The Crystal Crypt
Encyclopedia
The Crystal Crypt is a science fiction short story by Philip K. Dick
, first published in the January 1952 edition of Planet Stories
and later published in Beyond Lies the Wub
in 1988.
The story is set in the distant future where Earth and Mars on the verge of war. The last spaceship to leave Mars headed for Earth is suddenly stopped by Martian soldiers, looking for three saboteurs who destroyed a Martian city. They don't find them, and the ship continues towards Earth. On board the space ship, a business man by the name of Thacher meets a young woman and two men, who tell that they're in fact the people the Martians are looking for, and proceed to tell Thacher the story of how they did it, how they didn't destroy the Martian city, but used a device to reduce the entire city to fit in a tiny globe, which they smuggled on board the ship. The city was to be used as a bargain chip against Mars in the upcoming war, but at the end, Thacher reveals that he's in fact a Martian secret agent, and several of the passengers on board are Martian police.
in the United States
since its original copyright was not renewed with the US Copyright Office on the 27th year after the initial copyright expired. The Crystal Crypt is therefore freely available to read and download online.
Philip K. Dick
Philip Kindred Dick was an American novelist, short story writer and essayist whose published work is almost entirely in the science fiction genre. Dick explored sociological, political and metaphysical themes in novels dominated by monopolistic corporations, authoritarian governments and altered...
, first published in the January 1952 edition of Planet Stories
Planet Stories
Planet Stories was an American pulp science fiction magazine, published by Fiction House between 1939 and 1955. It featured interplanetary adventures, both in space and on other planets, and was initially focused on a young readership. Malcolm Reiss was editor or editor-in-chief for all of its 71...
and later published in Beyond Lies the Wub
Beyond Lies the Wub (collection)
Beyond Lies the Wub is a collection of science fiction stories by Philip K. Dick. It was first published by Gollancz in 1988 and reprints Volume I of The Collected Stories of Philip K. Dick...
in 1988.
The story is set in the distant future where Earth and Mars on the verge of war. The last spaceship to leave Mars headed for Earth is suddenly stopped by Martian soldiers, looking for three saboteurs who destroyed a Martian city. They don't find them, and the ship continues towards Earth. On board the space ship, a business man by the name of Thacher meets a young woman and two men, who tell that they're in fact the people the Martians are looking for, and proceed to tell Thacher the story of how they did it, how they didn't destroy the Martian city, but used a device to reduce the entire city to fit in a tiny globe, which they smuggled on board the ship. The city was to be used as a bargain chip against Mars in the upcoming war, but at the end, Thacher reveals that he's in fact a Martian secret agent, and several of the passengers on board are Martian police.
Copyright status
The Crystal Crypt is in the public domainPublic domain
Works are in the public domain if the intellectual property rights have expired, if the intellectual property rights are forfeited, or if they are not covered by intellectual property rights at all...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
since its original copyright was not renewed with the US Copyright Office on the 27th year after the initial copyright expired. The Crystal Crypt is therefore freely available to read and download online.