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Op 29 September 1913 het Johan Hendrik Ram homself om die lewe gebring met 'n koeël deur sy kop. Couperus het later daardie jaar teruggekeer na Florence en die [[Futurisme]] vergadering van 12 Desember bygewoon, waarby ook deur Giovanni Papini en Filippo Tommaso Marinetti bygewoon is, na wie aartappels gegooi is. Couperus het hulle vir hul waagmoed bewonder, ondanks die feit dat die publiek soveel geraas het dat hulle amper nie gehoor kon word nie. <ref name="BastetBiography"/>{{rp|p.457}} Hy het ook die [[Mona Lisa]], wat gevind is nadat dit gesteel is, by die [[Uffizi]] gaan besigtig. <ref name="BastetBiography"/>{{rp|p.458}} In hierdie jare het hy begin om Giovanni Papini se ''Un uomo finito'' te lees; hy het die nuwe literêre beweging waartoe Papini behoort het met dié van die [[Tachtigers|19de eeuse Nederlandse letterkunde ]] in Nederland vergelyk. Hy het 'n artikel oor Papini se boek, wat hy briljant, 'n byna perfekte boek, genoem het, geskryf, en Papini met Lodewijk van Deyssel vergelyk. Papini en Couperus het mekaar in Florence ontmoet en Couperus het gevind dat Papini taamlik skaam was. <ref name="BastetBiography" />{{rp|p.460}} Intussen het Elisabeth Couperus-Baud Pio Baroja se ''La ciudad da la niebla'' vertaal. Gedurende hierdie tyd is Couperus se '''Wreede portretten'' in ''Het Vaderland'' gepubliseer. De ''Wrede portretten'' was 'n reeks profiele van pension gaste wat Couperus tydens sy reise in Rome en elders ontmoet het. Hy het ook 'n ontmoeting met die Nederlandse aktrise Theo Mann-Bouwmeester gehad, wat voorgestel het dat ''Langs lijnen van geleidelijkheid'' na 'n toneelstuk verwerk word; hoewel hierdie plan nie vir Couperus verwerklik is nie, het dit nuwe moontlikhede vir sy boeke geopen. <ref name="BastetBiography" />{{rp|p.467}}
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==Public performances==
When World War I began, Couperus was in Munich. On 27 August 1914 the son of [[Rupprecht, Crown Prince of Bavaria]], Luitpold, died of [[Poliomyelitis|polio]] and Couperus went to see his body in the [[Theatine Church, Munich|Theatrine Church]]. During this time he admired the German: ''I admire them because they are tragic and fight a tragic struggle, like a tragic hero fights.''<ref name="BastetBiography" />{{rp|p.471}} In September he returned to Florence and in February 1915 to the Netherlands, where he visited the premiere of Frederik van Eeden's ''De heks van Haarlem'' (The witch of Haarlem) and met Van Eeden. He made a translation of [[Edmond Rostand]]s ''[[Chantecler (play)|Cantecler]]'', although the play was never performed on stage. During this time Couperus started making performances as an [[elocution]]ist. His first performance at the art room Kleykamp for an audience of students from [[Delft]] was a huge success. The decor consisted of a [[Gautama Buddha|Buddha]] and a painting made by [[Antonio da Correggio]] that [[Abraham Bredius]] had lent for this occasion. Couperus read ''De zonen der zon'' (Sons of the sun) aloud.<ref name="BastetBiography" />{{rp|p.482}} While Couperus made his performances, L.J. Veen published the first parts of ''Van en over alles en iedereen'' (By and about everything and everyone) and publisher Holkema & Warendorf ''De ongelukkige'' (The unfortunate) (1915). Couperus himself wrote that year ''De dood van den Dappere'' (The death of the brave one), which dealt with the end of [[Muhammed XIII, Sultan of Granada|El Zagal]] and started to write ''De Comedianten'' (The comedians), inspired by the [[Menaechmi]]; this book was published with Nijgh & Van Ditmar in 1917.<ref name="BastetBiography" />{{rp|p.513}} Couperus read [[Ludwig Friedländer]]s ''Darstellungen aus der Sittengeschichte Roms in der Zeit von August bis zum Ausgang der Antonine'' to increase his knowledge of Ancient Rome which he needed for ''De Comedianten''.
In these years Couperus met S.F. van Oss, who was the founder of [[HP/De Tijd|''De Haagsche Post'']], who asked if Couperus would be willing to write for his magazine. Couperus later published his travelogues (made during his travels to Africa, Dutch East Indies and Japan) as a result in De Haagsche Post, as well as many [[epigram]]s.<ref name="BastetBiography" />{{rp|p.523}} For his friend Herman Roelvink he translated the play written by [[George Bernard Shaw]], ''[[Caesar and Cleopatra (play)|Caesar and Cleopatra]]'' (1916). As from December 1916 he restarted writing his weekly sketch in ''Het Vaderland'', for example ''Romeinsche portretten'' (Roman portraits), during which he was inspired by [[Martial]] and [[Juvenal]]. He also continued giving performances for the public in the evening. In 1917 he wrote the novel ''Het zwevende schaakbord'' (The floating chessboard), about the adventures of [[Gawain]]; this novel was first published as a serial in the Haagsche Post. He read as research for this book [[Jacob van Maerlant]]'s ''Merlijns boec'' and Lodewijk van Velthem's ''Boec van Coninc Artur'' ("Book of King Arthur").<ref name="BastetBiography" />{{rp|p.545}} In July 1918 publisher L.J. Veen sent Couperus a translation of [[Vitruvius]]' ''[[De architectura]]'' and Couperus wrote about it in ''Het Vaderland''. Meanwhile, het Hofstadtoneel (Residence Theater) was about to perform the stage version (made by Elisabeth Couperus-Baud) of ''Eline Vere''; this play received bad product reviews. During this period of his life Couperus read the works written by [[Quintus Curtius Rufus]], [[Arrian]] and [[Plutarch]] to find inspiration for his next work ''Iskander''.<ref name="BastetBiography" />{{rp|p.568}} The year 1919 was not a happy one for Couperus: his favourite nephew Frans Vlielander Hein died together with his wife when his ship was hit by a [[Naval mine|mine]] and L.J. Veen, his publisher and his brother-in-law Benjamin Marinus Vlielander Hein died that year as well.
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==Laaste jare==
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