The Atlanteans dug out of the earth whatever was to be found there. For because of the greatness of their empire and the island itself provided most of what was required by them for the uses of life. Now Atlas had a numerous and honourable family, and they retained the kingdom, the eldest son handing it on to his eldest for many generations and they had such an amount of wealth as was never before possessed by kings, and they were furnished with everything which they needed, both in the city and country. He also begat and brought up five pairs of twin male children and dividing the island of Atlantis into ten portions, he gave to the first-born of the eldest pair his mother's dwelling and the surrounding allotment, which was the largest and best, and made him king over the rest the others he made princes, and gave them rule over many men, and a large territory. The eldest, who was the first king, he named Atlas, and after him the whole island and the ocean were called Atlantic. Poseidon brought up two springs of water from beneath the earth, one of warm water and the other of cold, and making every variety of food to spring up abundantly from the soil. In this mountain there dwelt one of the earth born primeval men of that country, whose name was Evenor, and he had a wife named Leucippe, and they had an only daughter who was called Cleito. When her father and mother died Poseidon fell in love with Cleito and had intercourse with her, and breaking the ground, enclosed the hill in which she dwelt all round, so that no man could get to the island, for ships and voyages were not as yet. In the centre of the whole island, there was a plain which is said to have been the fairest of all plains and very fertile, near the plain there was a mountain not very high on any side. In the days of old the gods had the whole earth distributed among them by allotment, and Poseidon, receiving for his lot the island of Atlantis.
The tale, which was of great length, began as follows:
Of the combatants on the one side, the city of Athens was reported to have been the leader and to have fought out the war the combatants on the other side were commanded by the kings of Atlantis, which was an island greater in extent than Libya and Asia, and when afterwards sunk by an earthquake, became an impassable barrier of mud to voyagers sailing from hence to any part of the ocean. Nine thousand was the sum of years which had elapsed since the war which was said to have taken place between those who dwelt outside the Pillars of Heracles and all who dwelt within them. This is the story of the lost continent of Atlantis (shortened to better fit this website), as first brought to light by the ancient philosopher and Master Druid, Plato.