Previous to the separation of the sciences and humanities, "historia" was not a historical discipline in the modern sense but a method of empiricism, concerned with the minute description of facts. The seminar will study "historia", using examples from natural history, medicine, and philology.

The moon seems to promise something – but what? Ever since has the earth’s silent companion aroused curiosity and imagination. From Lukian’s fictitious journey to the moon until its final realisation in the Apollo-Program, almost 2000 years had to pass. In between, we find a rich history of observation, mapping and theory whose end is not yet in sight.