Edgar Saltus

Who was Edgar Saltus?

Edgar Evertson Saltus was an American writer known for his highly refined prose style. Saltus received a law degree from Columbia University in 1880. His works paralleled those by European decadent authors such as Huysmans and Oscar Wilde. Saltus wrote two books of philosophy, The Philosophy of Disenchantment and The Anatomy of Negation.

Acclaimed by fellow writers in his day, Saltus fell into obscurity after his death. His novel The Paliser Case was adapted to film in 1920, and his novel Daughters of the Rich was filmed in 1923.

A biography by Marie Saltus, Edgar Saltus: The Man was published in 1925. Edgar Saltus, a critical study by Claire Sprague, appeared in 1970.

His elder brother Francis Saltus Saltus was a minor poet. Both brothers are buried in Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in Sleepy Hollow, New York.