Poseidon is the god of the sea and waters, as well as of horses and earthquakes. This is why so many temples are dedicated to him both along the coasts and inland. On fountains Poseidon is often depicted as a formidable man with a wild beard, sometimes with his companions, the Tritons, which are fish with human torsos.

Atlantis is a fictional island mentioned in an allegory on the hubris of nations in Plato's works Timaeus and Critias, wherein it represents the antagonist naval power that besieges "Ancient Athens", the pseudo-historic embodiment of Plato's ideal state in the Republic.