Erich von Däniken’s *Chariots of the Gods?* reception and ancient-visitor controversy

Record summary

Erich von Däniken’s *Chariots of the Gods?*, first published in German in 1968 and widely circulated in English from 1970, argued that myths, monumental remains, and religious images preserve encounters with extraterrestrial visitors. The lead matters because it recasts divine descent, sky travel, and culture-bringing traditions as literal technological contact. Archaeologists and historians have criticized its selective evidence, mistranslations, and disregard for cultural context. The book is best studied as a modern interpretive tradition and media phenomenon, not as evidence that ancient encounters occurred.