Peter James (1952 - 2024) was a British author[1] specializing in the ancient history and archaeology of the Eastern Mediterranean region, with key related interests being chronology (dating techniques), ancient technology and astronomy, and sub-Roman Britain.
In his best known work, Centuries of Darkness (1991), he and four colleagues challenged traditional chronology for the Bronze to Iron Ages in the Near East and the Eastern Mediterranean.
In particular, they advanced the idea that the Greek Dark Ages can be drastically reduced and arose solely from a misreading of key elements of the history of ancient Egypt.
The Centuries of Darkness (CoD) debate has recently been met with increased interest, partly due to the organisation of three colloquiums on the subject of ancient World Chronology.
By first claiming that references to mythological Tantalis by Plato were in fact meant to identify a Lydian king by the name of Tantalus, James identifies Atlantis with a hypothetical lost temple city called Tantalis, now Manisa, Turkey.