A 19th century illustration depicting futuristic airships and hot air balloons: an airship was rumoured to have been spotted in Meath 1,300 years ago. The man asking is Val Nolan, an academic and sci-fi expert who occasionally reviews books for this newspaper. It all began, modestly enough, with reports of mere flying ships, recorded as background detail to political events. Suddenly they see a ship glide through the air, from which someone casts a spear at a fish. Perhaps the strangest twist in the tale’s evolution is the one by which it turned up in 1890s Texas.

Source: The Irish Times March 19, 2026 22:03 UTC