The Atlantis Blueprint (44 page)

So what was going on here?

I believe that sometime before the devastating earth crust displacement, scientists in Atlantis recognised that the increasing earthquakes and rising ocean level that they were experiencing were a warning of a coming geological catastrophe. Trying to preserve their civilisation from this unavoidable disaster, they became obsessed with discovering exactly what had overtaken the globe in the remote past.

Teams of geologists fanned across the planet with a mission to gauge the
former
positions of the earth’s crust. If they could determine exactly how far the crust had shifted in the past they might have some idea of what they could expect to face in the future. In the process of their investigations they left geodetic
markers
at the points they considered critical to their calculations.

After the earth crust displacement that destroyed Atlantis, the old calibrations were rediscovered by survivors who knew nothing of that forgotten and desperate geographic survey. They naturally believed that these marvellous geodetic markers from those who had gone before were messages from the gods. The sites became sacred – cities were built around them (it’s no accident that ‘Teotihuacan’ is an Aztec term for ‘Place of the Gods’) and their very practical purpose was lost.

Further generations continued to worship at these huge shrines but eventually the winds of time began to erode the original structures. New altars were built on top of the remnants of the artifacts left by the surveyors from Atlantis. But during each reconstruction
whispers from the past compelled the new architects to preserve the original orientations – orientations that pointed to the Hudson Bay Pole – to the time when Atlantis thrived.

The secrets buried beneath the slowly crumbling cities remained hidden for thousands of years. Eventually some intrepid souls in Egypt, Mesopotamia, India, China and America had the courage to begin excavations. The story of the remarkable discoveries uncovered by those who dared to dig under holy sites is only now emerging. The secret mission of the Knights Templar in Jerusalem is but one of these fascinating accounts.

I believe we can explain the enigmatic location of the ancient megaliths in a way that finally makes sense of their puzzling misalignments. These sacred sites, which we sense contain clues to our true history, continue to draw visitors who marvel over their awesome construction feats and wonder at the intelligence and vision of our anonymous ancestors. But my explanation covers only the tip of a very deep iceberg. There are many more sites that can be discovered using simple calculations derived from latitude changes after crustal displacements: not the least of which are sites on Atlantis itself, the island continent of Antarctica.

I never thought to find another adventure to compare with my eighteen-year search for Atlantis. But the unique placement of the earth’s most sacred sites has emerged as a mystery that compels me with the same kind of fascination as that journey did. I hope to share this quest within the pages of a new book,
Finding the Future: Blueprints from Atlantis
(original working title), which will lift the veil from these ancient sites to reveal concealed time capsules – messages, records, and even blueprints – from Atlantis.

Hapgood was living at 103 Davis Street (rear) in Greenfield, Massachusetts, 01301, while Rand and Rose were living at Flat 9, 9 Eldon Grove, London NW3.

I seem to have misunderstood you.
The Path of the Pole
is the second edition of
Earth’s Shifting Crust.
I am working on the third edition now, and hope it will be published next year. The first edition is unobtainable, and I was flattered to learn its is
[sic]
a collector’s item selling for about $100.00. However, I get no financial benefit, from that.

From the edition you have, no doubt you have realized that the way crust displacement affects evolution is that it is an accelerating factor. It opens new habitats, it clears ecological niches, it increases selection pressure. Biologists have recognized that climatic change is the leading factor in evolution and a few have realized that crust displacement at relatively short intervals provides that factor. It is unnecessary to have recourse to recondite factors to explain evolution. In some cases particular forms of life have endured for hundreds of millions of years without change. Look at the coelcanth, at the Komodo dragon lizard. There is no reason for it: it is
just accident. And species don’t change unless they have to, and they don’t die out without specific cause.

I believe that a displacement, once started, will continue until the mass of equilibrium is balanced. It then stops and a new movement awaits the development of another imbalance creating another centrifugal effect. The new movement will be in a direction unrelated to the last one; moreover there is no predetermined distance for the crust to travel. That is determined by the quantity of the centrifugal momentum acting on the crust in each case.

From examining hundreds of myths of earth upheaval I am convinced of one simple truth, that in the main they are not myths, not psychological developments, but accounts of real events, elaborated just as any event not accounted for will be accounted for by ad hoc rationalizing. Most of the catastrophe myths (for example, about Atlantis) don’t bring in supernaturalism. I have recently concluded that a ‘drag effect’ would operate whereby the movement of the rigid crust would set in motion movements of the deeper layers, which would continue long after the movement of the crust stops, producing long-continued turbulence at the surface. Though the movement of the crust is slow there would be plenty of violent episodes, enough for any catastrophist. I think another movement has started; unfortunately for another ice age, starting several thousand years from now. A movement of the whole crust is what creates the plates and powers all their movements originally, though their movements continue long afterwards.

Your article in the
Anthropological Journal
offers some good topics for discussion. I hope you don’t mind my making some suggestions. On page 4 you use the phrasing, ‘shifting of various parts of the earth’s crust at different times, over the earth’s axis’. I think it would be clearer for most people if you said ‘shifting of the entire earth’s crust as a unit over its semi-molten interior’.

In light of the theory of crustal displacement the western hemisphere is at a disadvantage because of geography. In the eastern hemisphere migration can occur in many different directions in accordance with the climatic changes. In the Americas the opportunities for migration are much more limited. It is not safe to depend on considerations of elevation, because elevations can change greatly in a displacement. For example, it is certain that the elevations of the Andes were increased since agriculture was introduced.
Thus we find agricultural terraces at present above the line of eternal snow, and marine fauna in Lake Titicaca.

Furthermore, there is evidence that the last displacement of the crust moved both American continents southward about 30 degrees, and absolutely devastated life and civilization on them, while climatic change was much less drastic in the Old World, and more avenues of escape existed. I have found evidence of the ancient existence of agricultural cultures in the United States, in Mexico and in South America.

Furthermore, in recent exciting discoveries I believe I have convincing evidence of a whole cycle of civilization in America and in Antarctica,
³
suggesting advanced levels of science that may go back 100,000 years. I think setting any date for the beginning of agriculture is premature, anywhere on earth.

A good deal of the evidence I have on this will be included in the new edition of
ESC.5

Finally, I am sure you realize that I am not suggesting a sudden displacement of the crust.
⁶
I think it would take at least four thousand years. There could be very violent episodes during this time, such as the upheaval of the Andes must have been: but not mountain-high tidal waves.

Of course, another angle that must be carefully calculated is that in any displacement maximum movement of the crust would occur along a central meridian of travel, and movement on either side would be proportional to distance from this meridian, that is, to longitude, diminishing to zero at 90 from the meridian.

One of your references has great interest to me: Langway and Hansen, 1973.
⁹

With best regards,

Sincerely,

Charles Hapgood

Rand Flem-Ath

These sacred sites are all within half a degree (30 nautical miles) of the former sacred latitude listed in the last column in the second table. Because so much of the world is ocean, some sites make it to this list that are the closest islands (marked with an asterisk
^*
). Sometimes the exact co-ordinates could not be found and in these cases we put in brackets the closest known city, town or village.

We have also included two Egyptian sacred sites that were at latitude 14 degrees north since this number is so closely associated with Osiris.

Sacred sites linked to the Hudson Bay Pole, by latitude

Sacred sites (with co-ordinates) measured by their distance to the Hudson Bay Pole