According to records, on July 27-28 and August 7, many local witnesses in Basel reported seeing three different phenomena. The first is described as an unusual sunrise, the second as a total eclipse of the moon with a red sun rising, and the third as a cloud of black spheres in front of the sun.

Basel Pamphlet of 1566 English Translation: “It happened in 1566 three times, on 27 and 28 of July, and on August 7, against the sunrise and sunset; we saw strange shapes in the sky above Basel.

During the year 1566, on the 27th of July, after the sun had shone warm on the clear, bright skies, and then around 9 pm, it suddenly took a different shape and color. First, the sun lost all its radiance and luster, and it was no bigger than the full moon. Finally, it seemed to weep tears of blood, and the air behind him went dark. And he was seen by all the people of the city and countryside. In much the same way, the moon, which has already been almost full and has shone through the night, assumes an almost blood-red color in the sky. The next day, Sunday, the sun rose at about six o’clock and slept with the same appearance it had when it was lying before. He lit the houses, streets, and around as if everything was blood-red and fiery. At the dawn of August 7, we saw large black spheres coming and going with great speed and precision before the sun and chattered as if they had led a fight. Many of them were fiery red and, soon, crumbled and then extinguished.”