Not far from the beaches of southern Spain, there lies a bunch of strange circular shapes nestled into the wetlands, as if the swamped land was once the site of a ruined long-lost civilization. It’s no surprise that the British tabloids have been quick to yell: Could this be the long-lost city of Atlantis?!? No, probably not, but it certainly raises some interesting ideas.

The discovery came to light thanks to years of work from the satellite-wielding archaeologists at Merlin Burrows in the UK, as shown in a stunningly shot new documentary by Ingenio Films called Atlantica. You can check out the trailer below.

They carried out numerous satellite scans and aerial photography surveys on the coastal area and wetlands surrounding Doñana National Park and found evidence of dozens of hidden circular shapes. They also noted numerous sea ruins in the area. According to the filmmakers who documented the project, this is “CONCRETE proof that Atlantis existed” as the original reports of Atlantis often talked about vast circular structures that have since been lost to the elements.

They added, “For the FIRST TIME IN HISTORY, join our team as we uncover the ACTUAL remains of the mythical EMPIRE OF ATLANTIS!!

"We [were] able to identify artifacts, which matched Plato’s descriptions of Atlantis, down to the most crucial details… EXACTLY as Plato described them!!"

Of course, this is an astronomically, monumentally big claim, with nothing in the way of a peer-reviewed study or a scientific archaeological excavation to back it up.

Even then, skepticism would be plentiful. 

The myth of Atlantis started life in the words of the ancient Greek philosopher Plato. In two of his works from the 4th century BCE, Timaeus and Critias, he describes a mysterious water-based civilization that thrived 9,000 years before his time. He even noted that Atlantis was located "beyond the Pillars of Hercules," now referred to as the Strait of Gibraltar between North Africa and Spain.

However, most experts accept that the story of Atlantis is a myth peppered with elements of reality, such as the volcanic eruption on Santorini and the collapse of the Minoan empire. Plato created the island utopia merely as a fictional allegory, never meant to be taken too seriously, used only as a vehicle for ideas. 

 

The Doñana National Park wetlands in Andalusia, southern Spain, often come up when speculating on the possible location of the legendary city. Then again, other theories have said it’s elsewhere in the Mediterranean, in the Black Sea, near the Caribbean, off the coast of Africa, in the North Sea, etc, etc.

“Pick a spot on the map, and someone has said that Atlantis was there," Charles Orser, curator of history at the New York State Museum in Albany told National Geographic.