Qiandao Lake Holds China’s Atlantis (Video)
0Qiandao Lake
Qiandao Lake. (Credit: Neil Young via Creative Commons)
Shi Cheng is sometimes called “China’s Atlantis.” But there’s nothing really lost about it.
The ancient city sits at the bottom of Qiandao Lake, flooded by the Chinese Government after a planned hydroelectric project went forward in the 1950s.
The surrounding countryside gained the electricity and the lake, but lost an ancient center of trade.
Wall of the lost city of Shi Cheng. (Credit: Wikimedia Commons User Nihaopaul)
Now the underwater city serves as an attraction for divers and those interested in studying the ancient archaeology it contains.
The structures hail back to the Ming and Qing dynasties.
Text written on walls of Shi Cheng, the underwater city. (Credit: Big Blue SCUBA Diving International)
(Credit: Big Blue SCUBA Diving International)
The lake is dotted with 1,078 large islands. Its name means “Thousand Island” lake. But there are many smaller islands that breach its surface. View underwater footage here.
