In 1968 an obscure Swiss hotel manager published a book entitled Erinnerungen an die Zukunft. An English edition appeared under the title Chariots of the Gods?. The hotel manager’s name was Erich von Däniken. He claimed that human history had been shaped by visitors from outer space, and that human potential had been improved by crossbreeding with these aliens. The proof of these visits, said von Däniken, is clearly visible in the earth’s archaeological record. This article will examine the structure of the argument presented in Chariots of the Gods? rather than the substance of its evidence. Taking such an approach will suggest some general intellectual principles that nonspecialists can use to evaluate any piece of popular archaeological literature.
The Scholar’s Problem
According to his paperback cover blurbs, von Däniken has sold 7 million copies of Chariots of the Gods?. His total sales, including later books, have passed the 25 million mark in a market extending to 32 countries. Depending on their temperaments, archaeologists are saddened, frightened, or infuriated when they contemplate the fact that he has sold more books about archaeology than any archaeologist who ever lived. His arguments seem self-evidently ridiculous to archaeologists. Is it possible that his readers can take him seriously?
PLAYBOY: When did you become convinced that these theories were true?
VON DÄNIKEN: I guess only in recent years. I wrote Chariots of the Gods? in 1966, so for me it’s an old book. When I wrote it 1 was not at all convinced. By the second book, Gods from Outer Space, I was more certain, but not absolutely. The basic thing is to be convinced that the fundamental theory is right, that we have been visited from outer space and those visitors altered our intelligence by artificial mutation. Of this I have felt certain for the past four years or so (Playboy 1974:56).
If von Däniken is so persuasive that he can convince even himself, his book sales indicate that his version of ancient human history might be the one most widely held by the literate people of this planet. Archaeologists attempting to reclaim prehistory from von Däniken have pointed out that his argument is built on pathetically flawed logic and non-existent evidence, only to be stunned when they find that these shortcomings are conceded and forgiven by his public. He raises so much smoke that many laypersons suspect the fire must be in there somewhere, apparently forgetting that an infinite number of unsubstantial allegations does not constitute proof of anything.
Fig. 1a. A stone giant from Tiahuanaco, Bolivia. This photograph was taken by Max Uhle for The University Museum in 1895. These 10-foot figures stand on a plain near Lake Titicaca. They were carved between ca. A.D. 500 and 100.
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