Ioan Petru Culianu (1950-1991), historian of religions, essayist and fiction writer, served on the faculty of the University of Chicago's Divinity School. Mentored by Mircea Eliade, Culianu specialized in the history of Renaissance magic and mysticism.
Born in Iaşi, Romania, Culianu was educated at the University of Bucharest and in Italy. He eventually earned three doctoral degrees, including a Ph.D. from the University of Paris in 1987. He lived in France and the Netherlands before arriving at the University of Chicago as a visiting lecturer, and then became a professor in the Divinity School.
Culianu wrote proficiently in six languages. Among his works are Eros and Magic in the Renaissance; Expériences de l'extase: extase, ascension et récit visionnaire de l'hellénisme au Moyen Age; The Tree of Gnosis: Gnostic Mythology from Early Christianity to Modern Nihilism; and Out of the World: Otherwordly Journeys from Gilgamesh to Albert Einstein. Culianu also wrote fiction and essays, including political pieces opposing Romania's post-Revolution regime.
On May 21, 1991, Culianu was murdered in a restroom in the University of Chicago's Swift Hall. Neither the motive nor the killer's identity is known, though numerous theories have been advanced, many related to Culianu's criticism of Romanian politics.
From the guide to the Culianu, Ioan P. Papers, 1883-1991, (Special Collections Research Center University of Chicago Library 1100 East 57th Street Chicago, Illinois 60637 U.S.A.)
