Arthur Machen was a Welsh author of the 1890s and early 20th century. Born in the family of a provincial priest. In 1874, he entered a local school, but due to lack of funds, his parents were forced to take him from there. Since 1881 he began to engage in literary activity. His first publication was the translation of Heptameron by Margarita of Navarre. The original works of Machen were influenced by the English Neo-Romanticism. His first major success was the publication of the novel The Great God Pan. It was published in 1894 by John Lane in the noted Keynotes Series, which was part of the growing aesthetic movement of the time. This work, which aroused violent outrage of the conservative public, was instantly sold out, as did the second edition. Following this book, Machen published his second novel, The Three Impostors, in 1895, consisting of short stories whose stories are intertwined in a whimsical way. Machen’s literary significance is substantial; his stories have been translated into many languages and reprinted in short story anthologies countless times.