"Scoperta Lunare", Altre scoverte fatte nella luna dal Sigr. Herschel, Napoli : L. Gatti e...

This portfolio of hand-tinted lithographs purports to illustrate the "discovery of life on the moon." In 1836, Richard E. Locke, writing for the New York Sun, claimed that the noted British astronomer Sir John Herschel had discovered life on the moon. Flora and fauna included bat-men, moon maidens (with luna-moth wings), moon bison, and other extravagant life forms. Locke proposed an expedition to the moon using a ship supported by hydrogen balloons. Herschel, who is known for having named several moons of both Uranus and Saturn as well as contributing to the science of photography, was not involved in what was later called “The Great Moon Hoax”.