There are plenty of things which are hidden not only in the oceans of the world, but in some of the lakes and rivers as well. As the continents shifted over the ages much of the land which was above sea level fell below it and rests on the seafloor. In ancient times many people liked to live in villages along the shore and built their homes sometimes fishing right there. Along with these homes were temples and other things necessary for life such as hearths for cooking and areas for waste disposal. Sometimes even intricate statues were created, because people liked to pay homage to their gods. As the oceans of the world rose these communities became inundated and eventually landed on the seabed floor. Sometimes they are pretty far out into the ocean from the land, because waters rose well past where   villages were located. One example of this are some lost temples in India. When a tsunami hits the waters receded and things are exposed which were covered by the ocean before the tsunami wave came in. Such was the case in India a few years ago when a tsunami hit there. The water which receded exposed hidden temples which had been talked about in folklore for centuries, to the surprise of everyone.

The same is true for some islands. There are many stories about islands which have sank. I guess the most famous of these stories is about Atlantis, but the problem with this story is we have no way of knowing if it actually existed. We do know of islands which have disappeared and even continents which are no longer around. An example of this is Sundaland. I am not talking about Sunderland which sounds almost the same. Sundaland existed from about 110,000 years ago until about 12,000 years ago. It was part of the Sunda shelf which now is underwater. Many scientists believe this submerged area used to be the cradle of the Asian population today. It certainly has not been unknown to find evidence of the population of early races in some submerged places. As their homes flooded these races would have moved inland and possibly changed the way they lived. Genetic similarities have been found in populations throughout Asia and this seems to indicate at least most of the Asian people had the same ancestors.

Lake Titicaca is located in the Andes Mountains between Bolivia and Peru. It has the distinction of being the largest freshwater lake in South America, but it also has another distinction, it is the highest navigable lake in the world. This lake has been used by many ancient races. The lake is home to some interesting ruins. There is a temple in the lake which has been dated between 1,000 and 1,500 years old. One important question is how did the temple get to the bottom of the lake? We may never know the answer to this question. We do know the Incas believed Lake Titicaca is where they came from and when they died their spirits would go back to it, so it is possible the temple was built under the lake on purpose. This would have been a monumental task without diving gear. Other objects have also been found in the lake and were believed to be objects of worship. Skeletons were found in the lake and show people were brutally attacked and then dumped into the lake. It is known the Incas performed ritualistic murders so perhaps these were sacrifices.

There is a landmass as part of a continental crust which was said to have been part of Antarctica and perhaps Australia. It is said 93 percent of it lies beneath the Pacific Ocean. It is at least half the size of Australia. The area is so ancient it is not expected to yield any signs of primitive human life. If it did it would be quite a surprise and perhaps change our history.

One of the discoveries which have truly excited archaeologists took place in 2013. The reason they were so excited was they believed they had discovered the underwater ruins of the first naval battle. These ruins dated back 2,000 years. The battle was known as the Battle of Egadi Islands. The Romans were fighting with the Carthaginians in 241 BC. The Romans wanted to become a power in the Mediterranean Sea. The Carthaginians were a more powerful naval force, but the Romans weren’t deterred and waited to ambush them. The Romans were able to sink 50 Carthaginians ships and kill at least 10,000 men. Archaeologists found many prized objects in the area which included such things as rams, which were large heavy pieces of metal fitted to the front of a ship so it could crash into the enemy and sink it. There were also weapons, armor and helmets found. It turned out to be quite a treasure trove for archaeologists.

You just never know what you might find underwater. Alexandria was the great city founded by Alexander the Great in Egypt. Cleopatra ruled Egypt from this city. Marine archaeologists were very interested in this area and decided to do some exploring in the offshore waters. It is believed the site was submerged by earthquakes and tidal waves over 1,600 years ago. A submerged island named Antirhodus was explored, because Cleopatra was said to have her palace near there. Various statues have been found in a well preserved shipwreck along with granite columns. A sphinx was found and it is said to have the face of Cleopatra’s father. Everything which was found was put back into the water. This was done, because the Egyptian government stated it wanted to create an underwater museum.

We keep hearing about all different races which had made it to North America in the past. I guess we can add one more to the pile. Historians are saying they have evidence the Romans set foot on North America a thousand years before Columbus. They base this on the fact that an incredible find was made on an island. It consisted of a Roman sword, Carthaginian coins, legionnaires whistle and the head of a Roman sculpture. It is said these prizes were found in a shipwreck off Oak Island. If the name of the island sounds familiar it is because this is the very same island with treasure hunters have been digging for hundreds of years. The shipwreck lies near the infamous “Money Pit”.

There is just no way of knowing what treasures lay under the water just waiting for us to discover them. I am not talking so much about monetary treasure, what I am talking about is historical treasure and treasure which might change the way we think about things.