Kaspar Hauser, Child of Europe

An Artistic and Contemplative Approach to an Enduring Enigma

‘From time to time in the history of humanity, extraordinary individualities appear, carrying with them great tasks which are difficult to assess. Through this lens, the events around Kaspar Hauser (1812-1833) can be seen as signposts to one of the most important mysteries of modern times, which will radiate far into the future. Kaspar’s appearance and the essence of his being are deeply connected with the question of the identity of the human being itself.’ – From the Foreword

This book offers a unique, creative approach to the mystery of Kaspar Hauser – the teenage boy who was found abandoned on the streets of Nuremberg, barely able to walk, speak or write. Introducing the subject with a historical overview, Eckart Böhmer goes on to offer multiple artistic approaches to comprehending the enigma of Kaspar Hauser’s brief and tragic life. He presents poems from his cycle I not human, I Kaspar, a short story entitled ‘Crossing the Border’, and a play about Hauser’s mentor, ‘Feuerbach or an Example of a Crime Against the Human Consciousness Soul’. These are followed by transcripts of two lectures held during the Kaspar Hauser Festival in New York, which reflect on esoteric research carried out in the last twenty years. The volume concludes with short meditations followed by an interview with the author on his biographical connections to the theme.

Inspired by the Kaspar Hauser Festival in Ansbach and the Kaspar Hauser Research Circle, this valuable book offers many imaginative gems for deeper contemplation.

ECKART BÖHMER, born in Santiago de Chile in 1966, is the director of the Kaspar Hauser Festspiele in Ansbach, Germany, and a travelling speaker, author and theatre director. After studying theatre direction in Ulm, Germany, Eckart Böhmer founded his own theatre near Ansbach. In 1998, he began the bi-annual Kaspar Hauser Festspiele in Ansbach. In 2016 he was asked to take on the research of Professor Hermann Pies, who had spent a lifetime pursuing and studying documents about Kaspar Hauser. He placed this historic legacy into the centre of a ‘Kaspar Hauser Research Circle’, founded together with Richard Steel, within the Karl König Institute. Since that time, research has been widened and activities have spread to the USA, where regular festivals have been organized on the East and West coasts. 1 October 2019; 100pp; 21.5 x 13.5 cm; paperback; translated R. Steel et al.