Uploaded April 2023 | Updated September 2026, 4 hours ago
In the remote Pacific, on the island of Pohnpei, lies what has been called the "eighth wonder of the world", and the "Atlantis of the Pacific". Once thought to have been lost city, the ruins of Nan Madol continue to fascinate all who see them. What was this mysterious complex of buildings? Pohnpeian oral tradition records that around the year 1200, the island was conquered by a group who would become known as the Saudeleur, and who enslaved the local population & constructed Nan Madol, a floating city perched atop artificially constructed islets, as their palatial center and power base. From here, they controlled the island and extracted tribute from the local population.
SOURCES:
Upon a Stone Altar, Handlon
Entangled Biographies Western Pacific Ceramics & the Tombs of Pohnpei, Rainbird
The Prehistoric Pacific, Terell
Micronesia's Breadfruit Revolution & the Evolution of a Culture Area, Petersen
Uncovering Pacific Pasts, Howes et al
Airborne LiDAR Reveals a Vast Archaeological Landscape at Nan Madol World Heritage Site, Comer et al
A Brief History of Pottery in the Pacific, Grainger
In the remote Pacific, on the island of Pohnpei, lies what has been called the "eighth wonder of the world", and the "Atlantis of the Pacific". Once thought to have been lost city, the ruins of Nan Madol continue to fascinate all who see them. What was this mysterious complex of buildings? Pohnpeian oral tradition records that around the year 1200, the island was conquered by a group who would become known as the Saudeleur, and who enslaved the local population & constructed Nan Madol, a floating city perched atop artificially constructed islets, as their palatial center and power base. From here, they controlled the island and extracted tribute from the local population.
SOURCES:
Upon a Stone Altar, Handlon
Entangled Biographies Western Pacific Ceramics & the Tombs of Pohnpei, Rainbird
The Prehistoric Pacific, Terell
Micronesia's Breadfruit Revolution & the Evolution of a Culture Area, Petersen
Uncovering Pacific Pasts, Howes et al
Airborne LiDAR Reveals a Vast Archaeological Landscape at Nan Madol World Heritage Site, Comer et al
A Brief History of Pottery in the Pacific, Grainger
