In H.P. Lovecraft's 1936 novella "At the Mountains of Madness," a scientific expedition to Antarctica accidentally uncovers evidence—both archaeological and biological—of an ancient, perhaps otherworldly civilization. Eddie and Bill discuss how they first encountered Lovecraft, why his imagination was drawn to the polar regions of the earth, what the story tells us about early-20th-centuries anxieties about race and civilization, the influence this story had on "The Thing" and the modern ancient aliens myth, and more.

Citations/links:

Kate Dorsch's dissertation, which will be discussed in the next episode (2019; no paywall): https://repository.upenn.edu/edissertations/3231/

H.P. Lovecraft, "At the Mountains of Madness" (1936; full text): https://www.hplovecraft.com/writings/texts/fiction/mm.aspx

Edward Guimont, "An Arctic Mystery: The Lovecraftian North Pole," Lovecraft Annual (2020; paywall): https://www.jstor.org/stable/26939814

Edward Guimont, "At the Mountains of Mars: Viewing the Red Planet through a Lovecraftian Lens," Lovecraftian Proceedings (2019)

S. T. Joshi, "Lovecraft's Alien Civilizations: A Political Interpretation," Crypt of Cthulhu (1985)

Jason Colavito, "The Origins of the Space Gods: Ancient Astronauts and the Cthulhu Mythos in Fiction and Fact" (2011; free ebook): https://www.jasoncolavito.com/origin-of-the-space-gods.html

Garrett P. Serviss, "Edison's Conquest of Mars" (1898)

Louis Pauwels and Jacques Bergier, "The Morning of the Magicians" (1960)

Erich von Däniken, "Chariots of the Gods?" (1968)