The story was advertised on August 21, 1835, as an upcoming feature allegedly reprinted from The Edinburgh Courant.In 1835, the New York Sun published a six-part series, about civilization on the moon. The “Great Moon Hoax”, ostensibly reprinted from the Edinburgh Courant, was falsely attributed to the work of Sir John Herschel, one of the best known astronomers of the time.Whatever it took to sell newspapers.&nbsp;

Discovered by Sir John Herschel in his observatory at the Cape of Good Hope and copied from sketches in the Edinburgh Journal of Science.

Print shows illustration relating to the Great Moon Hoax with people spying on human-bat creatures on the Moon as other people are transported between Earth and the Moon by way of a balloon basket.

Print shows illustration relating to the Great Moon Hoax with Punch riding to the moon in a ship on a chain track; inset shows Herschel's machine and moon observatory.

(Scoperte fatte nella luna dal Sigr. Herschell)Print shows illustration relating to the Great Moon Hoax with a human-bat creature, two other supernatural creatures, and a lunar landscape

(Ritorno di Pulcinella dalla luna)Print shows illustration relating to the Great Moon Hoax with Punch standing in a ship in which he has returned from the moon with bottles of "acqua lunateca.

(Diligenza di ritorno dalla luna / Gaetana Dura, dis. ; Lit. Gatti e Dura.)Print shows a flying machine returning from the moon

The Great Moon Hoax