Stuff You Should Know – Short Stuff: 1561 Celestial Event

Hosts: Josh & Chuck
Date: August 27, 2025

Overview

In this "Short Stuff" episode, Josh and Chuck delve into the mysterious 1561 celestial event over Nuremberg—a mass sighting of unexplained aerial phenomena that has become a favorite story among UFO enthusiasts. They explore what was recorded, the historical and cultural context, popular explanations, and how the event’s modern mythos developed, ultimately thanks to Carl Jung. Along the way, they blend humor and historical insight, separating facts from sensationalism.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

The 1561 Nuremberg Event: What Was Seen?

• Description of the Event ([00:52]):
  • Occurred in Nuremberg, Germany, on April 14, 1561, early in the morning.
  • Hundreds of people reportedly witnessed what looked like an aerial battle between various “airships” of unknown origin.
  • Descriptions in the original account: different colors and shapes—squares, globes, crescents.
  • The phenomena ended with “ships” crashing outside the city and dissolving into smoke, followed by a black spear appearing in the sky.
• Credibility of Witnesses:
  • “A lot of people saw this and a lot of people who weren’t just like silly rubes.” — Josh ([00:52])
  • Not just drunken townsfolk; this was observed by regular citizens as they went about their morning.

Historical Documentation & The Role of Broadsheets

• Coverage came from Hans Glaser, who published a woodcut-illustrated Einblattdruck (broadsheet) detailing the event ([01:38]).
• “If you’ve even remotely heard of this, I’ll bet you’ve seen his famous woodcut from it. It’s quite lovely.” — Chuck ([02:09])
• Not unique: Over a nine-year span, 400 similar broadsheets were published in the region, documenting sky phenomena ([02:55]).

Social & Religious Context

• Nuremberg at the time was part of the Holy Roman Empire, a Catholic-ruled domain.
• The Protestant Reformation was ongoing, leading to high religious fervor and end-times anxiety.
• “When people saw things like these aerial battles in the sky, they’re like, this is clearly a sign from God … we’re doomed unless we repent and mend our ways.” — Chuck ([03:24])

Why Is the 1561 Nuremberg Event So Famous?

• This event wasn’t particularly extraordinary in its time but was later highlighted.
• Carl Jung referenced it in his 1958 book on flying saucers/mythologies, pulling it from obscurity ([06:30]).
• “Because this one event was plucked from all the other ones … it came to seem … as a singular event, like nothing like this had ever happened before.” — Chuck ([07:17])
• Stripped of historical context, it’s now often referred to as one of the earliest “UFO sightings.”

Explanations for the Phenomenon

• Sun Dogs (Parhelia):
  • Optical phenomena caused by sunlight reflecting through ice crystals; can appear as multiple bright spots (“two suns”).
  • Fit with the morning timing of the event; such phenomena are common but memorable.
  • “That would sort of make sense that it was daybreak.” — Josh ([09:16])
  • Rare sun dogs can last up to a couple hours (e.g., a 2023 event in China lasted two hours).
• Fireworks (Pyrotechnics):
  • Book De la Pyrotechnia (1540) detailed rockets for festivals—could a rogue fireworks enthusiast have caused the display?
  • Some aspects echo fireworks: shapes in the sky, objects fizzling into smoke upon descent.
  • “It sounds silly at first, but that one makes a little more sense to me than even sun dogs…” — Josh ([10:57])
• Embellishment:
  • Sensational reporting to sell broadsheets was already common.
  • Early publications often enhanced events for attention, as in this case.
  • “Even very early on in publishing, they were kind of doing some more sort of salacious stuff to get readers because there was competition going on.” — Josh ([11:31])

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “This happened for over an hour, where they looked up in the sky and saw what looked like an aerial battle between airships of unknown origin…” — Josh ([00:52])
• “It wasn’t like Rusty and Eugene, who were out drinking that night, who saw it and came back and told everybody.” — Chuck ([01:30])
• “When people saw things like these aerial battles in the sky, they’re like, this is clearly a sign from God.” — Chuck ([03:24])
• “This one event … Carl Jung put in his book about flying saucers is a UFO. He’s talking about a UFO sighting. That’s where we landed today.” — Chuck ([07:25])
• “They weren’t people sitting around looking at the sky saying it was like a dragon or something…” — Josh ([08:07])
• “On its face, [the fireworks theory] seems unlikely, but when you dig in, it’s like it gets a little meatier, for sure.” — Chuck ([11:18])

Timestamps for Important Segments

• [00:52] — Introduction to the 1561 celestial event and initial eyewitness descriptions.
• [01:38] — Hans Glaser’s broadsheet, the woodcut, and media coverage in the 1500s.
• [02:55] — Similar events reported across the Holy Roman Empire; historical context of mass sightings.
• [03:24] — Religious and societal climate of Nuremberg; explanation for apocalyptic interpretations.
• [06:30] — Explanation for the event’s fame: Carl Jung, modern myth-making, and the “first UFO sighting.”
• [08:07] — Contemporary scientific understanding; dismissing simple explanations.
• [09:16] — The three main theories: sun dogs, fireworks, and embellishment, each discussed in turn.
• [11:31] — Early sensationalism in publishing and broadsheet competition.
• [12:15] — Wrap-up and thanks to listener James Calimera for inspiring the episode.

Conclusion

Josh and Chuck unpack the Nuremberg celestial event as a product of its time—neither naïve mass hysteria nor unambiguous alien visitation. They illustrate how context, cultural anxieties, nascent science, and evolving media practices shaped both the original report and its later reinterpretation as a proto-UFO sighting. The episode balances skepticism with amusement, offering an accessible primer on how historical events become modern myths.

Listener Shoutout:
Special thanks to James Calimera for requesting this episode—460 years after the original event! ([12:15])