Michael Arbuthnot - Team Atlantis

Team Atlantis

Arbuthnot founded Team Atlantis Productions in 1996. The name, of course, is a play on the mythical underwater city of Atlantis. Arbuthnot defines Team Atlantis, saying, “TA is a multi-disciplinary outfit whose mission is to explore archeological mysteries with an emphasis on those enigmas associated with underwater contexts.” Because underwater archeological sites usually have some connection with sites on land, Team Atlantis is not restricted to only underwater locations.

Team Atlantis has explored and surveyed many sites around the world, including:

• Egypt (1996): Here, Arbuthnot and his team traveled extensively along the Giza Plateau. Arbuthnot developed his Orion Pyramid Theory while in Egypt.

• Grand Cayman Island, Caribbean (1997): Arbuthnot participated in the mapping of the remains of the Geneva Kathleen, a schooner that sank in 1930.

• Yonaguni, Japan (1998): In Japan, Arbuthnot organized an expedition that examined the Yonaguni Monument and created a film documentary of the experience.

• Cat Island, Bahamas (2000): Team Atlantis journeyed to the Bahamas to explore the possibility of ancient shorelines submerged in the shallow water of the Great Bahama Bank.

• The Gulf of Mexico (2000): Arbuthnot and other members of Florida State University’s Program in Underwater Archaeology excavated submerged prehistoric sites and shipwrecks under the direction of Dr. Michael Faught.

• Yucatán, Mexico (2000): Team Atlantis explored Mayan ruins at Tulum and Chichen Itza and digitally documented their trip.

• La Jolla in San Diego, California (2005): Underwater artifacts were first discovered here in the early 1900s. Team Atlantis decided to make a trip to California to investigate. The team discovered a total of six artifacts, including a stone bowl, dated 4000 to 7000 years ago. This contributes to the already over 2000 artifacts recovered in this area of at least 34 submerged sites.