Friday, 26 August 2016

Beavers On The Moon: The Great Astronomy Hoax Of 1835

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The Great Moon Hoax refers to a series of six articles that were published in The Sun, a New York newspaper, beginning on August 25, 1835, about the supposed discovery of life and even civilization on the Moon. The discoveries were falsely attributed to Sir John Herschel, one of the best known astronomers of his time.

The articles described fantastic animals on the Moon, including bison, goats, unicorns, bipedal tail-less beavers and bat-like winged humanoids who built temples. The author of the narrative was ostensibly Dr. Andrew Grant, the travelling companion and amanuensis of Sir John Herschel, but Grant was fictitious.

1 comment(s):

Unknown said...

Souds like a story that the British newspaper The S#n would run with.