Gavin and Marcella search for the actual whereabouts of the harbour illustrated in the fresco. This reveals comparisons to Plato’s fabled story of Atlantis, an ancient sea-going civilisation which was destroyed by almighty Zeus on accounts of its hubris.
Could Plato’s voice possibly hold any truth?
“… In a single day and night of misfortune, all your warlike men in a body sank into the earth, and the island of Atlantis in like manner disappeared – into the depths of the sea…”
Further reading:
Plato: Timaeus and Critias: http://classics.mit.edu/Plato/timaeus.html
http://www.penguinclassics.co.uk/nf/Book/BookDisplay/0,,9780140455045,00.html
http://classics.mit.edu/Plato/critias.html