`Atlantis: The Antediluvian World' is a pseudo-archaeological work published in 1882 by the Minnesotan author Ignatius L. Donnelly. He argues that all known ancient civilizations were descended from this lost land which once existed in the Atlantic Ocean, opposite the Mediterranean Sea. The author claimed that the description of this island given by Plato is not fable, but veritable history. Many of its theories are the source of contemporary concepts about Atlantis, including that the civilization and technology were beyond its time. It was avidly supported by the publications of Madame Helena Blavatsky and the Theosophical Society as well as by Rudolf Steiner.