Christian Gotlob Mengel
Christian Gotlob Mengel | |
|---|---|
| Born | Error: Invalid birth date for calculating age Schweidnitz, Silesia |
| Died | April 3, 1769 (aged 52) Copenhagen, Denmark |
| Occupation(s) | Publisher, translator, bookseller |
| Years active | 1741–1769 |
Christian Gotlob Mengel (born 23 October 1716 – died 3 April 1769) was a publisher, translator, and bookseller originally from Germany.
Early life and education
Mengel entered the world in Schweidnitz, Silesia, as the son of tailor Christian Friedrich M. and his wife, née Reinert. In 1740, he relocated to Copenhagen and began working under publisher Jacob Preuss, who had exclusive publishing rights to Ludvig Holberg's Niels Klim's Underground Travels in Latin, German, French, and Danish editions.
Career
Following Preuss’ bankruptcy and subsequent flight in 1741, Mengel founded his own publishing firm located at the intersection of Købmagergade and Silkegade. He secured Holberg’s rights from the creditors of Preuss and released enlarged versions of Niels Klim in Latin (1745), German, and Danish. Mengel sought to produce a German edition of Holberg’s Danske Skueplads and received authorization to include the then-unpublished Don Ranudo, with stipulations preventing its separate or Danish publication.
However, his initiative for the German edition was overtaken by J. C. Rothe, who published Don Ranudo in both German and Danish in 1745. Rothe claimed legal ownership after purchasing a German translation from A. G. Coldeweg for 10 rigsdaler. In response, Holberg granted exclusive Danish publishing rights to Ernst Heinrich Berling, resulting in Mengel losing a lawsuit and being fined 5 rigsdaler.
Throughout the 1740s and 1750s, Mengel played a key role in introducing international literature to Danish audiences. He obtained rights at book fairs in Leipzig and Frankfurt, exchanging them for his German translations of Danish authors such as Holberg, F. C. Eilschov, Erik Pontoppidan, A. de la Beaumelle, Ove Høegh-Guldberg, as well as Frederik C. and O.D.L. Lütken.
Mengel expanded his operations by opening a branch in Aalborg. In 1749, he married translator Engel Margrethe Thodbjerg, who supported his translation efforts until her death from tuberculosis in 1762. Following her passing, Mengel’s engagement with his business declined, spending his later years focused on cataloging book collections. He passed away in Copenhagen on 3 April 1769, living in modest circumstances.