Today, 150 years ago, in the year 1870, Europe witnessed a lunar eclipse.
At the end of the sefer Yesodey HaIbur, we find a report of a lunar eclipse that is going to happen on the 13th of Tamuz 1870. We have a description of that eclipse as follows: “A dramatic total eclipse lasting 1 hour and 40 minutes plunged the full Moon into deep darkness, as it passed right through the center of the Earth’s umbral shadow. While the visual effect of a total eclipse is variable, the Moon may have been stained a deep orange or red color at maximum eclipse. This was a great spectacle for everyone who saw it. The partial eclipse lasted for 3 hours and 39 minutes in total.”
What’s interesting is, that today, 150 years later, on the very same day we also had a lunar eclipse, although not really visible, as it was a Penumbral Eclipse.
Sources: Yesodey HaIbur, Warsaw 1852; https://moonblink.info/