Rudolf Erich Raspe

Sarah Kareem (University of Chicago)
Download PDF Add to Bookshelf Report an Error

The nineteenth-century antiquarian Robert Chambers observed of the life of Rudolf Erich Raspe: “there can hardly be a more curious piece of neglected biography”. The case remains today that for all the drama of his life, Raspe - translator; mining entrepreneur; geologist; curator; embezzler; essayist; possible industrial spy, and author of Baron Munchausen's adventures - is an oft-forgotten figure. As an innovator in remarkably diverse fields, including art history, geology, souvenir manufacturing, and fiction, Raspe had a unique passion for bringing art and science to the people, and a knack for harnessing the zeitgeist in his ephemeral productions.

Rudolf Raspe was born in Hanover in 1737 to Christian Theophilus Raspe, an accountant in the Hanoverian state department of mines and

1780 words

Citation: Kareem, Sarah. "Rudolf Erich Raspe". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 06 October 2004 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=5847, accessed 19 March 2024.]

5847 Rudolf Erich Raspe 1 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

Save this article

If you need to create a new bookshelf to save this article in, please make sure that you are logged in, then go to your 'Account' here

Leave Feedback

The Literary Encyclopedia is a living community of scholars. We welcome comments which will help us improve.