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Atlantis: If, when and where?
Scientists and researchers from 15 countries gathered on Milos Island from 11th to 13th July in order to exchange their ideas and opinions about Atlantis. During the Conference “The Atlantis Hypothesis – Searching for a Lost Land”, specialists in the field of archaeology, geology, volcanology and other sciences presented and substantiated their views regarding the place where Atlantis existed, the time when it was destroyed and the causes of its destruction, whilst a number of people expressed their doubts as to whether it actually existed.
Based on the accounts of Plato, the conference participants agreed on the following 24 criteria, which a geographical area must satisfy in order to qualify as a site where Atlantis could have existed:
- The Metropolis of Atlantis should have been located where an island used to be and where parts of it may still exist.
- The Metropolis of Atlantis should have had a most distinct geomorphology composed of alternating concentric rings of land and water.
- The Atlantis should have been located outside the Pillars of Hercules.
- The Metropolis of Atlantis was greater than Libya and Anatolia and Middle East and Sinai (combined).
- Atlantis must have sheltered a literate population with metallurgical and navigational skills.
- The Metropolis of Atlantis should have been routinely reachable from Athens by sea.
- At the time, Atlantis should have been at war with Athens.
- The Metropolis of Athens must have suffered a devastating physical destruction of unprecedented proportions.
- The Metropolis of Atlantis should have sunk entirely or partly below the water.
- The Metropolis of Atlantis was destroyed 9000 Egyptian years before the 6th century B.C.
- The part of Atlantis was 50 stadia (7,5 km) from the city.
- Atlantis had a high population density, enough to support a large army (10,000 chariots, 1,200 ships, 1,200,000 hoplites)
- The region of Atlantis involved the sacrifice of bulls.
- The destruction of Atlantis was accompanied by an earthquake.
- After the destruction of Atlantis, the passage of ships was blocked.
- Elephants were present in Atlantis.
- No physically or geologically impossible processes were involved in the destruction of Atlantis.
- Hot and cold springs, with mineral deposits, were present in Atlantis.
- Atlantis lay on a coastal plain 2000 X 3000 stadia surrounded by mountains falling into the sea.
- Atlantis controlled other states of the period.
- Winds in Atlantis came from the north (only in Northern hemisphere)
- The rocks in Atlantis were of various colors: black, white, and red.
- There were canals for irrigation in Atlantis.
- Every 5th and 6th year, they sacrificed bulls.
In response to the above criteria, some views doubting the existence of Atlantis were also presented. The main representative of such doubt was Professor Christos Doumas, Director of Akrotiri Excavations in Santorini and member of the Scientific Committee of the Conference, who supported the theory that the existence of Atlantis is a myth and its pursuit a utopia.
“The same conference will be organised again in three years in order to establish what progress has been made in research about the Lost Land and it will probably be then that the scientific community will be ready to bring to light the secret of Atlantis”, stated Mr. Kostas Konstantinidis, Managing Director of Heliotopos Conferences, who also had the original idea of the conference.
The Atlantis Book Exhibition that took place alongside the conference was of particular interest. During the exhibition 50 books and magazines about the Lost Atlantis, Greek and foreign, old and new publications, were presented. The book exhibition was coordinated by Mr. Manolis Lignos, founder of the Folklore Museum of Santorini.
The conference was organised within the framework of Milos Conferences and was supported by the Milos Conference Centre and S&B Industrial Minerals S.A.
The eagerly awaited Conference Proceedings will include all of the presentations and will be the first book about Atlantis to contain such a wide range of views and approaches to the Atlantis hypothesis. The book will be published within a few months and will be available at the electronic bookshop at www.conferences.gr
Photographs in high resolution (300 dpi) 
View of the audience in the hall of the Milos Conference Centre - George Eliopoulos.
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Mr Kukal, Mr Tsikalas, Mr Papamarinopoulos, Mr Fytikas, Mr Richter and Mr McMcoy during the round table discussion entitled "What is the physical identity of the capital of Atlantis".
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Professor Christos Doumas, during his subversive presentation, receiving comments from Professor Stavros Papamarinopoulos.
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