Leseprobe

177 B ö hme ’s E a r l y C o n t a c t s It is known that Böhme visited Breslau on several occasions and had commercial connections there. Sometimes Böhme asked these contacts, like the sable merchant Andreas Hannibal, or the physician Dr. Matthias Giller von Lilienfeld, to forward letters and theosophical tracts to others, such as his follow­ ers in Troppau/Opawa. After Böhme’s death in 1624, and the forced recatholicization of vast areas of Silesia in 1628, the city became a haven and meeting point for readers, followers and correspondents, including among others Abraham von Franckenberg, Wilhelm Schwartz, Abraham von Sommerfeld, Gott­ fried Richter, and Johannes Scheffler. A native of Breslau, Scheffler was deeply influenced by the writ­ ings of both Böhme and Franckenberg. Out of anger at the Lutheran church’s rejection of mysticism, he converted in 1653 to Catholicism and changed his name to Angelus Silesius, or the “Silesian Angel.” Yet his Böhme-inspired poems continued to transmit the theosopher’s ideas to following generations. Today, the University Library in Wrocław is one of the most important repositories of original Böhme manuscripts and early prints, and is a center for future research. [LP/LM] 3 David Tscherning (rytownik), Daniel Datschitzky (autor), Widok Wrocławia, 1668, akwaforta, Kupferstich-Kabinett, Staatliche Kunstsamm­ lungen Dresden, nr inw. A 133673 David Tscherning (engraver), Daniel Datschitzky (inventor), View of Breslau, 1668, etching, Kupferstich-­ Kabinett, Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Inv. No. A 133673