The legendary tale of Atlantis, as told by Plato, has resurfaced with an intriguing new discovery. Archaeologists from the Russian Academy of Sciences have unearthed “traces of a submerged city” beneath Lake Issyk Kul in Kyrgyzstan, believed to have been devastated by a catastrophic earthquake in the 15th century. Notably, Lake Issyk Kul ranks as the eighth deepest lake globally.

Researchers have turned their attention to the Toru-Agygr complex, a site engulfed by water near the lake’s northwest edge. This location has now been explored by the team, who examined four underwater areas at shallow depths ranging from three to 13 feet along the lake’s perimeter.

Their findings unveiled an array of everyday artifacts that depict a bustling city or “large commercial hub.” Among the discoveries were numerous fired brick structures, one of which housed a millstone used for grinding grain, alongside collapsed stone constructions and wooden beams.

In one particular zone, the archaeologists suspect they’ve uncovered what might have been a public building, potentially serving as a mosque, bathhouse, or school, commonly referred to as a “madressa.”

Meanwhile, in the remaining zones, they identified what appears to be a burial site, including a 13th-century Muslim necropolis—a type of cemetery typically associated with ancient cities—along with mudbrick structures shaped both round and rectangular.

There were also burials found that showed evidence of traditional Islamic rituals, with the skeletons facing north. Their faces are turned toward the Qibla, the direction Muslims face during their daily prayers.

“All this confirms that an ancient city really once stood here,” a representative from the Russian Geographical Society (who funded the expedition), told The Daily Mail.

The lost Toru-Agygr settlement sat on a major section of the historical culture-accelerating Silk Road, where merchants would trade silk, spices and precious metals — not to mention thoughts and ideas — between China and the Mediterranean from the second century BC to the mid-15th century.

Experts believe the complex once thrived but went under when a “terrible earthquake” hit near the start of the 15th century, Valery Kolchenko, the lead expeditionist and a researcher at the National Academy of Sciences of the Kyrgyz Republic, shared with the Daily Mail.

Luckily, Kolchenko and his colleagues believe that the area was abandoned by residents before the natural disaster.

Sometime afterwards, nomadic people took up residence. Today, small villages line the lake’s shore. 

The artifacts Kolchenko and his team found have since been sent out to be analyzed. They will also go under accelerator mass spectrometry dating, a well-trusted scientific method that can place the age of organic materials.

Though the culturally enduring myth of Atlantis is generally believed to have been made up by the Greek philosopher Plato, some fans still insist that the famed lost city once thrived in the real world.