Friedrich von Logau is known for a single book, published in 1654, comprising texts of one genre, the epigram. Yet, unlike most German baroque authors, Logau was never completely forgotten: in the eighteenth century Gotthold Ephraim Lessing and Karl Wilhelm Ramler republished the book, and Gottfried Keller based his novella cycle Das Sinngedicht (The Epigram, 1880-1881) on Logau's works. His epigrams have been published in many anthologies and remain popular today.

Logau's family had belonged to the Silesian nobility since the thirteenth century; several of his ancestors and descendants were poets. In the seventeenth century two lines of the family are in evidence: the Olbersdorf line acquired the title of Freiherr (baron) in 1604; Logau belonged to the untitled Altendorf line. He was born on the family estate at Brockut, near Nimptsch in the duchy of Brieg, in January 1605, probably between 17 and 23 January. He was the only child of Georg...