In through Iceland, out through Italy

The heroes climb down the Snæfellsjökull volcano in Iceland and are thrown out of Stromboli, off Sicily.

Snæfellsjökull is real. It sits at the tip of a peninsula in west Iceland and is now part of a national park.

Two names for everyone

In the French original the heroes are Lidenbrock, Axel and Graüben. The 1871 English version changed them to Hardwigg, Harry and Gretchen.

The 1867 edition added two chapters on prehistory, with ancient remains and a living herd of mastodons.

An ichthyosaurus and a plesiosaurus fight beside the raft on the underground sea.

The underground stream that saves their lives is named the Hansbach, after Hans.

Verne followed the science of the 1860s. Some of it, like a cool Earth deep inside, was later proved wrong.

Since 1979 Jules Verne has been the second most translated author in the world, after Agatha Christie.

A Journey to the Centre of the Earth

1/8
In through Iceland, out through Italy
The heroes climb down the Snæfellsjökull volcano in Iceland and are thrown out of Stromboli, off Sicily.
Source
2/8
A real volcano
Snæfellsjökull is real. It sits at the tip of a peninsula in west Iceland and is now part of a national park.
Source
3/8
Two names for everyone
In the French original the heroes are Lidenbrock, Axel and Graüben. The 1871 English version changed them to Hardwigg, Harry and Gretchen.
Source
4/8
Chapters added later
The 1867 edition added two chapters on prehistory, with ancient remains and a living herd of mastodons.
Source
5/8
Sea monsters
An ichthyosaurus and a plesiosaurus fight beside the raft on the underground sea.
Source
6/8
A stream named after the guide
The underground stream that saves their lives is named the Hansbach, after Hans.
Source
7/8
Science of its time
Verne followed the science of the 1860s. Some of it, like a cool Earth deep inside, was later proved wrong.
Source
8/8
Translated everywhere
Since 1979 Jules Verne has been the second most translated author in the world, after Agatha Christie.
Source

Image credits

The professor's house in Hamburg, Édouard Riou (engraving), 1867 Hetzel edition, Public domain
The sea monsters fight, Édouard Riou (engraving), 1867 Hetzel edition, Public domain
Three travellers in a tunnel, Édouard Riou (engraving), 1867 Hetzel edition, Public domain
Giant herdsman, Illustration by VoxRead, AI-generated for VoxRead
Science tools, Illustration by VoxRead, AI-generated for VoxRead
Félix Nadar 1820-1910 portraits Jules Verne (restoration), Nadar, Public domain
Snæfellsjökull in the Morning (7622876302) (cropped), Axel Kristinsson from Reykjavík, Iceland, CC BY 2.0
Stromboli Eruption, Wolfgang Beyer, CC BY-SA 3.0