Biographies
Johann Kaspar Lavater (1741-1801)
Born in Zurich, 1741, Lavater was a Swiss Protestant pastor and poet who popularised physiognomy, the reading of character from facial features. Reacting against Enlightement rationalism, he postulated that each person had an individual character or genius , which was related metaphysically to his or her facial features.
The four volumes of his Physiognomische Fragmente won him instant fame and a wide influence. English translations were still being published well into the 19 th century.