Pseudohistory is produced by the application of the
research techniques of the
historical method (
primary sources and
evidence) characteristic of legitimate history; yet, in itself, the work of pseudohistory is intellectually inconsistent with the historical record and with the common-sense understanding held in the
collective memory of society. In practice, a pseudohistory presents a
big lie — sensational claims — about historical fact that would require the
revision (re-writing) of the historical record. The term
pseudohistory is applied to works of historical revision that are based upon or derived from a theory or upon a re-interpretation or both; moreover, the related term
cryptohistory applied to a pseudohistory based upon or derived from the superstitions inherent to
occultism.