A substance all but unheard of today what was this material that can only be found in dialogues between Critias and Plato regarding the splendors of Atlantis?

In the first place, they dug out of the earth whatever was to be found there, solid as well as fusile, and that which is now only a name and was then something more than a name, orichalcum, was dug out of the earth in many parts of the island, being more precious in those days than anything except gold.

Some of their buildings were simple, but in others they put together different stones, varying the colour to please the eye, and to be a natural source of delight. The entire circuit of the wall, which went round the outermost zone, they covered with a coating of brass, and the circuit of the next wall they coated with tin, and the third, which encompassed the citadel, flashed with the red light of orichalcum.

Could we know of this substance today under another name?




[Edited on 16-2-2004 by NephraTari]

Now, don't quote me on this, but I think I rememner reading that it was either a copper alloy or a form of red granite. I know I read it in Charles Berlitz ATLANTIS, but I can't be too sure as to what the speculation was.

Originally posted by NephraTari
I don't believe these latter versions to refer to the same substance as the original dialogues say it was mined from the earth not smelted or created.

Perhaps they used the name later for a combination metal thinking it was similar to what the original might have been?

[Edited on 16-2-2004 by NephraTari]

Thats always possible.
Your comment has me intrigued - I think it needs further research. Time for a visit to Google, methinks

I also got the impression that it was not smelted or created. It sounded like it was mined directly from the earth accoring to Nephra Tari's source. I wouldn't be shocked if the Romans would try to recreate something that they had heard was of great beauty from the past. This is interesting and hopefully one of us will find something on the matter.

In the computer game "Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis", they talk about Orichalcum as a source of unlitmited energy that they got from smelting some sort of metal.

Most of the coins called "oricalchum" are actually brass, but yes, it's supposed to be an alloy of

This consisted of eighty percent copper and twenty percent zinc, with small amounts of lead, tin, and other metals and would be called yellow brass today.

or at least similar.

However, the dialogues refer to a NATURALLY occuring alloy of this, and such a metal is found (reportedly) in the Alti-Plano of Bolivia, in South America (still my particular favorite for the location of Atlantis)....