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tale of Atlantis has fascinated people ever since, providing both serious archaeologists and plenty of more imaginative “occult” theorists with an appealing target for their investigations and theories. Over the years, numerous expeditions have attempted to locate the remains of Atlantis, but so far none has discovered a “lost island” beneath the Atlantic Ocean. Among the most popular of these theories was that of Edgar Cayce, a famed American clairvoyant and psychic healer who died in 1945. In best-selling books that have attracted millions of readers over the years, Cayce claimed that Atlantis was a highly advanced society that possessed the equal of modern technology, and he prophesied that Atlantis would rise again in the latter part of the twentieth century. Needless to say, that prophecy has not been fulfilled.

Aristotle, Plato’s student, had what may be a sounder theory. He suggested that Plato had made up the story in order to illustrate his own philosophy of ideal government, thoroughly summarized in The Republic. In this utopia, an intellectual elite ruled. Drawn from the ablest people of all backgrounds and sexes, these educated, qualified people were to rule as “philosopher kings.” In this ideal society, they would live communally, share food, lodging, spouses, and own no property. Ruled by knowledge, they would govern for the benefit of all the other classes in a virtuous society embodying the ideals of wisdom, courage, temperance, and justice.

While Plato was speaking allegorically, there may still be some historical basis to the Atlantean legend. The consensus among many archaeologists and historians is that the myth of Atlantis is probably based on the first major civilization in the region of Greece, which arose on Crete, an island that separates the Aegean Sea from the Mediterranean. Occupying a central position in the eastern Mediterranean, with proximity to Egypt, the Near East, and mainland Greece, Crete developed the first great seagoing power of the ancient world, beginning about 3000 BCE. It was this island culture, which produced lavishly decorated palaces, indoor plumbing, elegant pottery, and jewelry, that may have been the source of the legend of Atlantis.

Today, many scholars believe the cause of the cataclysmic destruction in the Atlantis legend was actually a volcano on the island of Thera in the Aegean Sea, about 70 miles (110 kilometers) north of Crete. Volcanic eruptions destroyed most of Thera about 1550 BCE, largely wiping out the Minoan civilization, which had flourished on both Thera and Crete. “Minoan” got its name from King Minos, the legendary ruler of Crete and central character in one of the most significant Greek myths—the story of Theseus and the Minotaur.

Is Theseus and the Minotaur just another “bull” story?

If you’ve ever been lost in a maze, played the game Labyrinth, or been accused of telling a “bull” story, you’ve been connecting with a famous Greek myth. What’s the whole story of Theseus and the Minotaur?

According to the myth, Crete’s king Minos asks the sea god Poseidon for a sign of favor. A beautiful white bull emerges from the sea, and Minos is then expected to sacrifice this wondrous animal to Poseidon. Instead, Minos keeps the white bull and substitutes a lesser animal. As anyone remotely familiar with the Greek gods knows, holding out on an Olympian is never a good idea. Poseidon angrily curses Minos by causing his wife, Pasiphaë, to fall in love with the white bull.

This is where the story takes a kinky turn. To satisfy her lust for the bull, Pasiphaë has Daedalus, the Athenian statue-maker, make her a wooden cow. While hiding inside of it, Pasiphaë is impregnated by the white bull and gives birth to a monster—a bull with a human head called the Minotaur. (Ovid relates this story in a poem in Art of Love, which concludes: “Well the lord of the harem, deceived by a wooden plush covered dummy/Got Pasiphaë pregnant. The child looked just like his dad.”) In order to keep this grotesque reminder of his wife’s bestial infidelity hidden from view, Minos