Illustration from a 1647 Dutch edition of Vera Historia showing the people of the Moon and the people of the Sun at war for the right to colonize the Morning Star, their aerial battle taking place on an enormous battlefield woven by giant spiders.
Featured on PDR in the essay Lucian’s Trips to the Moon
With his Vera Historia, the 2nd century satirist Lucian of Samosata wrote the first detailed account of a trip to the moon in the Western tradition and, some argue, also one of the earliest science fiction narratives. Aaron Parrett explores how Lucian used this lunar vantage point to take a satirical look back at the philosophers of Earth and their ideas of "truth".
Also appearing in the essay…
The People of the Moon and the People of the Sun at war
Date
1647
From
Vera Historia
