Portrait of Lord Melvyn Bragg, host of In Our Time

Legendary tribes in Greco-Roman historiography

Atlantis (Ancient Greek: Ἀτλαντὶς νῆσος, romanized: Atlantìs nêsos, lit. 'island of Atlas') is a fictional island mentioned in an allegory on the hubris of nations in Plato's works Timaeus and Critias, wherein it represents the antagonist naval power that besieges "Ancient Athens", the pseudo-historic embodiment of Plato's ideal state in the Republic. In the story, Athens repels the Atlantean attack unlike any other nation of the known world, supposedly bearing witness to the superiority of Plato's concept of a state.

2 episodes

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  1. Plato's Atlantis

    Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the legend of the lost island of Atlantis, first told by Plato and taken literally by Renaissance Europeans as they began to explore the oceans.

    22 September 2022

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    Featuring: Edith Hall, Christopher Gill, Angie Hobbs

     
  2. The Amazons

    Melvyn Bragg and guests discuss the Amazons, formidable female warriors of classical myth.

    11 April 2013

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    Featuring: Paul Cartledge, Chiara Franceschini, Caroline Vout