A wealth of human history lies submerged in ancient cities at the bottoms of lakes, seas and oceans of the world. Some of these were sent into the water via earthquakes, tsunamis or other disasters thousands of years ago. Many have just recently been rediscovered, by accident or through emergent technological innovations. Some have even caused scientists to question the history of human civilization.
(Check out our complete collection of Underwater and Oceanic Oddities.)
Alexandria, Egypt: Off the shores of Alexandria, the city of Alexander the Great, lie what are believed to be the ruins of the royal quarters of Cleopatra. It is believed that earthquakes over 1,500 years ago were responsible for casting this into the sea, along with artifacts, statues and other parts of Cleopatra’s palace. The city of Alexandria even plans to offer underwater tours of this wonder.
Bay of Cambay, India: A few years back discovered the remains of a vast 9,500 year old city. This submerged ruin has intact architecture and human remains. More significantly, this find predates all finds in the area by over 5,000 years, forcing historians to reevaluate their understanding of the history of civilazation in the region. The find has been termed Dwarka, or the ‘Golden City,’ after an ancient city-in-the sea said to belong to the Hindu god Krishna.
Kwan Phayao, Thailand: In itself perhaps not unusual, a 500 year old Thai temple sits at the bottom of lake Phayao. What makes this case strange is that the lake was actually made intentionally about 70 years ago, and that there has been recent discussion of potentially restoring the temple at the cost of billions of dollars. However, the ruins serve as a habitat for fish that many have argued should remain untouched.
Yonaguni-Jima, Japan: Discovered by a dive tour guide some twenty years ago, controversies have arisen around a mysterious pyramids found off the coast of Japan. These structures seem to have been carved right out of bedrock in a teraforming process using tools previously thought unavailable to ancient cultures of the region.
Havana, Cuba: A team of scientists continues to explore megalithic ruins found in the Yucatan Channel near Cuba. They have found evidence of an extensive urban environment stretching for miles along the ocean shore. Some believe that the civilization that inhabited these predates all known ancient American cultures. So far, only computer models of this mysterious underwater city exist.
North Sea, Europe: A lost natural landscape was found recently under the North Sea, once occupied by human hunter-gatherers over 10,000 years ago. What were once rivers, lakes and oceans are now all at the bottom of the sea, only made known through digital mapping. Scientists theorize that this amazingly well-preserved landscape was at the heart of an ancient civilization spread across Europe.
Atlantis, Antarctica? Over a hundred years ago, a museum curator in Istanbul made a remarkable discovery. Examining an ancient map on gazelle skin, he found a location marking a mountain chain where Antarctica is today. This map is, amazingly, one of many pieces of evidence people have used to try and claim that, in fact, Antarctica is the fabled lost continent of Atlantis. Other evidence includes the recent discovery (via sonar technology) of land under Antarctica as well as the mapping systems used by ancient cartographers, which suggest Atlantis might have been located far from the Mediterranean Sea.
Enjoy this collection? Be sure to check out 7 Abandoned Wonders of the Postmodern World and 7 More Deserted Wonders of the World. Interested in abandonments? See this article on urban exploration.
More Underground, Underwater and Other Wonders of the World
7 Underground Wonders of the World
7 (More!) Underground Wonders of the World
7 Underwater Wonders of the World
7 Island Wonders of the World
7 Engineering Wonders of the World
7 Urban Wonders of the World
7 Wonders of Modern Green Design and Technology
Amazing Abandoned Cities, Places and Property of the World
7 Abandoned Wonders of the World
7 (More!) Abandoned Wonders of the World
7 Abandoned Wonders of America
7 (More!) Abandoned Wonders of America
7 (Even More!) Abandoned Wonders of America
7 Abandoned Wonders of the Former Soviet Union
7 (More!) Abandoned Wonders of the Former Soviet Union
7 Abandoned Wonders of the European Union
If you are new to WebUrbanist, click here to sign up for the RSS feed and take a look through our archives and urban galleries. Also be sure visit our green twin the wonderful WebEcoist and and see architecture, interiors, fantastic furniture and more designs at Dornob or click here if you need to design a free flash website.
Great Related WebUrbanist Articles:
7 Wonders of the Modern Engineering
From Venice to Boston, Egypt to England, here are seven amazing engineering wonders of the modern world.
7 Abandoned Cities and Towns of the World
Check out these urban abandonments of the post-modern world.
7 More Abandoned Cities and Towns of the World
Check out these urban abandonments of the modern world.
128 Comments
September 12th, 2007 at 6:00 am
I always thought Atlantis was situated at a more tropical latitude according to legend! Mind you an article I saw in New Scientist suggested Greenland once used to be rainforests and lush vegetation… a long time ago.
September 12th, 2007 at 7:54 am
ameyzing
September 12th, 2007 at 7:55 am
waaauuuuuuuuu
September 12th, 2007 at 8:29 am
Awesome post again. I enjoy every of your posts.
September 12th, 2007 at 10:33 am
There is a famous saying that we are a species with amnesia…the more I read this kind of stuff, the more I believe.
There is just one scary thought…if whole continents have been lost before, it will certainly happen again. Not a very comforting thought at all.
September 12th, 2007 at 3:18 pm
“Atlantis” seems to be a myth, a legend about not one place, but many that were “lost” below the waves. Were they all lost at the same time ? Because of Earthquakes ? Rising sea levels ?
DJ Barney
September 12th, 2007 at 4:52 pm
interesting stuff … thanks …
September 12th, 2007 at 6:24 pm
Amazing!
September 12th, 2007 at 6:36 pm
Check your local library (or mega book emporium) for the book “1421″ by Gavin Menzies - it covers the origins of a lot of those ancient maps. PBS did a special on it. Turns out it was the Chinese who launched a huge map-the-world campaign with 4 vast fleets. One sailed across the Atlantic face of Antarctica. Not many records exist of it because the imperial palace burnt down shortly thereafter. However, much of the world is littered with shipwrecks built of teak with ming era porcelain & currency, Chinese DNA in native populations, and Asiatic fowl (just to name a few). Although the author has a rather self-congratulatory style, the detail and thoroughness alone make it a very compelling read.
There’s also a website (1421.tv), but it’s not put together very well.
September 12th, 2007 at 7:18 pm
Most of your stories are actually controversial and the only site that’s taken as an actual FACT is the Alexandria. The others have not been confirmed. You seem to be perpetuating controversial hypothesis as fact. I think you should check your information.
September 12th, 2007 at 8:56 pm
> I always thought Atlantis was situated at a more tropical latitude according to legend!
It may have indeed been in a tropical latitude at one time. There is the potential that a large planetary body struck this planet at one time and altered not only the planetary tilt, but also the location of the continents in relation to the equator. This would also explain the forests on greenland, just the same. Read a book called “Catastrophobia” by Barbara Hand Clow, it would really shine some light on these locations, as they were part of what she refers to as the “pre-diluvial” period in history. This would also explain how an advanced global seafaring superpower disappeared without much of a trace..
John
> the only site that’s taken as an actual FACT is the Alexandria
Really?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3_gAV8CskA4
I think YOU need to check your FACTS
September 12th, 2007 at 9:10 pm
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4KQJCFPsOLE
Here is a much more concise video. I didnt realize the other wasnt in english (speakers were muted). There was a really good one on google video that had a lot of interview footage with the diver who discovered it. Cant find that one at the moment.. but its a really good video and shows underwater footage of them diving there.
September 12th, 2007 at 11:19 pm
I like to poop on cats.
September 13th, 2007 at 2:06 am
Before the Tsunami in 2005, there were a lot of sculptures and temples and even full fledged cities that were poking out of the ocean near India. But after the tsunami they’ve all been buried under more water. But there still exists places where the top of a temple can be seen, and the upper part of the inner sanctum is visible giving a very creepy feeling.
September 13th, 2007 at 6:21 am
Wow, that is so amazing! Some amazing pictures, thanks for sharing them with us :)
September 13th, 2007 at 6:36 am
reg. indian underwater site, the Archaelogical Survey of India has denied any such findings.. the whole story was concocted by some right wing parties to exploit religious sentiments….
i even suspect the veracity of the rest of the findings too. i think you should state you sources for all these.
September 13th, 2007 at 8:58 am
Land under Antartica? wow! :-)
September 13th, 2007 at 9:06 am
Yonaguni-Jima has been conclusively shown to be a geological formation. Similar processes can be seen on the coastline in the immediate area where the ocean is wearing away the rock still to create the same formations as seen underwater.
The only people who push the notion of the Yonaguni-Jima underwater formations being man made are nationalistic Japanese that want their own ancient civilization and pseudo scientific archaeologists that want to create a name for themselves. All the geologists that have looked over the site have identified the natural process that are still ongoing that created the right angle steps, smooth surfaces and round holes that people keep pointing at as evidence of human construction.
Furthermore, that accompanying picture is purely fictional. Nothing like that has ever been found at Yonaguni-Jima.
September 13th, 2007 at 12:20 pm
You continue to rock Derami! Atlantis was always on my mind ever since I was a child. keep on doing the great work.
September 13th, 2007 at 1:03 pm
Fascinating article, and a fair bit of controversy to boot!
September 13th, 2007 at 5:04 pm
So does all of this mean Global Warming has been going on for hundreds and thousands of years? I thought Al Gore Invented it
September 14th, 2007 at 6:06 am
You cannot create something out of nothing… so what is the logical conclusion?
September 14th, 2007 at 6:57 pm
FANTASTIC
September 15th, 2007 at 3:18 am
hi
September 15th, 2007 at 12:19 pm
WOW..VERY AMAZING .
THX.
September 16th, 2007 at 12:57 am
wanderful !
September 17th, 2007 at 4:24 pm
Atlantis is a very interesting legend. Reminds me of a book about Shangri La. I also thought like other readers that Atlantis was in warmer waters. Good post.
September 23rd, 2007 at 6:09 am
Your images are haunting and beautiful at the same time.
September 24th, 2007 at 3:02 pm
The photos and archaeology are fantastic and, yes, a lot of it is still under the water. People tend to congregate near water for protection and drinking. sea levels change etc. But I have to say the funniest thing is reading all the comments…. with few exceptions YOU ARE ALL A BUNCH OF ILL INFORMED FUCK WITS I especially liked the comment about the india cities being buried under the water because of the recent tsunami. WATER DOES NOT GET THICKER AFTER A TSUNAMI OR ANY OTHER EVENT. I give up on you all, get an education.
Loved the post, hated the “conspiracy/it’s all aliens/legends/end of world” idiots.
October 1st, 2007 at 2:35 am
I thought that Antarctica was land? How can you have land under land?
I’m pretty sure the Arctic doesnt have land, but am also pretty sure that Antarctica has land…
October 2nd, 2007 at 1:15 am
POUYA YAZDANI
October 5th, 2007 at 5:54 pm
salam
October 6th, 2007 at 9:44 am
AWSOME! please send me some more information.
October 15th, 2007 at 5:24 am
Don,t you think the cities above can be related to Atlantis.
Eatrth,s tectonic plates were quite joined together.
October 15th, 2007 at 6:34 am
this page helped me in doing my school project
October 24th, 2007 at 2:51 am
very interesting-wonderful photos- the atlantis existed before changes on earth- poles in different positions- will happen again- due to polution- warm etc.
November 8th, 2007 at 12:47 am
The pictures re the Japanese Pyramids look a bit dodgy, in fact the pyramid one I have seen before somewhere.
November 8th, 2007 at 2:08 pm
Amazing, I don’t know where you find this stuff, but thanks for doing it!
November 16th, 2007 at 12:52 pm
this my ftrstexperience with hotmail
December 19th, 2007 at 4:14 pm
Give me a break. The fact that Antarctica is a land mass (not a big chunk of ice floating around) is not a recent discovery. If the only evidence of some “megalithic city” is a poorly rendered computer model, chances are you’ve been duped. There are a huge number of claims made here that seem to have materialized out of thin air; I feel like I’m reading headlines from the Enquirer or something. If that’s the niche you’re trying to fill, congratulations, you’ve done it. Otherwise, do some research.
December 19th, 2007 at 5:28 pm
When you consider the evidence presented by scientists that all the continents were connected at one point in time (Pangaea) then eventually broke and drifted apart to what we see today, it would make sense that Antarctica could very well have been Atlantis. I would love to read the research about it.
January 1st, 2008 at 1:46 pm
i believe the noah time the global flood has taken all and destroy all the cities during the flood that how i see it fit .
January 6th, 2008 at 10:33 pm
it was awesome and so great…..
pls put more about atlantis and reasearch and development on this for futher more light on this
February 1st, 2008 at 5:48 pm
Atlantis? Really?
Even ice age peoples traded far and wide, leaving evidence of their existence all over the ancient worlds (e.g. sea shell necklaces thousands of miles from the sea).
So, where are the Atlantis artifacts? Where is the list of kings? Where are the contemporaneous references to it in other cultures? Where are the Atlantean coins? Where are the sunken Atlantean ships? Where are the clay tablets, scrolls or papyri with Atlantean alphabetic characters all over it? Where is the Atantean art? The Atlantean Sculpture? The Atlantean-inspired architecture? What are the atlantean root words in modern languages?
Oh, gee…there is none.
So, fabled Atlantis was a HUGE secret to all other contemporary civilizations (but somehow known centuries later?), exchanged no ideas with its neighbors, had no commercial ties, purchased nothing, sailed nowhere (no artifacts found anywhere) had no artistic or architectural influence, had no spoken language and was apparently illiterate, and left absolutely no evidence that it ever existed.
Seems like ironclad evidence to me.
February 6th, 2008 at 6:37 am
good article
February 9th, 2008 at 8:51 am
Man, you’ve got to provide high defenition pictures:S
February 9th, 2008 at 8:55 am
Also may i add that i wouldnt even afford buying new clothes so why the hell would buy any of your amazon books? :D
(aint knowledge be for ALL and everyone?)
(sorry to disturb your common)
February 12th, 2008 at 2:44 pm
This is best comment
February 12th, 2008 at 2:53 pm
Man, you’ve got to provide high defenition pictures:S
February 12th, 2008 at 7:35 pm
i hope stupid people become extinct
March 14th, 2008 at 3:23 am
Amazing
March 14th, 2008 at 6:23 am
Oh my, if only Al Gore and the rest of the warmers had been there in the past to save these sites from Global Warming an drising sea levels!
Beautiful pics tho.
March 14th, 2008 at 6:24 am
Oh my, if only Al Gore and the rest of the warmers had been there in the past to save these sites from Global Warming an drising sea levels!
Beautiful pics though
March 14th, 2008 at 6:43 pm
There are plenty of great underwater wonders without making them up.
The Japan “Pyramid”.
The Havana “Ruins”
And…. jeez, its hard to seriously address the Antartica, Alantis thing.
It should be noted that lots of crackpots think the Havana ruins are part of Atlantis too! Atlantis gets around a lot.
March 25th, 2008 at 1:01 am
I wonder how difficult it would have been to find these underwater wonders.
March 25th, 2008 at 1:03 am
Its simply amazing.An underwater city is what i have always wished to witness.
April 4th, 2008 at 1:32 pm
This comment is rubbish
April 22nd, 2008 at 10:31 am
These are some beatiful pictures. It’s amazing how many lost cities they are finding beneath the ocean. These are actual cities they are finding which is incredible.
July 10th, 2008 at 5:07 am
i can not see this types of things, its beautiful
September 29th, 2008 at 10:30 am
When you drop an ice cube in water the water rises yes?
So if you drop a massive meteorite into the sea does the sea level not rise?
What if the tectonic plates were to make a sudden shift? Would it not tear continents apart and destroy entire cities in the blink of an eye?
September 29th, 2008 at 6:16 pm
@ chris
When you drop an ice cube in water the water rises yes? - no, it doesn’t. It floats their is no rise in water level until the ice cube melts.
So if you drop a massive meteorite into the sea does the sea level not rise? - yes it does but unless the meteor is vastly massive there is no apparant rise in sea level given the extent of size of the oceans.
What if the tectonic plates were to make a sudden shift? - This is what we call an earthquake.
Would it not tear continents apart and destroy entire cities in the blink of an eye? - Several events have occured over the last 10s of thousands of years and this is the only thing you have got right in your post.
October 2nd, 2008 at 8:27 am
What if Cuba was connected to Florida at some point. Like Pangea, when all of the continents where connected. If you have the time, you can try to piece it like a puzzle and they are some missing pieces. Atlantis=Cuba a possibility, just a thought.
October 14th, 2008 at 9:15 am
Yeah, see you on the bottom of the sea when we are older.
Im new here at the art pages. If you want to see my art drop into;
http://www.studioblodrod.blogspot.com
Welcome
Magnus
October 29th, 2008 at 7:18 am
I’ve seen all this wonder thing underwater,its all wonderful
December 2nd, 2008 at 1:20 pm
Atlantis never existed. Most of the crap you’ve stated in the OP is total rubbish. The rest is legitimate, but worded in a way to make it seem more interesting than it is.
Like stating that “a team of scientists are continuing to explore” (or whatever) the so-called “site” off Cuba’s shores, when the truth is, no actuial “scientist” has ever “investigated” the place at all, and no doubt none ever will.
Like claiming that “Scientists theorize that this amazingly well-preserved landscape was at the heart of an ancient civilization spread across Europe” which landscape is today under the north sea.
Please. Only a complete ignoramus would claim that hunter-gatherers could ever have been members of any “civilization.”
Look up the definition of words that you use before you post them Perhaps you won’t look so utterly foolish next time.
December 5th, 2008 at 9:45 pm
Pseudohistorical claptrap
The only one of these ideas that is somewhat respectable is Yonaguni-Jima
December 5th, 2008 at 9:46 pm
Also Cleopatra’s palace
December 6th, 2008 at 1:27 pm
Great Flood this is evidence of that since the ice age supposedly melted around 10,000BC it wouldn’t be possible for humans to build these types of cities under water with the known technology they had then.
December 14th, 2008 at 8:02 pm
sir,
for me, i do believe that a great deluge happened about 10,000 years ago. and i do believe that, the great noah was from that time. where the place is atlantis. the story is true but the place and time is not stated. this latest findings concluded, that it’s not only a flood that this findings caused the cities to submerged. there was also a great tremor. that causes the land to split and some it go down under. which is not only the atlantis but also lemuria.
January 3rd, 2009 at 3:57 am
for Atlantis:
the map shown here is the Map of Piri Reis, a turkish captain who was drawing the map according to the stories he was told from Italian and Spanish sailors. On this map there are even more mysterious and wondrous things to see. Many of them true, many basing on fairy-tales, myths and horror stories. My guess is that this is also the reason for this “Atlantis”.
Remember: When Plato first told about Atlantis he wrote it down in a series of symbolic tales to exemplify a deeper, but abstract truth.
January 5th, 2009 at 10:00 am
wow…………….7 wonders of world
January 5th, 2009 at 11:36 pm
hello
January 7th, 2009 at 11:55 am
stories of the “flood” are known to exist in many cultures’ histories throughout the world. Whether taken based on local or world-wide events and with horizons stretching over thousands of years - the geolocial and archaeological evidence is becoming increasingly overwhelming: these mass floods have taken place. There is still so much more to discover and to learn about human history. I believe we have only scratched the surface and much, much more is still to be told. We may yet still have to roll back the clock to the “dawn of man”……….An awesome prospect and an exciting one don’t you think……………..
January 29th, 2009 at 10:54 am
See youtube video on the city found off of Cuba, the vid is called: Underwater City Off of Cuba. It has good pics and sonar images.
February 1st, 2009 at 12:53 pm
Has no one on here ever heard of the author Graham Hancock http://www.grahamhancock.com/ He’s been on about this for years and has some extraordinary wonderful theories and photos in his books.
Or even try http://www.dailygrail.com if you want to keep up with the latest in ancient civilization research.
February 2nd, 2009 at 5:06 am
Graham Hancock describes these sites and more in his 2002 book, “Underworld”;
http://www.grahamhancock.com/l.....?bookID=28
Very interesting subject.
February 2nd, 2009 at 6:05 am
AWESOME SO GLAD MY FRIEND SENT ME THE LINK…..
February 3rd, 2009 at 3:42 pm
Unfortunately, the principles of “science” we were taught in high school and university has almost no similarity to Science as it exists today. Over 99% of modern scientists receive their funding from governments / militaries / corporate either directly or a little indirectly. Truly independent, impartial, unbiased scientists who use the scientific method and are not influenced by politics, agendas, national security contracts, etc., are nearly extinct. Studies, data, individual researchers, and entire departments of research facilities are often completely bought and paid for. This is a fact, and perhaps it is most apparent in archaeology and physical / cultural anthropology. The truth (often called “anomalous finds”) in regards to human history is truly astonishing. Anomalous finds often out-number the finds that are used to prop up some status quo theory by a ratio of 20:1 or more. Of course Atlantis existed. Yes, Lemuria existed. Yes, there was a global seafaring culture back in prehistory (well prior to 7000 years ago). Yes, many things have been found, and yes many archaeologists are frequently gagged, or directly hired by governments / militaries.and are thus bound by contracts. Yes, there have been cyclical cataclisms which have devastated very civilised societies. No, the pyramids were not built by the Egyptians. Yes, Antartica was mapped in pre-history and explored and inhabited by many generations before its current location and ice coverage. The Germans many decades ago knew this and went there, which is why Admiral Byrd went there in about 1948 in a military expedition and got his butt kicked and tried to warn Congress, but he as labelled as suddenly crazy of course.
The truth is crazier than fiction, but the question is: why all the efforts to keep it all from us??? One will not find the truth in the magazines and channels owned by National Geographic, Discovery, Discover, Natural History, etc. Look deeper and keep an open mind.
February 4th, 2009 at 12:17 am
Milander “When you drop an ice cube in water the water rises yes? - no, it doesn’t. It floats their is no rise in water level until the ice cube melts.”
Ehm lol, if you drop an ice cube in water the water does rise and it doesnt when the ice cube melts….
You add extra volume so the water rises.
February 5th, 2009 at 2:48 am
This information is amazing. The statues and temples found near Japan, clearly are from Lemuria (Mu). The photographs are brilliant and you can feel that ‘Modern Science’ does not want to look at those archaeological remains. Interestingly, the mythos of Atlantis (Atoulan), seems ‘western’ and the other civilizations more ‘eastern’. Plus, the North Sea Civilization could have been Hyperborean??
February 7th, 2009 at 1:08 am
Come on folks, it’s just a collection of pretty (and to some people interesting) pictures, a few facts and a little conjecture/guesswork…
nothing mind shattering or groundbreaking - and certainly nothing to get all hot under the collar about…
read the header… the guy’s not claiming it’s the New Truth…
calm down and stop throwing insults at ecah other… it’s no big deal
February 11th, 2009 at 4:13 pm
many thanks for posting this info.
it’s about time folks discovered..er..re-discovered (in such a wonderfully exiting multi-media way) what many of us already knew about. KUDOS + and bless your heart and inquiring mind.
Ciao,
Gary *+*
March 17th, 2009 at 1:52 pm
Great discoveries.Specially under water.
April 12th, 2009 at 1:56 am
It never ceases to amaze me how incredibly nasty and mean spirited some people can be but I’ve learned that these kind of people are ignorant (There’s ignorance on all kinds of levels people) which in turn breeds prejudism. I for one find it inspiring to think that there were other, possibly even more advanced, civilizations that existed in another epoch of time. Its a very humbling thing when you realize that the earth has the power to anihilate entire cities and even continents in the twinkling of an eye.
Trackbacks
What do you think? Leave a comment!