Raphael von Koeber (Russian: Рафаэль Густавович фон Кёбер, romanized: Rafaèl' Gustavovič fon Këber; 15 January [O.S.

Koeber came to teach in Japan in June 1893, based on the recommendations of his friend Karl Robert Eduard von Hartmann, who overcame his worries about the long sea voyage, earthquakes and having enough English language ability to lecture.

When the Russo-Japanese War broke out in 1904, Koeber refused to return to his country and the Japanese government did not make a political issue about his desire to remain in Japan.

Unable to travel and with no place to stay, he lived out of a room at the Russian Consulate in Yokohama for nine years until his death in 1923.

His collection of books, numbering 1,999 volumes and mainly consisting of Greek and Latin classics, and works on philosophy and literature is now at the Tohoku University Library.