Robert Saudek
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Robert Saudek (21 April 1880 – 15 April 1935) was a Czech-born
graphologist Graphology is the analysis of handwriting in an attempt to determine the writer's personality traits. Its methods and conclusions are not supported by scientific evidence, and as such it is considered to be a pseudoscience. Graphology has been ...
, diplomat, and writer of novels, stories, poems and plays. He had considerable influence on the content and standing of graphology worldwide. He also published numerous articles in many languages in periodicals as diverse as '' The Listener'', ''Zeitschrift für Menschenkenntnis'' and the ''
Journal of Social Psychology ''The Journal of Social Psychology'' is a bimonthly academic journal covering social psychology published by Routledge, who acquired it from Heldref Publications in 2009. History The journal was established in 1929 by John Dewey and Carl Murchi ...
.'' He also founded the professional graphology society in the
Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...
. He also started two academic periodicals: one in Dutch and the other in English. Many graphologists worldwide today use Saudek’s work without knowing the origin. He published ''Experimental Graphology'' in 1929. Saudek examined the speed in handwriting. He quantified handwriting by use of a microscope, caliper, pressure board, ruler, protractor and slow-motion pictures. Saudek also attempted to deal with graphological phenomena in terms acceptable to the experimental psychologists.


Life

Robert Saudek was born in
Kolín Kolín (; ) is a town in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 33,000 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monument (Czech Republic)#Monument reservations, urban monume ...
,
Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe#Before World War I, Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military ...
(now
Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...
) on 21 April 1880 (some sources say 1881). He was the son of a manufacturer of feather beds; Robert had a brother and two sisters. He was a polyglot: by the end of his life he had mastered Czech, German, Dutch, French and English. He studied a correspondence course produced by the well known German graphologist Hans Busse (who incidentally translated Crepieux-Jamin’s work into German) and was very familiar with the work of Ludwig Klages. Around 1900 he studied at the Universities of Prague, Leipzig and the Sorbonne. From 1903 to 1909 he authored plays, essays, epigrams and novels. It is reported that he ran an intelligence bureau in
The Hague The Hague ( ) is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, The Hague is the c ...
during World War I, from 1914 to 1918. In 1918 Saudek entered the diplomatic service for the Czechoslovakian Government, in the Netherlands and in England. The family settled in The Hague that year. They moved away from the Hague in 1922, living in
Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...
until 1924. In 1924 Saudek moved to London, where he was correspondent to the ''
Prager Presse The ''Prager Presse'' (Prague press) was a German newspaper published in the First Czechoslovak Republic, Czechoslovak Republic from March 1921 to 1939. History The newspaper Prager Presse was founded by Tomáš Garrigue Masaryk with the aim of ...
'' newspaper and established a profitable graphological practice.


Works

In 1918 he authored a novel with a graphological plot, Diplomats, which was published in German, Czech, Dutch, French and Italian (1921). In the 1920s he began the Bulletin of the Dutch Association for Scientific Graphology (Nederlands Tijdschrift Voor Graphologie. Orgaan Van De Vereeniging Voor Wetenschappelijke Grafologie). In 1963 this became ''Acta Graphologica''. In 1925 Unwin published ''Psychology of Handwriting''; it also appeared in Dutch, German, Danish, and Swedish. Saudek supplemented his income by drawing rents from two large properties in Berlin. He also gave lectures, notably one to the British Psychological Society, Medical section on 21 October 1926, which became an article (see Saudek 1927). He also made radio broadcasts with the
BBC The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) is a British public service broadcaster headquartered at Broadcasting House in London, England. Originally established in 1922 as the British Broadcasting Company, it evolved into its current sta ...
; one such broadcast took place on 7 September 1927. His next book was ''Experimental Graphology'', which appeared in German, Czech and Dutch in 1926. Saudek lectured on experimental graphology at Berlin, Amsterdam, Brussels and Prague from 1926 to 1928. The book ''Experiments in Handwriting'' was published in London in 1928. Possibly related to the book and his lecture tour initiatives, Saudek was awarded a PhD in Brussels, Belgium in the same year. This now meant that he was able to use the title Dr Saudek. Another book followed in 1932, ''What Your Handwriting Shows''—a shorter, more popular-style book than the others. Then in 1933 ''Anonymous Letters'' was published; this concentrated on the criminological aspects of handwriting analysis work.


Death

''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British Newspaper#Daily, daily Newspaper#National, national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its modern name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its si ...
'' of 16 April 1935 carried his obituary: "Robert Saudek at the age of 55 years died on 15 April 1935. Born in Bohemia and having lived for some years in London, where he had numerous friends in scientific and journalistic circles." This obituary, though, was slightly inaccurate as Saudek died six days before his 55th birthday. His death certificate shows that he died at 20 Devonshire Place in London, which was probably a private hospital in 1935. The cause of death was shown as: (a) Septicaemia; (b) Haemorhage (c) Chronic duodenal Ulcer. His papers are in the
Senate House Library Senate House is the administrative centre of the University of London, situated in the heart of Bloomsbury, London, immediately to the north of the British Museum. The Art Deco building was constructed between 1932 and 1937 as the first phase ...
,
University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a collegiate university, federal Public university, public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The ...
.


Publications


Fiction

*''A Child's conscience and Jewish Youths''. 1903. *''Drei Bühnendichtungen der Kinderseele''. Berlin, Deutsche Bühne, 1903. *''Drama detske duse''. Divadelni knihovna Maje, sv. 9, 1903. Played in National Theatre, Prague opening, 21.9. 1903, director
Jaroslav Kvapil Jaroslav Kvapil (25 September 1868 – 10 January 1950) was a Czech poet, theatre director, translator, playwright and librettist. Early life, education and family Jaroslav Josef Kvapil was born on 25 September 1868 in Chudenice, into the fami ...
(one of the most outstanding Czech directors of the time) *''Eine Gymnasten-Tragödie''. Concordia Deutsche Verlag, H. Ehbock – Berlin 1904. *''Revoluce na gymnaziu'', tragedy in 4 acts Divadelni knihovna maje, No date: probably 1904. *''Und über uns leuchtende Sterne''. 1907. *With Weininger, Otto. ''Gedanken über Geschlechtsprobleme''. Berlin, Concordia 907 *''Der Mikado: Ein Seeroman''. Concordia. Anstalt H. Ehbock Berlin 1909. *''Die Spielerin''. Verlag Von C. Reissuer, Dresden, 1910. *''Der entfesselte Riese'' (novel). Schuster-Loeffler - Berlin, Leipzig. 1910. *With Alfred Halm. ''Das Märchen vom Heiligenwald. Lustspiel in drei Akten''. Dresden, Reißner, 1912. *''Eine Heilige und zwei Sünder''. Dresden, Reißner 1912. *''Diplomaten: Drei Masken''. Munich 1918/1921. *''Damon'' (novel). Concordia Deutsche Verlag. Anstalt Hermann Ehbock. Berlin. *''Dramen der Kinderseele'' (in 1 act) *With Lothar, Rudolph. ''Kavaliere'' (3-act comedy). Concordia. Berlin, 1909. *''De Distel - Pietje de Landlooper'' (3-act play). 2nd ed. Antwerp, 1924. *''Osud (Pátá Symfonie)'' (3-act play). E. J. Rosendorf, Prague, probably after 1926.


Non-fiction

1925 *''Vědecká grafologie písma'', Prague: Orbis (Scientific Graphology – ''Psychology of Handwriting'' in Czech) *''Wetenchappelijke Graphologie. De psychologie van het Schrift''. The Hague: Leopold. *''The Psychology of Handwriting.'' London: George Allen & Unwin; New York: George H. Doran Co., 1954; Books for Professionals, 1978. 1926 *''Wissenschaftliche Graphologie''. Munich: Drei Maskan Verlag. *"Ein Vorschlag zur Schaffung einer internationalen graphologischen Terminologie". In: Schneickert, Hans: ''Zweiter Kongress des Deutschen Bundes der gerichtlichen Schriftsachverstandigen und Berufsgraphologen (Sitz Berlin) am 3., 4. und 5. September 1926 in Berlin. Offizieller Bericht''. Berlin: A. W. Hayn's Erben, 33–38. 1927 *"Eine Stunde Graphologie". ''Schünemann—Monat'', March, 266–75. *"The Methods of Graphology". ''British Journal of Medical Psychology'', July, 7(2), 221–59. *Reading, writing and guessing. Psyche, 30, (8),2. 34-42 *"Wissenschaftliche Graphologie". In: Funk—Stunde (Ed.): ''Das Wissen im Rundfunk. Eine Auswahl von Rundfunkvorträgen''. Berlin, 228–35. *Preface. Crépieux-Jamin. ''Die Grundlagen der Graphologie und der Schrift-expertise''. Heidelberg. *"La vitesse et la tension". ''Bulletins de Graphologie''. Societe d’Etudes du Caractère Humain. Lyon 1/1927. 1928 *''How to detect Forged Signatures''. London: General Press. *''Experimenteele graphologie''. The Hague: Leopold. *"Experimentelle Graphologie". ''
Berliner Illustrirte Zeitung The ''Berliner Illustrirte Zeitung'', often abbreviated ''BIZ'', was a German weekly illustrated magazine published in Berlin from 1892 to 1945. It was the first mass-market German magazine and pioneered the format of the illustrated news magazine ...
'' No 19. *"Kinderhandschriften". ''Berliner Illustrirte Zeitung'' No 19. *"Ehrlichkeit und Unehrlichkeit in der Handschrift. Eine graphologische Studie". ''Velhagen und Klasings Monatshefte'', 42(7), 49–56. *"Lesen, Schreiben und Erraten". ''Schriftpsychologie'' 49 p. 36. *"Experimentelle graphologie". ''Archiv für Kriminologie'', (Sep), 83(2), 103–95. *''Experiments with Handwriting''. New York: Doubleday/William Morrow, 1929; London: George Allen & Unwin, 1928; Books for Professionals, 1978. *''Experimentální grafologie'' (Experimental Graphology), Prague: Aventinum, Prague *"Zentralnervensystem und Schreiben". ''Ztsch. Cas. lek ceste'' 2, pp. 1224–35; 1262–68. 1929 *"Verbundene und unverbundene Schrift". ''Schrift und Schreiben'', 1(5), 131–35. *''Experimentelle Graphologie''. Berlin: Pan. *''Experimentelle Graphologie''. The Hague: HPL Uitgevers. *"Das zentrale Nervensystem und der Schreibakt" (Central nervous system and character of handwriting). ''Jahrbuch der Charakterologie'', 6, 275–303. *"Die Pathologischen Merkmale in der Handschrift". ''Soziale Medizin'' 2(12) 587–98 *"Anonime Briefschreiber". ''Berliner Illustrirte Zeitung'' No 30. 28 July 1929. *"Les indices de Malhonnêteté dans l‘écriture". ''Graphologie Scientifique'' 29: 185–91. *"Experimental graphology". ''Sci. Pro''. 23, pp. 468–86. *Zur experimentellen Graphologie". ''Psychologie und Medizin'', Stuttgart, a.4, pp. 229–43; 1931, a.6, pp. 229–44. 1930 *"On Crepieux-Jamin". Tribute. ''Papers of the 2nd International Congress on Graphology, Paris 9–11 June 1928'' pp. 23–24. English translation by Nigel Bradley in ''The Graphologist'' 21(1) No 78 Spring 2003 p. 22. *"Les indices de Malhonnêteté dans l‘écriture". ''Graphologie Scientifique'' 33: 233–37. *"Ce que le cinéma nous enseigne sur les mouvements d‘écriture". Société de Graphologie. ''Papers of the 2nd International Congress on Graphology, Paris 9–11 June 1928'' pp. 223–72. *"Betonung und Unterbetonung von Wortanfängen und Wortenden als charakterologische und psychopathologische Merkmale der Schrift". ''Zeitschrift für angewandte Psychologie'', 37, 99–134. *"Graphological Analysis of Freud's Handwriting". Report dated 29 April. (Sigmund Freud Archive Container B45, Library of Congress, Washington DC.) *"Entgegnung". (Response to: Dr. A. Ackermann: "Neuere graphologische Literatur". ''Zeitschrift für Menschenkunde'', 5(5) 314–20.) ''Zentralblatt für Graphologie'', 1(1) 70-73. ''Zeitschrift für Menschenkunde'', 6. *"Die Handschrift erfolgreicher Menschen". (Includes handwriting of among others:
Albert Ballin Albert Ballin (15 August 1857 – 9 November 1918) was a German shipping magnate. He was the general director of the Hamburg-Amerikanische Packetfahrt-Actien-Gesellschaft (HAPAG) or Hamburg-America Line, which for a time was the world's largest ...
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Walther Rathenau Walther Rathenau (; 29 September 1867 – 24 June 1922) was a German industrialist, writer and politician who served as foreign minister of Germany from February 1922 until his assassination in June 1922. Rathenau was one of Germany's leading ...
,
Karl Marx Karl Marx (; 5 May 1818 – 14 March 1883) was a German philosopher, political theorist, economist, journalist, and revolutionary socialist. He is best-known for the 1848 pamphlet '' The Communist Manifesto'' (written with Friedrich Engels) ...
,
Immanuel Kant Immanuel Kant (born Emanuel Kant; 22 April 1724 – 12 February 1804) was a German Philosophy, philosopher and one of the central Age of Enlightenment, Enlightenment thinkers. Born in Königsberg, Kant's comprehensive and systematic works ...
,
Maximilian Harden __NOTOC__ Maximilian Harden (born Felix Ernst Witkowski, 20 October 1861 – 30 October 1927) was an influential German journalist and editor. Biography Born the son of a Jewish merchant in Berlin, he attended the '' Französisches Gymnasium'' ...
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Otto von Bismarck Otto, Prince of Bismarck, Count of Bismarck-Schönhausen, Duke of Lauenburg (; born ''Otto Eduard Leopold von Bismarck''; 1 April 1815 – 30 July 1898) was a German statesman and diplomat who oversaw the unification of Germany and served as ...
). ''Westermanns Monatshefte'', September p. 889. *"Einige Bemerkungen zur Frage: Ist die Graphologie zuverlässig?" ''Zeitschrift für gerichtliche Schriftuntersuchungen'', 21. *Preface to: Cyrus Harry Brooks. ''Your Character from your Handwriting: The New Graphology''. London: Allen und Unwin. *Preface to: Cyrus Harry Brooks. ''Praktisches Lehrbuch der Graphologie. Nach der Methode Robert Saudek''. Leipzig. *"Damen-Handschriften". ''Die Dame''. 57(10) pp. 12, 14, 40. 1931 *"Schreibgelaufigkeit von österreichischen Kindern und Erwachsenen". ''Zentralblatt für Graphologie'', 1(6) 477. ''Zeitschrift für Menschenkunde'', 6. *"Writing movements as indications of the writer's social behaviour". ''Journal of Social Psychology'', 2(3) 337–73. *"Zur psychodiagnostischen Ausdeutung des Schreibdrucks" (Psychodiagnostic value of pen pressure). ''Zeitschrift für angewandte Psychologie'', July, 39(6), 443–49. *"Zur experimentellen Graphologie" (Experimental graphology). ''Psychologie und Medizin'', 4(7) (May) 229–43. *"Zur Psychologie der amerikanischen Handschrift". (Psychology of American handwriting). ''Zentralblatt für Graphologie'', 1(5), 361–96. ''Zeitschrift für Menschenkenntnis'' 6 pp. 239–74. *"Moderne graphologische Untersuchungsmethoden". ''Berliner Illustrirte Zeitung'' 44. 1932 *with Seeman, Ernest. "Handschriften und Zeichnungen eineiiger Zwillinge". ''Charakter'', 1(4), 193–230. *"Gandhi. Eine graphologische Charakterstudie". ''
Vossische Zeitung The (''Voss's Newspaper'') was a nationally known Berlin newspaper that represented the interests of the liberal middle class. It was also generally regarded as Germany's national newspaper of record. In the Berlin press it held a special role d ...
'' 1/2. *"Pubertätsjahre im englischen Internat". ''Charakter'', 1, 12–26. *"Zur Psychologie des Bewerbungsschreiben". ''Charakter'', 1, 137–47. *"The years of puberty in a public school". ''Character and Personality'', 1(1), 17–34. *''What your Handwriting Shows''. London: T. Werner Laurie. *With Seeman, Ernest. "The Self-expression of Identical Twins in Handwriting and Drawing". ''Character and Personality'' 1(2) (December) 91–128. 1933 *"Identische, getrennt erzogene Zwillinge. Eine vergleichende Studie verschiedener Methoden zur Ermittelung ihrer intellektuellen und gefühlsmäßigen Reaktionen". ''Charakter, 2, 132–46. *''Zločin v piśme – Grafologie v soudní síni'' (Crime in Handwriting – Graphology in Court). Prague: Orbis. *''Anonymous Letters. A Study in Crime and Handwriting''. London: Methuen; New York: AMS Press, 1976. *With Seeman, Ernest. ''Handschriften und Zeichnungen eineiiger Zwillinge''. Schriftenreihe zur graphologischen Zwillingsforschung 1. Berlin: Pan. *With Seeman, Ernest. "Die Handschrift eineiiger, getrennt erzogener Zwillinge". ''Charakter'', 2. 66–81. *With Seeman, Ernest. "The Handwriting of Identical twins reared apart". ''Character and Personality'', 1(4) (June) 268–85. *"Identical twins reared apart: a comparative study of various tests of their intellectual, emotional and social attitudes". ''Character and Personality'', 2(1), 22–40. *"Können verschiedene Schreiber gleiche Schriften schreiben?" ''Charakter'', 2, 191–203; ''Vierteljahresschrift für angewandte Kriminalistik'' 7(1) 1935, 35—50. *''Handschrift en misdaad, de graphologie in de rechtszaal''. The Hague: Leopold, 1933. *''Hvad Deres Haandskrift røber''. Copenhagen/Oslo: Jespersen og Pios Forlag. 1934 *"Ein britisches Paar erbgleicher, getrennt erzogener Zwillinge". ''Charakter'', 3(3/4), 118–46. *"A British pair of identical twins reared apart". ''Character and Personality'', 3(1), 17–39. *"Can different writers produce identical handwritings?" ''Character and Personality'' 2(3), 231–45. *"Bestimmung persoenlicher Interessen durch Testpsychologie und graphologische Methoden". ''Charakter'', 1, 19–26. 1935 *"Can different writers write with identical handwriting". ''Vierteljahreszeitschrift für angewandte Kriminalistik'', 35–50. *"Die Handschrift von gleicherbigen Zwillingen". ''CIBA-Zeitschrift'', 2, 789–


Reference


External links

*
Saudek's papers held by Senate House Library, University of London
*Bradley, Nigel

''The Graphologist'', Spring 2005, 23(1) Issue 86, 2–12. {{DEFAULTSORT:Saudek, Robert 1880 births Graphologists Czechoslovak diplomats Czech writers Czech Jews Expatriates from Austria-Hungary United States National Medal of Arts recipients Deaths from sepsis Infectious disease deaths in England 1935 deaths