Josef Rotter (fl. 1902–14) was a teacher, illustrator, andeditorial cartoonist of German or Austrian origin, most noted for his contribution to theMolla Nasreddin magazine.
Rotter's date and place of birth are not known. The best, yet far from precise, indication regarding his birthdate is a 1902 group photo at one of Rotter's workplaces, showing a man in his thirties to fifties[1] with an obvious resemblance to a caricature portrait of Rotter in theJalil Mammadguluzadeh Encyclopedia.[2]
Rotter has been variously described as German,[3] German-born,[4] ethnic German,[5] and Austrian, withoutGerman necessarily referring to theGerman Empire, and with the termAustrian applied to Rotter in a meticulous, largely ethnographic work byKarl August Fischer [de].[6]
Rotter is said to have studied at theMunich Academy of Fine Arts,[7] but his name does not appear in the institution's 1809–1935 student matriculation books.[8]
In 1902 Rotter accepted an invitation to teach at the newly foundedTbilisi Secondary School of Painting and Sculpture, the immediate precursor of the Georgian Academy of Fine Arts.[9] The invitation was issued byOskar Schmerling, a second generationCaucasian German artist and director of the school, with whom Rotter would remain in close contact for years—the two men not only teaching at the same institution, but also traveling together, and contributing to many of the same magazines.[10]
Over eleven hundred of Rotter’s illustrations were published inMolla Nasreddin. Each issue of this weekly magazine, whose publication experienced multiple interruptions, had a close to eight-page editorial content, including four pages devoted to social or political cartoons. About a third of these fully illustrated pages in 1906–7, half in 1908–9, three-quarters in 1910–13, nine-tenths in 1914, and three-fifths over the entire 1906–14 period, were filled with Rotter’s work.[15] So Rotter’s role is seen as important in quantitative terms. Cartoons were meant to widen the audience ofMolla Nasreddin, include the less educated, and cross linguistic barriers; and indeed, the magazine enjoyed a large circulation, with numerous schools and coffeehouses among its subscribers, and a geographic reach suggesting a far from exclusivelyAzeri readership.[16] So again Rotter’s role is seen as important, but this time from a qualitative point of view and in tandem with Schmerling, the publication’s other prominent illustrator. Finally, considering Rotter's impact in synergy with all ofMolla Nasreddin's collaborators, one should recall the magazine's standing as a main proponent ofprogressive ideas in theMuslim world, a model or reference point for the Armenian, Azeri, Georgian,Iranian, andTatar press, and a significant force in thePersian Constitutional Revolution.[17]
Rotter’s collaboration withTbilisi based periodicals came to a sudden end in the summer of 1914, shortly before the onset ofWorld War I.[19] Less than conclusive indications that Rotter survived the war are the first publications of some of his work in the 1920s and 1930s, in two narratives ofDietrich von Berne’s exploits, a selection ofFriedrich von Schiller's poems, and an album dealing withArmenian legends and folk tales.[20] The date and place of Rotter’s death are not known.
^Thirtieth photo inGAHPC (n.d.), third row, fourth person from the right. See also the undated photo inCaffee et al. (2019), second row, second person from the left. Both pictures were taken at the Arshakuni House, hosting the Caucasian Society for the Promotion of Fine Arts and the Tbilisi Secondary School of Painting and Sculpture (TSAA 2017Archived 2022-03-31 at theWayback Machine,Eliozova 2018), whose connection with Rotter is described in the next section.
^Anar et al. (2008, 242). The portrait was first or beforehand published in the illustrated supplement toTsnobis Furtseli, p. 4 of theApril 6, 1903 issue, where it is signed byOskar Schmerling, and appearing in a group of eight portraits, not individually identified, but collectively described as “visual artists.”
^Based on the digital edition's(ABKM 2015) search engine results. As observed by Jooss (2010, 10) the books "contain only partially accurate information, and in some cases, demonstrable errors." But on the other hand, sources affirming that Rotter studied at the Munich academy (Anar et al. 2008, 272;Guliyev and Rza 1976–87, 10:555) say the same of his colleague Schmerling, in contrast again with not only matriculation data but alsoSchmerling's autobiography andrésumé in Caffee et al. (2019).
^Based on Habbibayli and Karimli (2017-8), and online resources provided by theNational Library of Armenia andParliamentary Library of Georgia, the counts of Rotter’s illustrations first published inHasker,Eshmakis Matrakhi,Kaukasische Post,Khatabala,Nakaduli,Nishaduri,Molla Nasreddin,Shuamavali, and the illustrated supplement toTsnobis Furtseli are 117, 16, 3, 840, 144, 16, 1161, 18, and 22. The count forEshmakis Matrakhi includes Rotter’s contributions to the magazine’s avatarsMatrakhi,Matrakhi da salamuri,Salamuri,Chevni salamuri,Eshmaki, andEshmakis salamuri. Similarly, the count forNakaduli conflates the illustrations published in either its children’s or teenager’s editions.
^Habbibayli and Karimli (2017-8). Based on this reedition, the number ofMolla Nasraddin issues published in each year from 1906 to 1914 is 37, 49, 52, 52, 42, 47, 9, 27, and 25. Each issue comprised just eight pages, with commercial content in negligible amount, except in the late 1908 to late 1909 interval, during which four additional pages were reserved for advertizing.
GAHPC (Georgian Association for the History of Photography in the Caucasus). n.d. “Gigo Gabashvili Collection.”The Georgian Museum of Photography. Accessed July 25, 2025.
