# The very first Fantasy and Horror Magazine. NOT "Weird Tales" **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** magazines-newspapers\ **Created:** [October 28, 2026, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-very-first-fantasy-and-horror-magazine-not-weird-tales/1034221 "2026-10-28T18:07:53Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 10\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2026, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-very-first-fantasy-and-horror-magazine-not-weird-tales/1034221/1 "2026-10-28T18:07:53Z")
> With only 51 issues in existence, _ **Der Orchideengarten** _, was an Austrian magazine printed between the years of 1919 and 1921, predating the American fantasy-horror magazine _Weird Tales_, which is still in circulation after nearly a century. Despite being so short-lived, the German-language magazine was prolific for many reasons. Featuring authors that defined the early 20th century, such as Edgar Allen Poe, H.G. Wells, Voltaire and Dickens, being one of them. The publication was also a blend of fantasy and flair, early science-fiction and otherworldly imagination; full of ghoulish yet ground-breaking graphics that cemented _Der Orchideengarten_ (“The Garden of Orchids”) in the zeitgeist of obscure taste. > **[The Wicked Art of the First Fantasy & Horror Magazine](https://www.messynessychic.com/2020/10/23/the-wicked-art-of-the-first-fantasy-horror-magazine/?utm_source=news.messynessy.com&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=grateful-to-still-be-here&_bhlid=746446544507ceeec8d469f090f33f57445dfc50)** > > The Wicked Art of the First Fantasy & Horror Magazine - Inspiration Vault - Messy Nessy's ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2026, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-very-first-fantasy-and-horror-magazine-not-weird-tales/1034221/2 "2026-10-28T19:22:28Z")
Very interesting, thanks for the link! Although I’m German and interested in classic fantasy/sci-fi literature, I had never heard about that magazine. The artwork is great, seemingly inspired by Jugendstil/Art Nouveau of the time. The Germanosphere had some sci-fi pioneers, like Kurd Laßwitz or Hans Dominik, but I’m not knowledgeable about German writing fantasy authors of the time. There’s a non-functioning link to a PDF of the complete edition on the site, so that file must exist somewhere. I’m thinking about going on a search for it… ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2026, 7:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-very-first-fantasy-and-horror-magazine-not-weird-tales/1034221/3 "2026-10-28T19:44:20Z")
Heidelberg University has it online: > **[Making sure you're not a bot!](https://digi.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/diglit/orchideengarten)** click on the 1919, 1920, 1921 at the bottom ---
**Author:** ![Dorjan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dorjan/32/12440_2.png) [@Dorjan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dorjan)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2026, 7:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-very-first-fantasy-and-horror-magazine-not-weird-tales/1034221/4 "2026-10-28T19:48:05Z")
Online sources: 1919 — Volume 1: [File:Der Orchideengarten 1919.pdf - Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Der_Orchideengarten_1919.pdf) 1920 — Volume 2: [File:Der Orchideengarten 1920A.pdf - Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Der_Orchideengarten_1920A.pdf) and [File:Der Orchideengarten 1920B.pdf - Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Der_Orchideengarten_1920B.pdf) 1921 — Volume 3: [File:Der Orchideengarten 1921.pdf - Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Der_Orchideengarten_1921.pdf) Also the Heidelberg University Library: [Making sure you're not a bot!](https://digi.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/diglit/orchideengarten) ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2026, 7:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-very-first-fantasy-and-horror-magazine-not-weird-tales/1034221/5 "2026-10-28T19:51:00Z")
Thanks for the links! That could take some of my time… ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2026, 9:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-very-first-fantasy-and-horror-magazine-not-weird-tales/1034221/6 "2026-10-28T21:38:07Z")
> [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](#): > > > [@](#): > > > > Featuring authors that defined the early 20th century, such as Edgar Allen Poe, H.G. Wells, Voltaire and Dickens, Poe, Wells, and Dickens were English-speaking. Were they published in English, or were they translated? ---
**Author:** ![EinsteinsHund](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/einsteinshund/32/8400_2.png) [@EinsteinsHund](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EinsteinsHund)\ **Post date:** [October 28, 2026, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-very-first-fantasy-and-horror-magazine-not-weird-tales/1034221/7 "2026-10-28T21:46:07Z")
I guess so. There weren’t many people in Austria knowing English a hundred years ago, so English stories in an otherwise German language publication would have been lost for most readers. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [October 29, 2026, 12:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-very-first-fantasy-and-horror-magazine-not-weird-tales/1034221/8 "2026-10-29T00:44:02Z")
> [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](#): > > Featuring authors that defined the early 20th century, such as Edgar Allen Poe, H.G. Wells, Voltaire and Dickens, being one of them. Not only is this strange wording, but who thinks of Poe, Voltaire and Dickens as defining the early 20th century? The [SF Encyclopedia](https://sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/orchideengarten_der) has a good brief article that is a better historical explanation. ---
**Author:** ![GIGObuster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/gigobuster/32/421_2.png) [@GIGObuster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GIGObuster)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2026, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-very-first-fantasy-and-horror-magazine-not-weird-tales/1034221/9 "2026-10-31T00:18:42Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > > [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](#): > > > > Featuring authors that defined the early 20th century, such as Edgar Allen Poe, H.G. Wells, Voltaire and Dickens, being one of them. > > Not only is this strange wording, but who thinks of Poe, Voltaire and Dickens as defining the early 20th century? Also: [Voltaire](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voltaire)?! That is off by a few centuries. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [October 31, 2026, 3:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-very-first-fantasy-and-horror-magazine-not-weird-tales/1034221/10 "2026-10-31T03:16:08Z")
I was quoting the article.