Katterfelto
Gustav Katterfelto (or Katerfelto) (* around 1743 in Thuringia , † 1799 in Bedale ) was a German magician , quack and lecturer of natural philosophy .
Life
As Christian William Anthony Katterfelto he came to Kingston upon Hull, England, in September 1776 and stayed in Great Britain from then until his death in 1799 . In the years 1780-84 he appeared in London as a quack. There he achieved great fame in 1782 in connection with the rapid spread of an influenza epidemic, when he used a solar microscope to show pictures of microbes that he believed to be the cause of the flu epidemic . He titled his “insects” examined with the microscope with the words “Miracles! Wonder! Miracles! ”, The typical catchphrases of his advertising campaigns for his numerous demonstrations and experiments. Katterfelto lectured on magnetism, electricity, and many other sensational phenomena of the scientific research of the time. After the first manned flight of the naturalist Jean-François Pilâtre de Rozier and the officer François d'Arlandes in a hot air balloon of the Montgolfier brothers became known , Katterfelto even claimed to have taken to the skies fifteen years earlier on the occasion of the birthday of Tsarina Catherine II in Saint Petersburg to have moved. Undoubtedly, Katterfelto was an experienced magician who, in his performances, used to make mysterious hints that his magical powers were of demonic origin. He was given several opportunities to demonstrate his experiments to the royal family. The English poet William Cowper refers to Katterfelto in his poetry.
literature
- Dr. Katterfelto, MD, professor and teacher of natural experimental philosophy ... will now deliver his various useful philosophical lectures in this town ... London 1798 worldcat
- David Paton-Williams, Katterfelto: Prince of Puff. Leicester: Matador, 2008, ISBN 1-906510-91-1
Web links
- Katterfelto, Gustavus the Elder 1799 at worldcat
- Katterfelto: Prince of Puff
- Katterfelto: miracles, miracles, miracles!
Individual evidence
- ↑ Peter Rawert: Wunder, Wunder, Wunder !, Die Zeit , December 17, 2009, p. 94.
- ^ Encyclopædia Britannica, Eleventh Edition.
- ^ The Task and Other Poems in Project Gutenberg, p. 35
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Katterfelto |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Katterfelto, Gustav; Katerfelto, Gustav |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | German magician, scientific consultant and quack |
| DATE OF BIRTH | around 1743 |
| DATE OF DEATH | 1799 |
| Place of death | Bedale |