His father Leopold Hofzinser (+1817) was an affluent man who owned a silk shop[3] in Graben.The family had originated in Swabia.

As young man Hofzinser worked in his fathers shop but after completing his studies and obtaining his degree of doctor of philosophy at the university he entered the Austrian civil service.

Ottokar Fischer spread the story that upon his death in 1875, Hofzinser's wife destroyed many of his manuscripts to honor her husband's instructions though there is some dispute about this.

[5] Among his pupils were George Heubeck[6] He is portrayed by Philip McGough, in the 2006 movie The Illusionist, starring Edward Norton, Jessica Biel and Paul Giamatti.

The first recipient of the ring was Ottokar Fischer who had dedicated his life to researching the history of magic and in particular the work of Hofzinser in Das Wunderbuch der Zauberkunst (1929) och J.N.