Before we dive into today’s topic, let’s take a look at Atlantis, mentioned in the title. Atlantis, also translated as the “Atlantic Island” or “Atlantean Empire,” is a legendary ancient continent, civilization, or city-state, described most famously by the Greek philosopher Plato in his dialogues. According to legend, Atlantis was destroyed by a great flood around 10,000 BC. In this myth, the people of Atlantis viewed themselves as descendants of the sea god, and held a deep reverence for the ocean. Atlantis coexisted with the Lemurian civilization (Lemuria), which was located on an ancient landmass to the northeast of modern Australia. Both civilizations are said to have sunk into the sea in catastrophic floods about 10,000 years ago. Although Atlantis is a legendary civilization, and the underwater city of Fuxian Lake is a real discovery, both share one key commonality: they were submerged by water. So, this comparison should be easy to accept. Today, however, our focus is on the underwater ruins of Fuxian Lake. We will not dwell too much on Atlantis, but rather explore this mysterious site that is relatively unknown, even to many in the post-90s generation. But let’s delve into the basics.
Fuxian Lake, known for its crystal-clear waters, is located between the counties of Jiangchuan, Chengjiang, and Huaning in Yuxi City, Yunnan Province. Just 52 kilometers from Kunming, it serves as an important recreational, tourist, and vacation destination in the region. As the largest freshwater lake in Yunnan in terms of water storage, and the second deepest freshwater lake in China, Fuxian Lake is part of the Nanpan River system. Its unique shape resembles a gourd, extending from north to south. The lake’s beauty lies in its clarity, and as early as the late Ming Dynasty, the famous traveler Xu Xiake praised Fuxian Lake in his book Xu Xiake’s Travel Diaries, noting that “most of the lakes in Yunnan are murky due to the surrounding soil, but Fuxian Lake is the clearest.” Its scenery is breathtaking: during the day, the water ripples in the sunlight, changing its hues continuously. At night, the moon’s reflection on the lake is mesmerizing, as the Qing Dynasty scholar Li Yingsui wrote in his poem The Moon Over Xian Lake: “A thousand acres of flat lake as clear as a mirror, who taught the bright moon to stir the waves? The light shakes the clear sky, reaching the silver river, its shadow swaying in the autumn breeze, moving the stone whale. It seems like the entire jade universe is united, and looking at the waves, one almost recognizes the crystal clear water.”
Fuxian Lake was formed around the end of the Tertiary period, during the uplifting of the Yunnan-Guizhou Plateau. About three million years ago, tectonic movements associated with the rise of the Himalayas caused faults and rock erosion, which led to the formation of Fuxian Lake. The lake has a rich and ancient geological history, and its creation was tied to massive changes in the Earth’s crust.
In the 1970s, archaeologists began to explore the lake, and their discoveries included the “Seal of the King of Dian” found at Shizhaishan in Jinning, as well as bronze artifacts from surrounding Jiangchuan. They uncovered a settlement made of stone that spanned about 2.3 square kilometers, featuring eight significant structures with remarkable craftsmanship and scale, suggesting a high level of civilization. The foundations, roads, and walls of the settlement appeared to indicate that it was once a thriving city. The mystery surrounding Fuxian Lake was further fueled by local legends that boats, planes, and other vessels often malfunctioned when crossing the lake, leading to its nickname, the “Bermuda Triangle of China.”
In 1992, a diver named Geng Wei descended into the lake from the northern shore. At a depth of 10 meters, 200-300 meters offshore, he discovered massive stone blocks. These stones appeared to be neatly arranged, resembling the stone pavement of an ancient city. This was the first indication of what would later be called the “discovery of the underwater ancient city of Fuxian Lake.” Could this submerged city be thousands of years old, perhaps even older than Pompeii? Some speculate that this was the ancient capital of the Kingdom of Dian, or perhaps an even older city that vanished during the Han Dynasty.
According to public records, between April 7-13, 2001, a team consisting of experts from CCTV, the National Underwater Archaeology Team, and several scholars conducted an on-site survey of the Fuxian Lake area. The event was broadcast live on June 3, 2001, and was described as the first large-scale underwater archaeological investigation in China. Local writer described the occasion: “In the first summer of the new century, China’s top archaeological experts, the most advanced underwater detection equipment, and the most authoritative media gathered at Fuxian Lake for China’s first large-scale underwater archaeological survey, creating a record in many fields and making June 3, 2001, a brilliant day. The spotlight of history and culture shone on Fuxian Lake.” However, some media outlets questioned the legitimacy of the survey, claiming that it was an unapproved live event rather than a formal archaeological investigation.
In June 2006, Fuxian Lake hosted its second “Underwater Exploration” event, again co-organized by CCTV and Yuxi City. This time, over 50 staff members from CCTV’s news, overseas, and educational centers took part. The event lasted seven days, with coverage on various news channels, including Approaching Science. Over 40 media outlets were on-site for coverage. At the end of the event, Professor Li Kunsheng, representing the expert group, announced that the large stone slabs and rocks found underwater were not natural formations but rather part of a massive man-made construction. The submerged structures covered an area of about 2.4 square kilometers and contained several large buildings. However, Professor Liu Qingzhu, a member of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences and the director of the Institute of Archaeology, cautioned that the nature of the underwater ruins should be determined with caution.
In July and August 2007, a joint team consisting of the Center for Ethnic Archaeology and Cultural Heritage Evaluation at Yunnan University and the Yunnan Provincial Institute of Cultural Relics and Archaeology conducted another archaeological survey at Fuxian Lake. They discovered metal tools used to carve human-like features—eyes, ears, and lips—on individual sandstone pieces. The hardness of these stones was exceptionally high, and to carve such features, alloys of antimony and copper, or even stronger materials, would have been required. Based on these findings, the underwater ruins were recognized as being far older than initially thought—potentially a prehistoric site that could unlock the mysteries of early human civilization and the origins of the Chinese people. However, further exploration and evidence are still needed to confirm these conclusions.
The underwater city of Fuxian Lake is an enigma that continues to capture the imagination of researchers and historians alike. Though submerged for millennia, it offers a glimpse into a civilization that may have flourished long before recorded history. Its discoveries raise crucial questions about the origins of human civilization in China and the greater Asian continent. As modern technology continues to uncover more about this submerged world, the ruins of Fuxian Lake may one day reveal the secrets of an ancient culture lost to the depths of time. But for now, the lake remains a mystery—one that invites both scientific exploration and legend.
