Legendary places that everyone knows but are not in reality

It's hard to imagine that today's maps can show places that don't exist. But there were many imaginary places on maps drawn hundreds of years ago. Just like King Arthur's Avalon, some places on ancient maps were also based on legends. Many sailors set out to explore these areas.

-St. Brendan Island

At the end of our list of famous places that don't really exist is Brendan Island. st. Brendan Island is a legendary island thought to be in the North Atlantic. The island is named after St Brendan of Clonfert. Brendan Island is said to have been discovered by devout sailors and is an island covered with jewels. Although there is no evidence of Saint Brendan's journey, it became very popular in the Middle Ages. So much so that St. Brendan Island has found its way onto many maps. Many sailors spent their lives trying to find the island, as word spread that the island was full of jewels. However, when the searches yielded no results, this legendary island was removed from the maps in the 18th century.

-Thule

Thule was a place of admiration not only for ancient explorers and romantic poets, but also for the Nazis. Thule was a region under ice near Scandinavia. The history of the legend dates back to the 4th century BC. At that time this region represented the northernmost part of the known world. However, the location of Thule, mentioned by sailors and explorers, has not been determined until now. Some scientists state that the region called Thule may be Iceland. Another reason why this legendary island is so famous is because it was linked to the Nazis. After the First World War, a mysterious organization called the Thule Society considered this island to be ancestral to the Aryan race. This Munich-based organization had connections with many Nazis, especially Rudolf Hess.

-Kingdom of Prester John

During the Middle Ages, Europeans believed that there was a great empire in an unknown corner of the world. According to this belief, a Christian king ruled the empire in question. The legend first emerged in 1165 when the Byzantine and Holy Roman emperors received a letter from a ruler named "Prester John". This letter was sent to mobilize the emperors in Europe against the riches of the east. So the letter did not belong to the ruler named Prester John, but to an impostor trying to mobilize the kings. The false king introduced himself as the ruler of the largest of the "Three Indies". However, there was neither a king nor a kingdom in the middle. Still, the legend of the Kingdom of Prester John began to spread rapidly in Europe. Even the Christians who went to the Crusades were very happy that there was a kingdom to help them. The legendary kingdom later became a curiosity for travelers and explorers. So much so that Marco Polo even made up a contradictory story about seeing this kingdom. By the 17th century, this legend had fallen into oblivion as there was no tangible proof. Thus the imaginary Kingdom of Prester John was removed from many maps.

-Hy – Brasil

Hy Brasil first appeared on maps of the 14th century as a circular island bisected by a strait. The island's story most likely came from Celtic legends. Some legends described the island as a lost paradise or utopia. Other legends told that the island was constantly hidden by a thick veil of fog and was only visible to the naked eye once every seven years. Until the 1800s, many sailors considered it a real place. Even sailors began to travel to explore the island. Many documents dating from the 15th century claim that travelers encountered Hy-Brasil. However, historians state that sailors who thought they had gone to Hy-Brazil may have traveled to America.

-El Dorado

The origin of the El Dorado legend began with Gonzalo Jimenez de Quesada's hearings from the Muiska natives. A supposedly indigenous king, El Dorado powdered his body with gold dust and lived in great wealth. The stories of the rich king over time gave rise to rumors of the "golden city" with great splendor. Eventually, the explorers embarked on a long quest to find this golden city. However, the legendary city was never found.