar. Some, however, feel that he meant directly across the ocean and so in the Caribbean or the Americas. Thus, while well argued his theory will not please those who already favor another location such as the Americas or Antarctica, for example. Nor is it liable to convince anyone who thinks the story to be purely allegorical. lt is an excellent introduction to the subject for those interested but uncommited to any particular hypothesis. The proportional reduction of Plato's dates and demensions may remind some readers of the Minoan-Atlantis theory but the author is at pains to distance himself from the latter.Their ten-fold reductions had little or no ancient backing, especially where the dates are concerned. And yet the years as months solution was cited by virtually every ancient writer who dealt with Egypt, whence the tale ostensibly came.Still, many today are skeptical of the idea, particulary those that require a distantly prehitoric Atlantis. The reduction in scale is plausible but will upset literalists and 'New Agers' seeking a Paleolithic super-civilization 12,000 years ago.To Joseph's credit Plato never said nor even implied that Atlantis was the progenitor of civilization, a basic assumption of many Atlantiists. As for the issue of the scale the unit he mentions, the aroura, was a primary unit of area amongst the Egyptians but was sometimes called a stadia because that was it's circumference. The Greek stadium was a unit of length. Thus the reduction was 1/4th Plato's literal scale but it wouldve' been an easy error to make.Only if Plato made up the whole story, as the critics contend, could he have transmitted it utterly free of mistakes. Even were it basicly historical Plato might well have intentionally altered details for his own reasons. He was a philosopher not a modern jounalist! l might have prefered a bit more detail on the context the author chose but that mightve' proved too technical for most readers.Those more into psychicly obtained information like the readings of Edgar Cayce will doubtless be dissappointed here, as they won't find any flying vehicles or 'power crystals'. Others may not accept the transoceanic diffusion aspect. I appreciated the latter, however, since Mr. Joseph does edit a magazine on the subject [ANCIENT AMERICAN]. So, if your mind is open where Atlantis is concerned l highly recommend the book.l'm glad to have it in my collection.

"The Destruction of Atlantis," written by Frank Joseph, is by far the best book I have read concerning the fall of the lost city of Atlantis. The book brings uses evidence from several civilizations worldwide to futher its claims and is terribly compelling. Jospeh starts slow, first recounting the story of Atlantis as he sees it and then elaborating his details with scientific fact. This book is definantly one that is hard to put down; it coherantly brings together everything scientists know about the city and everything they are afraid to pursue in a manner that is understandable to anyone.

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.

Having read numerous books on the subject of Atlantis over the last few years, I found Frank Joseph's book to be in some ways just another in an endless parade of similar books, yet in other ways it was refreshingly new. Like most Atlantisphiles, he takes Plato's writings as gospel-to some degree-but unlike others, he places Plato's mysterious island nation squarely within the mainstream of history, proposing it existed contemporary to the great nations of the Mediterranean around 2,000 B.C. In this, at least, he manages to reconcile the fact that Plato had the Atlanteans battling a confederation of ancient empires lead by Athens (one of the biggest discrepancies with Plato's account; he has Atlantis battling Athens 8,000 years before Athens was even founded!) thus bringing some credibility to Plato's account. However, he does this through a bit of sleight-of-hand by deciding that Plato was using an Egyptian religious lunar calendar when he speaks of the events he describes as happening 9,000 years earlier; a calendar, fortunately, that counts months as years thus dragging Plato's Atlantis into the second millennium B.C. He also refigures the distances Plato uses to describe the place by deciding he was using something called an Egyptian "aroura" (don't ask me. I never heard of it either) whenever he says stadia (an ancient measurement roughly equal to 620 feet) thus reducing the massive scale of Plato's continent by a factor of ten. While these tricks do work to make Plato's story more palatable, they seem a little contrived. Anyone can get things to add up if they redefine years as months and stadias as "arouras", though it does beg the question as to why Plato didn't take these different scales into account when he first penned the story.

The other problems I had with his theory is that in recognizing that an earthquake in and of itself could not sink an island, he invents all sorts of devices to account for the island's destruction including, among them, a comet that spits giant meteorites every time it passes by and a super volcano that explodes without warning. He also doesn't explain why the destruction of a small island a couple of hundred miles off the coast of Portugal would become the source of flood mythologies in places like Polynesia and India, halfway around the world (in, one would imagine, places essentially unaffected by such a localized catastrophe.) Still, you have to give him credit for doing his best to tie up every loose end. Finally, he manages to find references to Atlantis in nearly every ancient manuscript known to man including, remarkably, the Bible (he apparently didn't get that the book of Revelations is talking about a future catastrophe to be brought upon the planet immediately preceding Christ's physical return. It is NOT a reference to Atlantis!) So adept is he at this, I suspect he could find reference to Atlantis on the back of a cereal box if he tried hard enough!

Joseph generally takes Plato very literally (though, curiously, he doesn't mention whether he accepts Plato's account that the god Poseidon copulated with the king of Atlantis' only daughter as a matter of historic fact.) Like any good "Atlantologist" worth his salt, he is positively passionate about the place, which is easily discerned throughout his writing. In an epic worthy of Lew Wallace, he even devotes an entire chapter describing the place in minute detail and narrating the Atlantean king's attempt to escape from the exploding volcano that is rapidly turning his idyllic Eden into a vast Atlantic mud flat! Pretty cool stuff, huh?

Beyond that, I found the book, like most Atlantean epics, drones on a bit long about things like volcanic ash and the mid-Atlantic ridge and ancient deluge mythologies (really, wouldn't a few examples serve to make his point that flood mythologies are universal? Do we really need scores of references?) Obviously, Joseph has done a considerable amount of research and writes reasonably well (he should; after all, he's had twenty years to polish the thing.) Yet he is too devoted to his particular pet theory to consider other possibilities and can be positively hostile to other theories. Over all, I found The Destruction of Atlantis to be a pretty average book on the subject; less goofy and bizarre than most but also less objective than others. Even so, it should make a decent addition to any Atlantis-buff's library.

The book deals with all sorts of evidence that Atlantis did exsist but not way most people think. Atlantis most likely did not sink but was hit by a comet, which caused a catastrophic explosion, then hit by another comet close to it's waters causing a massive deluge. The amazing part is that this flood is is talked about in the Old Testament, Sumerian, Egyption, Greek, Mayan, Native American, Indian, and many other ancient cultures all over the world without having any contact with one another and having the same story about a great flood that affected the whole planet. All the evidence points to around 1200bc,a comet hit the earth causing the destruction of Atlantis. Even Plato's description point to 1200bc. When Plato talked about the time of Atlantis being 9,000 years before his time, according to the author Plato meant 900 years before his time, which makes that around 1200bc. The book brings to light the many cultures all over the world talk about a cataclysmic event that affected the whole earth, all of it sounding like the description of a comet striking the earth. This book will amaze you with all the facts the author brings to light. Great book!!!

A book rich in detail without seeming obsessional. If you enjoy relating research and discoveries from many different scientific fields, this is a book for you. Ditto if you enjoy ancient history and mythology from many different cultures. This book is written at a relaxed and intelligent pace and I hope it prods new research.

The concept of an Atlantis as a small or mid-size island off the coast of Portugal is striking, and while the theory of comet debris meteorites setting off a chain reaction in the mid-Atlantic ridge may at first seem doubtful, the author's argument is well-reasoned. I had forgotten how even a few decades ago in history, the approach of a comet would evoke great fear in people. It makes sense that the human race carries subconscious
memories of multi-meteoritic strikes from a close-passing comet, and the author presents pictures of this from several cultures as well as the obvious Book of Exodus.

One question I have is: if the Atlanteans were a so darn smart (and the author credits them with the Great Pyramid of Giza, Stonehenge, and the huge close-fitting stonework of the Andes and other areas) and world-ranging people, why didn't they realize the danger of building their home city on the volcanic
Mt. Atlas? Well, I guess just like us, they got stupid and lazy!

Extremely readable and understandable. This book is based on fact rather than the usual Mumbo-Jumbo that surrounds Atlantis. I strongly recommend it for anybody seeking what is historically accurate.
Rev Jay Driskell
aka Rondout

This work is an important contribution to the Atlantis debate in that it is devoid of the "occult" nonsense often found in modern books on the subject. Joseph argues, correctly in my opinion, that the society described by Plato was a Bronze Age one. He also places it just outside the Straits of Gibralter, precisely where Plato located it. The author is correct too to link the catastrophe which sank the island with the upheavals of nature recorded by all the ancient peoples of the Mediterranean and western Europe (including the British Isles) in the Bronze Age.
Where the author falls down is in his uncritical acceptance of the "traditional" chronology of the ancient civilizations. If a large island or group of islands, acting as "stepping stones" to the Americas, had existed into the Late Bronze Age, as Frank Joseph believes, then the Conquistadors should have encountered Old World crops, such as wheat, barley, rye, apples, pears, etc, when they arrived in Mexico. The Aztecs should also have been acquainted with the horse, the wheel, glass, stringed musical instruments, and a whole host of other technologies that were commonplace in the Mediterranean world by the Late Bronze Age. That they did not encounter these things proves beyond question that any transatlantic link must have been severed before these technologies and crops were commonplace in the Old World.
In fact, as Joseph stresses, a great deal of hard scientific evidence, from genetics, geology, and archaeology, is increasingly coming to prove that an ancient transatlatic link did exist. This is proved most crucially perhaps by the discovery of cocaine and tobacco, two New World narcotics, in the bodies of many Egyptian mummies. Yet if such a link did exist, then it must have been severed in the Early Bronze Age, at the latest. During Egypt's Early Dynastic Age the wheel was unknown, as were many of the other technologies common in later phases of the Bronze Age.
It was in the Early Bronze Age too that vast earthquakes and land subsidences reached their peak of destructiveness throughout the Mediteranean and Atlantic Europe. This was the case even in non-volcanically active regions like the British Isles. Sunken Neolithic and Early Bronze Age villages are regaularly located around the coasts of Britain. In volcanically active parts of the world, such as the Mid-Atlantic Ridge - where we find the Azores Islands - the subsidences must have been much more dramatic. And the discovery of sunken beaches and shorelines off the Azores, hundreds of meters down, confirms the suspicion.
It was in the Early Bronze Age therefore that the link between the Old World and the New was terminated. The Atlantis island (about the size of Ireland) which until then was centred on the Azores, as well as an archipelago of smaller islands straddling the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, all disappeared suddenly. The cultures of the New World, cut off from further technological innovations from the east, were then frozen in time in the Early Bronze Age - an epoch they remained in till the Spaniards arrived in the early sixteenth century.
As for absolute dates, Joseph may well be correct in placing the end of the Atlantis island very recently in the past. In fact, Peter James might be even more right in suggesting a date in the ninth century BC. But this means placing the Early Bronze Age in the ninth century BC, a proposition that might seem fantastic, though, as I have shown in various places, not at all impossible.

I ordered this book after reading the author's wonderful:

Edgar Cayce's Atlantis and Lemuria: The Lost Civilizations in the Light of Modern Discoveries
by Frank Joseph

In "Edgar Cayce's Atlantis and Lemuria" Frank talks of the Atlantis that I believe in and am interested in. A truly super race. This may have been the garden of Eden described in the bible.

But in 'The Destruction Of Atlantis' Frank starts diverging into many different interpretations of a series of geological and astonomical catastrophes that oblitered much of the human race 3200 years ago according to him. The bible describes this catastrophe as the great flood but could that possibly have been just 3200 years ago ? There are many other similar myths that Frank ties together to try to indicate that they are all describing the same catastrophe (which they may be in some cases).

However he contradicts Plato on a key point and he even admits this in the book. Plato insisted that the destruction of Atlantis occurred 11,600 years ago. But Frank says that when the Egyptians translated Plato's writings they accidentally converted Plato's numbers from months to years so the 11,600 number is much too high.

However that's quite an assumption to make. If you're going to say that you could question every date that's ever been recorded in history. Could the Egyptians really have been so stupid ?

This is just one example of how he takes existing information and makes it fit into his theories.

Then finally on the last few pages Frank starts suggesting that Atlantis may have really been the super race that new agers believe in. It's like he's torn between the new age movement and his desire to fit in with the conventional scientific community which in other places he says he despises.

A lot of these answers were probably contained in one of the many libraries that have been burned and destroyed throughout recorded history by people of many different religions. At one point the book lists all of these centers of recorded information that were destroyed. At the end of the list is the library at Alexandria.

At least Frank survived long enough to write this book. His quest for the meaning of life has taken him to many places including Peru where bandits strangled him to within an inch of his life.

Jeff Marzano

The Giza Power Plant : Technologies of Ancient Egypt

The Mystery of the Crystal Skulls: Unlocking the Secrets of the Past, Present, and Future

Edgar Cayce's Atlantis and Lemuria: The Lost Civilizations in the Light of Modern Discoveries

Atlantis: Insights from a Lost Civilization

The Secret Teachings of All Ages (Reader's Edition)

Initiation

Initiation in the Great Pyramid (Astara's Library of Mystical Classics)