Gustav Meyrink, an Austrian novelist and translator born in Vienna in 1868, defined his career through a deep engagement with occultism and the supernatural. After an early career as a banker in Prague, his life shifted following a brush with suicide, leading to a prolific output of novels, plays, and translations before his death in Starnberg in 1932.
Banking Career and Early Crisis
From 1891 to 1902, Meyrink served as a bank manager in Prague, having co-founded the firm Meier & Morgenstern in 1889. His career in finance collapsed following an arrest for fraud in 1902. While incarcerated for two months, he developed themes that later informed his literary output. A pivotal moment occurred on 14 August 1892, when he considered taking his own life, only to be interrupted by the delivery of a booklet titled Afterlife, which initiated his lifelong study of Theosophy, Kabbala, and Eastern mysticism.
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Meyrink began his literary career writing satirical short stories for the magazine Simplicissimus, published under his mother's surname. His first book, The Hot Soldier and Other Stories, appeared in 1903. To support his family, he became an industrious translator, rendering fifteen volumes of Charles Dickens into German, along with works by Rudyard Kipling and Lafcadio Hearn. He continued this work throughout his life, including the translation of various hermetic texts and the Egyptian Book of the Dead.
The Golem and Supernatural Fiction
Published in 1915, The Golem remains his most recognized work, drawing on Prague legends and his own experiences with occult practice. The novel established him as a prominent voice in supernatural fiction, alongside contemporaries such as Hanns Heinz Ewers and Karl Hans Strobl. He followed this with novels including The Green Face and Walpurgis Night. In 1913, he published Des deutschen Spießers Wunderhorn, a collection of satirical stories that led to his denunciation by nationalists for his opposition to the Great War.
Final Years in Starnberg
In 1911, Meyrink relocated to the Bavarian town of Starnberg. By 1920, his financial success allowed him to purchase a villa he named The House at the Last Lantern, referencing his famous novel. There, he wrote The White Dominican and The Angel of the West Window. Following the suicide of his son Harro Fortunat in 1932, Meyrink's health declined due to dropsy. He died on 4 December 1932 and is buried at the Hanfelderstrasse Cemetery.
Fast facts
- Born: 1868, Vienna, Austria
- Died: 1932, Starnberg, Germany
- Notable Works: The Golem, The Green Face, The White Dominican
- Occupations: Writer, translator, banker, playwright
- Key Influences: Theosophy, Buddhism, Kabbala, Hermeticism
- Marriage: Married Philomene Bernt in 1905
- Final Conversion: Formally converted to Mahayana Buddhism in 1927
- Burial Site: Hanfelderstrasse Cemetery
Questions readers ask
Was Gustav Meyrink of Jewish descent?
No. Rumors regarding his heritage arose from a confusion between his mother, Maria Wilhelmina Adelheid Meier, and a Jewish woman of the same name.
Why did he leave the banking industry?
His banking career effectively ended in 1902 after he was charged with fraud and spent two months in jail.
Achievements
- Notable work: The Golem
