• Illustration of a man sitting in a flying contraption that is carried by birds. He floats above the ocean and a large rock.
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    Illustration depicting an event from book The Man in the Moone by Francis Godwin, Bishop of Hereford, England. The book was published in 1638, five years after Godwin's death. It is believed by many to be the first science fiction story published in the English language. In this scene, Godwin's protagonist, Domingo Gonsales, rises from atop El Pico, Teneriffe, Canary Islands, by means of a contraption powered by ten "gansas" (resembling swans or geese, but having one webbed foot and one foot with talons like an eagle). Gonsales is ultimately carried to the Moon, where he has further adventures.

  • Illustration of a man sitting in a flying contraption that is carried by birds. He floats above the ocean and a large rock.

ID#:

SI-A-39059-C

Credit:

Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum (NASM A-39059-C)

Source:

National Air and Space Museum Archives, Smithsonian Institution

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Smithsonian Institution

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