Samuel Birley Rowbotham advances the Flat Earth theory, which holds that Earth is not in fact an oblate spheroid planet, but an enclosed plane above which the astronomical bodies are situated. This premium edition contains all of Rowbotham's original graphs, charts and drawings. This book began as a pamphlet in the 1840s, explaining the theory with a few sketches alongside. Rowbotham was already an inventor and author, and over time theories of Zetetic Astronomy - in which the Earth is flat - became popular. In 1881 the author expanded and published this book, in part to meet public and scientific scrutiny. Experiments and demonstrations are conducted in support of the Earth being flat, with the astronomical bodies situated above, rather than around it. Most of these are framed with illustrations and diagrams, that the reader understands Rowbotham's notions. Various chapters concern motion of the heavenly bodies, sunrises, sunsets, the tidal movements, and distances of the Sun and Moon from Earth.