Atlantis: The Antediluvian World

As a fable proves nothing. There is an unbelief which grows out of

ignorance, as well as a scepticism which is born of intelligence. The

people nearest to the past are not always those who are best informed

concerning the past.


For a thousand years it was believed that the legends of the buried

cities of Pompeii and Herculaneum were myths: they were spoken of as

"the fabulous cities." For a thousand years the educated world did not

credit the accounts given by Herodotus of the wonders of the ancient

civilizations of the Nile and of Chaldea. He was called "the father of

liars." Even Plutarch sneered at him. Now, in the language of Frederick

Schlegel, "the deeper and more comprehensive the researches of the

moderns have been, the more their regard and esteem for Herodotus has

increased." Buckle says, "His minute information about Egypt and Asia

Minor is admitted by all geographers."