During the second or first century BCE, a woman pretended to be able to control the moon. This was Aglaonice, who is regarded by some as the first known female astronomer.
She’s mentioned in the writings of Plutarch and the scholia to Apollonius of Rhodes and lived in Thessaly, Greece. Being “skilled in astronomy”, Aglaonice used her knowledge to predict eclipses and make people believe she caused the moon to disappear.
According to Plutarch:
“Thoroughly acquainted with the periods of the full moon and when it is subject to eclipse, and, knowing beforehand the time when the moon was due to be overtaken by the earth’s shadow, imposed upon the women, and made all believe she was drawing the moon down.”
The scholia adds that Aglaonice lost a close relation as a punishment for having angered the moon goddess.
Interestingly, Thessaly is associated with women skilled in astronomy and occult practices. Several female astrologers from the third to first centuries BCE were for instance known as “The Witches of Thessaly”. These women were said to study the movements of the moon and trick people into believing that they caused lunar eclipses.
In Plato's Gorgias, Socrates mentions the "Thessalian enchantresses who, as they say, bring down the moon from heaven at the risk of their own destruction."
Today, a crater on Venus bears Aglaonice’s name.
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Further reading:
Bicknell Peter, "The witch Aglaonice and dark lunar eclipses in the second and first centuries BC."
Chrystal Paul, Women in Ancient Greece
Plutarch, On the failure of oracles
Plutarch, Conjugalia Praecepta
Reser Anna, McNeil Leila, Forces of Nature: the women who changed science
