---
title: "Isis (journal, 1816)"
chunk: 2/5
source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Isis_(journal,_1816)"
category: "reference"
tags: "science, encyclopedia"
date_saved: "2026-05-05T03:39:39.448196+00:00"
instance: "kb-cron"
---

Even before Isis was published, the classical philologist Abraham Eichstädt from Jena learned of the planned new journal. Eichstädt, who published the Jenaische allgemeine Literatur-Zeitung, had held an exclusive right to publish reviews in Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach since 1803. As he feared for the financial security of his paper, Eichstädt turned to the President of the State Ministry in Weimar, Christian Gottlob Voigt, and obtained a renewal of this privilege on July 17, 1816. Oken saw this as a violation of the freedom of the press guaranteed in the Weimar Constitution of May 15, 1816 and sneered in the second issue of Isis: "Whether we really have freedom of the press, or whether it is to be mocked as a grimace through literary privileges and arbitrary interpretation and extension of the same, will be taught by the progress of Isis." Eichstädt filed a lawsuit against Oken and Isis on August 1, 1816. In a judgment dated August 23, Oken was ordered to refrain from publishing reviews and political articles. In the event of non-compliance, he was threatened with a fine of 50 thalers and a ban on Isis. Oken, who became aware of the verdict eight days later, protested against it to the Weimar government on September 2 and attached the first five issues of Isis to his letter in support of his position. In the course of September 1816, the verdict against Oken and Isis was finally withdrawn. Looking ahead, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe commented on the events in his diary on July 30, 1816, with the remark: "Isis as Hydra."

=== Goethe's recommendation for a ban ===
In order not to exacerbate the disputes with Eichstädt, Oken had filled the first four issues exclusively with scientific topics and suggested to Brockhaus that he initially refrain from including controversial political articles, as political newspapers in the Duchy of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach were still subject to censorship. However, Brockhaus did not agree to this and delayed the delivery of the first four issues. As the dispute with Eichstädt progressed, Oken finally felt compelled to include political topics in Isis. In the sixth issue of Isis, he placed a prize issue in which he questioned the legitimacy of literary privileges. In the ninth issue and the two following issues, Oken criticized the Basic Law on the Landständische Verfassung des Großherzogthums Sachsen-Weimar-Eisenach, which came into force on 5 May 1816. In the third issue of Isis, Oken also printed a letter dated December 5, 1811, from the Rostock professors Samuel Gottlieb Vogel, Wilhelm Josephi, Georg Heinrich Masius (1771–1823) and Karl Ernst Theodor Brandenburg (1772–1827), in which they rejected Oken's appointment to the vacant chair of natural history at the University of Rostock due to his pompous natural philosophy. Oken illustrated the print with a vignette depicting donkey heads.
On September 10, 1816, Christian Gottlob von Voigt drew up an indictment in response to these Isis editions. Oken was accused of insulting the highest royal dignity of the sovereign, insulting official dignity, attacking some German governments and their rulers, as well as insulting foreign official authorities and the Rostock professors. A week later, Grand Duke Karl August sent the indictment to the State Directorate for examination. The expert opinions written by Anton Ziegesar (1783–1843), the head of the administrative and police authority Karl Wilhelm von Fritsch, and the head of the school and church system Ernst Christian August von Gersdorff were collected together with the first eleven issues of Isis in a file entitled Acta Geheimer Staats-Canzley Den Unfug der Preßfrechheit besonders der Isis betr. 1816.
Grand Duke Carl August sent this file to Goethe at the end of September and asked him for his judgment. As can be seen from his diary notes, Goethe needed several days to consider the matter of Isis. In his reply of 5 October, Goethe recommended to the Grand Duke not to prosecute Oken personally, but to take action against the printer of Isis and thus enforce a ban on printing the journal. Carl August did not follow Goethe's advice, but instead discontinued the prosecution.

=== The Wartburgfest and the confiscated number 195 of Isis ===