{
  "id": 676190,
  "title": "'No longer will anything seem impossible or marvellous': How an 'immoral, foul-mouthed and violent man' wrote the first eyewitness account of a total solar eclipse",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/12/no-longer-will-anything-seem-impossible-or-marvellous-how-an-immoral",
  "topic": "science",
  "section": "Science",
  "published": "2026-08-12T15:08:30.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Live Science",
    "slug": "live-science",
    "url": "https://www.livescience.com/space/the-sun/no-longer-will-anything-seem-impossible-or-marvellous-how-an-immoral-foul-mouthed-and-violent-man-wrote-the-first-eyewitness-account-of-a-total-solar-eclipse"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "For millennia, the occurrence of a total solar eclipse was a mysterious and awe-inspiring phenomenon, shrouded in mystery for many civilizations. In his book \"Solar Eclipses\" (Reaktion Books, 2026), historian William Sheehan explores the impact of these celestial events on ancient cultures, starting with the first eyewitness account of a total solar eclipse. The account is attributed to Archilochus, a Greek soldier and poet from the seventh century B.C.E. who lived on the island of Paros. His poem is considered the earliest known written record of a total solar eclipse.",
  "summary": "In this excerpt from the book \"Solar Eclipses\" by William Sheehan, we learn of how an ancient Greek poet, who wrote a series of scurrilous songs and deserted the field of battle, became a hero among eclipse-watchers today.",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 3,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Phys.org",
        "title": "How to enjoy the solar eclipse safely",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/12/how-to-enjoy-the-solar-eclipse-safely",
        "published": "2026-08-12T15:41:08.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Live Science",
        "title": "'No longer will anything seem impossible or marvellous': How an 'immoral, foul-mouthed and violent man' wrote the first eyewitness account of a total solar eclipse",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/13/no-longer-will-anything-seem-impossible-or-marvellous-how-an-immoral",
        "published": "2026-08-13T11:15:44.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}