The Moon Hoax, Richard Adams Locke. First Edition Thus.

The Moon Hoax, Richard Adams Locke

First edition thus of one of the most famous newspaper hoaxes of the nineteenth century. First published in six installments in the New York Sun in August 1835, Locke’s account credited the astronomer John Herschel with discovering a Moon inhabited by unicorns, walking beavers, and winged, humanlike creatures. Elaborate descriptions of Herschel’s supposed telescope gave the fantasy an air of scientific authority, helping turn it into a sensation. This 1859 edition reprints the narrative with a lunar frontispiece.

New York: William Gowans, 1859. Later red half leather over marbled boards, spine gilt, with gilt rules and the arms of New York City on the upper board; marbled endpapers, pp. vi, [1], 8-63 , with a lunar frontispiece dated 1856 and the original printed front wrapper bound in. Light rubbing to the joints, spine ends, and corners. Front wrapper toned and lightly soiled, with minor creasing; light wear to the opening leaves, the text otherwise clean. An attractive copy, scarce.