Unluckly settled. Famous Sunken Towns

Amazing legends of Atlantis captured by waters of the oceans are known to everyone since childhood. About 50 years ago they have been considered pure fantasies. Marine archaeology began to develop quite recently, and to surprise of many scientific minds it gave incredible results. Old submerged towns have been discovered in various parts of the world, and pictures of flooded cities with their majestic buildings hit the whole world. The study of the deep sea doesn’t stop for a minute. Today many underwater archaeological areas are available for inspection by divers. By rough estimate, scientists have discovered the ruins of 500 flooded towns during the last 50 years; the age of some of them is up to 10, 000 years. Each flooded city is not just a part of the history pushed under water, but also a clear evidence of one of the greatest theories about prehistoric empires.

Not all great discoveries are fruits of scientist’s work. Diving coach Kihachiro Arataki from Japan has found one of the oldest flooded cities on the planet, Yonaguni. It’s located in close proximity to the island of the same name at a depth of 27 meters. The historical artifact discovered by the diver is a large monolithic stone building, which has survived for thousands of years and has retained all of its unique features.

The enormous stone monument consists of a flat platform covered with elaborate ornament, perfectly flat steps and terraces of unusual shapes. After a large-scale study, scientists were able to specify layout of structures and the approximate age of construction, which is at least 3,000 years. Many other interesting objects, including sculptures made of stone that resemble animal figures, were found next to the building.

A detailed study of a monolithic building has discovered a lot of interesting items; one of the upper terraces contains a real swimming pool carved in stone. Skeptical researchers have tried to prove the modern origin of the natural wonder in the underwater city, but their efforts were unsuccessful. Uncommon form of construction, as well as beautiful murals on the walls and symbols unknown to modern science confirm the existence of a powerful nation, which had been flooded thousands of years ago under the onslaught of the elements. Next - Mahabalipuram

Mahabalipuram, India

Many ancient cities, which have gone under water thousands of years ago, these days miraculously come back to life. These include the Indian city of Mahabalipuram; stories about it have been regarded as fiction just a few years ago. According to one legend, Mahabalipuram was so beautiful that caused unprecedented envy and wrath of the gods. They decided to flood the city, so one day the whole its territory went under water. In 2004, strong tsunami happened at the Coromandel Coast; as a result of the storm, the coastal territory cleared from the centuries old dust and opened unique archaeological artifacts, ancient temples and statues. Complete article

St. Thomas, USA

Not all settlements, which are currently hidden under water, were exposed to sudden destructive elements. Many cities have unwittingly end up in the flood zone during construction of dams and other structures, thus there are many new flooded settlements. Such places include St. Thomas that suffered during the construction of Lake Mead. Complete article

Shi Chen, Cheng Ho, China

Qiandao Lake situated in Chinese province of Zhejiang is also of great interest from the archaeological point of view. The lake is man-made; it was formed in 1959 during construction of another large-scale power plant. After formation, the lake safely concealed unique historical artifacts from prying eyes. Those were ruins of ancient cities Shi Chen and Cheng Ho. According to scientists, the age of these cities is more than 1,500 years. A lot of amazing buildings could be found there. Complete article

Harappa, India

The submerged ancient city, whose age, according to preliminary calculations, is 9,500 years, was found In India, in the Gulf of Cambay. Ruins of the ancient city were found at a depth of 35 meters; they were discovered relatively recently, in 2002. It’s important to note that the very first archaeological artifacts in the Gulf of Cambay have been discovered much earlier, but their age compared with the age of the ancient city was more than modest; it’s no more than 5,000 years. Complete article

Baiae, Italy

The Italian city of Baiae has very unusual fate. Once it has occupied the picturesque coastal territory of the Bay of Naples. It has gone under water as a result of volcanic activity centuries ago. Even today Baiae is synonymous with corruption and indolence, as incredibly rich people unfamiliar with honesty have lived there. According to one version, even in the prehistoric era there have been hundreds of workshops, which have been producing copies of priceless statues and other historical relics. Complete article

Port Royal, Jamaica

The legendary port city, Port Royal, has being remaining an important symbol of Jamaica for nearly five hundred years. The legendary city of pirates was founded in 1518; it was reasonably considered the most hopeless city on earth. For many years, corruption and violence have being dominating there. Pirate ships have being arriving there from all over the world, even from Madagascar. In 1692, the island has suffered from an earthquake, and the pirate town completely went under water. Today its ruins lie on the bottom of the Kingston harbor. Complete article

Pavlopetri, Greece

Greece is home to priceless ancient attractions, many of which are found not only on land, but also under water. Pavlopetri is the first flooded city in the world, which archaeologists were able to detect and identify accurately. The scale of the city is simply amazing; its streets were spread on an area of about 30,000 square meters. Complete article

Atlit-Yam, Israel

In search of amazing underwater sights many travelers go to Israel, as there is one of the oldest flooded cities in the world. According to modern scholars, age of Atlit-Yam ruins is at least 9,000 years. Ruins are located in the coastal area of Haifa. Thousands of years ago, they have been a fairly large and prosperous village. Complete article

Alexandria, Egypt

Alexandria is one of the oldest cities on the planet; amazing stories and legends about Cleopatra are associated with it. The important underwater attraction has been recently discovered by scientists off the coast of Alexandria. As it was found out after a large-scale study, Cleopatra's palace is hidden under water. According to scientists, it could be the location of the tombs of Cleopatra and Mark Antony; their exact location is still unknown. Complete article

Heraklion, Egypt

The ancient city of Heraklion lost in the sea depth is a historic treasure of global significance. It was founded more than 2,000 years ago, at the mouth of the Nile. The former has remained the most important strategic point of Egypt for many years. Currently, surviving buildings of the ancient city lie at the bottom of the Gulf of Aboukir, about 6 meters under the surface of the sea. The discovery of this unique historic site is accredited to the research group guided by Franck Goddio. Complete article

Samabaj, Guatemala

The ancient Mayan city of Samabaj had been regarded as a legend for many years, till its ruins have been found in one of the lakes in Guatemala. This important archaeological discovery occurred in 1996, and later, scientists were able to specify that Samabaj has sunken more than 3.5 thousand years ago. According to one of the most actual contemporary hypotheses, the ancient city has been situated on a small island that was completely flooded as a result of the earthquake. Complete article