FT270

Over 40 years ago, a Swiss hotel manager produced a book that was to launch him as a bestselling author and turn an obscure and eccentric theory into a widely discussed, if unorthodox, take on human prehistory. Erich von Däniken’s book Chariots of the Gods argued that the gods of human religion were not supernatural beings from a world of spirit, but visiting aliens from advanced extraterrestrial cultures (see FT169:30–37 and passim).
The evidence cited was wide-ranging. Von Däniken (below) identified several ancient artefacts and drawings as models and images of astronauts. He claimed mysterious lines in the deserts of South America were extra­terrestrial airports and he also quoted from religious scriptures.