The Island of Antillia

again i have been doing more research on the island on atlantis and came across something intresting.

Antillia (or Antilia) is a phantom island said to lie in the Atlantic Ocean far to the west of Spain. This mythical island had several other names such as Isle of Seven Cities, Ilha das Sete Cidades (Portuguese), Septe Cidades, Sanbrandan (or St Brendan), etc. Antillia was also identified with islands including the Isles of the Blest and the Fortunate Islands.

The origin of the name is quite uncertain. The oldest suggested etymology (1455) fancifully connects it with the name of the Platonic Atlantis, while later writers have endeavoured to derive it from the Latin anterior (i.e. the island that is reached "before" Cipango), or from the Jezirat al Tennyn, "Dragon's Isle," of the Arabian geographers.

On maps, Antillia was typically shown as being almost the size of Portugal, lying around two hundred miles west of the Azores. It was an almost perfect rectangle, its long axis running north-south, but with seven or eight trefoil bays shared between the east and west coasts. This has made some scholars to identify the island as Puerto Rico. Each city lay on a bay. The similar island of Saluaga was shown north of Antillia, while Taumar and Ymana (or Roillo) lay nearby.

“ The islands are said to be two in number separated by a very narrow strait and lie 10,000 furlongs from Africa. They are called the Isles of the Blessed. They enjoy moderate rains and long intervals of winds which for the most part are soft, and precipitate dew, so that the islands not only have a rich soil excellent for ploughing and planting but also produce a natural fruit that is plentiful and wholesome enough to feed, without toil or trouble, a leisured folk.

Moreover an air that is salubrious, owing to the climate and the moderate changes in the seasons, prevails on the islands. The North and East winds which blow out from our part of the world plunge into fathomless space and, owing to the distance, dissipate themselves and lose their power before they reach the islands, while the South and West winds that envelop the islands sometimes bring in their train soft and intermittent showers, but for the most part cool them with moist breezes and gently nourish the soil. Therefore a firm belief has made its way, even to the barbarians, that here are the Elysian Fields and the abode of the Blessed of which Homer sang.'

could this be another name for atlantis or a new island alltogether, what are your thoughts

Very interesting thread, this is the first I've heard of Antillia too, and I'm looking forward to researching it

My first thoughts are also Puerto Rico. The island is roughly rectangular, and has several coastal colonies. The other island could be Isla Vieques, and the strait seperating them could be the Sonda de Vieques.

Many expeditions were launched in an attempt to find the island, and in 1492 Christopher Columbus planned to stop there on his journey to Asia.

Source

When Christopher Columbus arrived at Puerto Rico during his second voyage on November 19, 1493, the island was inhabited by a group of Arawak Indians known as Taínos.

Source

Columbus set about finding Antilla in 1492, and arrived at Puerto Rico in 1493. Could they be one and the same place?

Having never been to Puerto Rico myself though, I have no idea whether there are any ruins along the coast that could mark the sites of the other coastal towns. Some more digging is in order

Originally posted by DragonsDomain
Columbus set about finding Antilla in 1492, and arrived at Puerto Rico in 1493. Could they be one and the same place?

Regardless of what they could be, they are now.

en.wikipedia.org...