Talk:Pillars of Hercules

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I would very much like to see a map with the area in question shown as i have no idea of exactly what/where it is that is being described. Perhaps a photograph also might help others in my position? I live in Australia and have no idea about the coast of Gibralater or Sicily or anywhere else in that part of the world.

Contents

[edit] Disambiguation

The "Pillars of Hercules" are also referred to as the "columns of Hercules" in Gibbon's The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire (vol 1, ch 2, p.56) —Preceding unsigned comment added by 24.83.101.234 (talk) 21:46, 16 May 2008 (UTC)

[edit] scared strait

Corrected the confusion between the Strait of Sicily (which separates Sicily from Tunisia)and the Strait of Messina (which separates Sicily from mainland Italy).

[edit] Strait of Sicily

"Before Eratosthenes about 250 BC, ancient Greek writers located the Pillars of Hercules on the Strait of Sicily. This changed with Alexander the Great’s eastward expansion and the Pillars were moved by Eratosthenes to Gibraltar. This evidence has been cited in some Atlantis theories, notably in Sergio Frau's."

That is nonsense. The "Pillars of Hercules" have always been whats now called "Strait of Gibraltar". Herodot wrote that the Mediterranean Sea ends at the Pillars of Hercules and a "sea called Atlantic" beginns there (Hdt. I 202). --Bender235 20:17, 29 July 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Atlantis?

This article is in the Category:Atlantis. However, there is no reference to Atlantis in the article. Can someone please explain this? Badbilltucker 21:36, 25 January 2007 (UTC)

Herodotus placed Atlantis "beyond the Pillars of Hercules". Corvus cornix 21:45, 11 October 2007 (UTC)
It was Plato. Herodotus does not mention Atlantis. No one besides Plato does. ––Bender235 22:40, 11 October 2007 (UTC)
Sorry, you're right, Plato. Corvus cornix 01:38, 12 October 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Cart before the horse?

I find it hard to believe that two pillars on a temple in Gades inspired someone to find their geographic equivalent. Surely it would be the other way around. Ifnkovhg (talk) 23:32, 25 April 2008 (UTC)

Yeah, I went back and looked at Strabo. Naming a place for famous architecture is not unheard of, but the temple's lending its name to the place is a minority view. To represent it as the opinio communis in the opening paragraph is perverse. The Melqart stuff is best left under the "Phoenician" header. Ifnkovhg (talk) 05:18, 26 April 2008 (UTC)
A direct quote of Strabo would do the trick.--Wetman (talk) 05:26, 26 April 2008 (UTC)