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Ruins Of 2 Ancient Egyptian Cities Found

Posted by michael on from the so-that's-where-my-socks-went dept.

Dennis Bottaro writes: "The ruins of the two cities lay virtually undisturbed 30 feet beneath the surface of the bay, Herakleion and Menouthis are now being revealed as among the most exciting finds in the history of marine archaeology."

8 of 13 comments (clear)

  1. Neat by milgram · · Score: 3

    Did they find an Amiga?

  2. more evidence! by maddogsparky · · Score: 2
    I had a classical civilization class in college, and boy, does this raise memories of some class debates.

    The story of Odessyus (Ulysis) (sp?) was thought to have come from stories older than 1200 B.C. There seems to have been a large civilization based out of Crete whose ruins seem to be the source for the legends about the Minatour. Again, this civilization fell about 1200 B.C.

    Classical scholars could seem to agree on a reason for the downfall. Now we know (or can at least make a better guess)!

    --
    science is a religion
    1. Re:more evidence! by Big+Torque · · Score: 2

      Evidence of what? That the Odyssey is true? I have read the Iliad and the Odyssey and I love them but I do not think they are history or even embellished history. Troy was found, and now maybe more places mentioned in the Iliad and the Odyssey. I feel that it is more possible that the Iliad and the Odyssey are based on real places even maybe real peoplebut not history. Some spots like the death of Hector may be inspired by truth maybe, but being killed by the demigod Achilles I don't think so. It would be in my opinion like saying that the comedy of Hogans heroes is a true story because you found evidence in the form of a old WW2 POW camp.

    2. Re:more evidence! by Tin+Weasil · · Score: 2

      Ah yes, the search for the elusive "truth."

      I firmly believe that the Oddyssey and the Illiad are in fact, true. But it is a truth that takes some explanation.

      Certainly all of the events in these great works of classical literature did NOT happen. They are greatly embelished and in placed completely fabricated. But what they do tell us is the point-of-view that the ancients had about the world and our place in it.

      Some of the things in these works are likely to be completely true: Some of the names of various places in the world and some of the people. These things, of course, are over romantacised and sometimes bear little resemblence to their true origins.

      Hector might have very well been killed by Achilles, but the true Achilles would probably not be recongnized by us because he was probably a very mortal and vulnerable man who simply had the luck and skill to survive in such a way that legends of his greatness grew to the point where he was considered to be god-like.

      Our own legends in the USA have outgrown the truth about the men who those legends are about: George Washington most certainly told a few lies in his lifetime (some are little white-lies that he told to Martha Washington and are documented in how his letters to her don't always corrispond to historical fact.)

      The Oddyssey and the Illiad provide us a rare glimpse into the culture of the time in which the work was first written. It simply take a discerning mind to seperate fantasy from reality.

  3. SIMILAR TO THE SAN ANDREAS by wganz · · Score: 2

    So we still have hope that Los Angeles will eventually fall into the Pacific?? 8-)

    1. Re: SIMILAR TO THE SAN ANDREAS by Joe+Rumsey · · Score: 2

      No, everything east of the San Andreas will one day fall into the Atlantic.

  4. Minor correction by _dave_the_one_ · · Score: 2
    I think I should point out, they haven't actually discovered these two cities, they have just found some amazing artifacts in them. This is quite different from discovering two ancient Egyptian cities at one time - a very unlikely event and one which would get many more news networks humming. This is a 'news-filler' article - ie it's an ongoing thing and they could have presented the news article at any time.

    When I posted this, there were only two articles there. Maybe it's not too late to change the title? I suggest something about artifacts recovered from buried Egyptian cities shedding light on the cities' destruction, or something. If you'd read the article before posting the story you'd see very similar stuff written there.

    Please /. (and this is a genuine comment, not a troll) please try reading the articles before posting. At this time of night not too many people are going to miss it if you spend five extra minutes reading first...

  5. What is truth? by maddogsparky · · Score: 3
    Evidence of what? That the Odyssey is true?

    If you mean that the Odyssey is not true, word for word, I'd have to agree with you. A better argument would be that the story is analagous to a movie based on true life events. Look at some modern examples:

    William Cody, John Henry and Bill Hicock were all real people in the last part of the 19th century. A man who brings the Old West to Europe in the form of his traveling Wild West show, a man who dug a section of a tunnel faster than a broken machine and a man who had a very fast draw are already the stuff of legends. What will more than 3000 years do to their stories?

    If historians argue about the true history of Buffalo Bill, Iron John Henry or Wild Bill in 3000 years, some are bound to say that it is all made up. We know today that it is the truth. Who can say what we regard as purely myth today is not, in fact, a glamorized, distored chronicle of the past?

    --
    science is a religion