Grosse Strasse
Grosse Strasse or Large Street, is still preserved at Nuremburg in Northern Bavaria, alongside Hitler's huge unfinished Congress Hall in Dutzendteich Park. This was the huge parade ground for the Nazi Rallies at the 1930's, a grim reminder of that hideous era when the party was gaining strength.
Zeppelin Stadium is one of the remaining stands.
Rags to riches
One of the greatest attractions in Nuremburg is
the Schöner Brunnen (Beautiful Fountain) which is to be found in the Market
Place. Reminiscent of a Gothic spire,
this richly decorated fountain was erected in the late 14th century
and it was surrounded by a grille in 1587.
A brass ring attached to the grille is the result of a ‘rags to riches’ story about a poor youth who worked for a rich jeweller in the town. He fell in love with his employer’s daughter but the father refused her hand because of the youth’s lowly status. The youth went off to seek his fortune and when he returned, a rich man, he found that his love had married another. The very next day a one-piece brass ring appeared on the fountain grille and our hero was gone.
A brass ring attached to the grille is the result of a ‘rags to riches’ story about a poor youth who worked for a rich jeweller in the town. He fell in love with his employer’s daughter but the father refused her hand because of the youth’s lowly status. The youth went off to seek his fortune and when he returned, a rich man, he found that his love had married another. The very next day a one-piece brass ring appeared on the fountain grille and our hero was gone.
It
is said that touching the ring brings good luck!
The Pfarrhof
A
very nice stone building in Nuremburg has a very fine oriole
projecting from the front of the building.
The Pfarrhof was originally a wooden building where clergy lived.
According
to tradition, the infant Crown Prince Wenzel was about to be baptised there
when he ‘sullied’ the water. Whilst
fresh water was being warmed, the Pfarrhof was accidentally burned down. The Prince’s father. Emperor Karl 1V financed
the construction of the new stone building.
Wernerkapelle
The ruined Wernerkapelle at Barcharach in the
Middle Rhine area of Germany
has a dark secret. Werner was a local
boy whose body was found nearby and investigations concluded that he has been
brutally murdered. Local Jews were
suspected of the crime and of using the boys blood for their rituals and Werner
was regarded as a saint by the local people. Donations by pilgrims to the site
contributed towards the construction of the Gothic chapel which commenced in
1294. It was destroyed by war in 1689
since which time the ruins have been protected as an ancient monument.
The Mighty
Draught
The
incredible drinking feat ‘Meistertrunk’ or mighty draught, took place in
Rothenburg ob der Tauber in Germany
during the Thirty Years War. The story
goes that on 30th
October 1631 , the commander of the Imperial Forces, General Tilly,
took the town and because of stiff resistance from the citizens, he ordered the
town to be plundered and destroyed and its councillors executed. The keeper of the town wine cellar offered
Tilly a three-and-a quarter-litre tankard of heavy Franconian wine, “as a toast
to his arrival”. The general said that
he was willing to grant the town a pardon if one of the councillors could drink
the wine in one go. A former Mayor,
Councillor Nusch managed the feat and saved the town. Apparently he needed three days to sleep off
the effects of his heroic action.
This legend is re-enacted several times daily when the figures of Nusch and Tilly appear in the baroque gable end of the City Councillors’ Tavern situated in the Market Place and the actual tankard can be seen in the city museum.
Photographs courtesy of Rothenburg Tourist Office
The Holy
Robe
In 1959 a relic of St Peters Cathedral in Trier , Germany ,
was placed in a sealed shrine in a special chapel in the Cathedral. Legend has it that the relic is The Holy Robe
of Christ said to have been worn by him during the Crucifixion.
It is supposed that the relic was discovered in Jerusalem in 326 by The
Empress St Helena, mother of Emperor Constantine and placed in her son’s new
church in Trier .
The
Nibelungs treasure
A statue of Hagen throwing the
Nibelungs’ treasure into the River Rhine can be seen on the river bank at Worms in Germany .
The Elwedritsch
- Elwedritschen in the Market Square at Neustadt an der Weinstrasse
The creature has increasingly been portrayed by artists as female by adding breasts The Elwetritsch is supposedly very shy, but also very curious and gullable people are sometimes encouraged to indugle in a hunting process. A hunting party consists of a "Fänger" (catcher), equipped with a big potato sack and a lantern, and the "Treiber" (beaters). The catcher is led into the woods where the Elwetritsch is supposed to live, instructed to wait in a clearing with his sack and lantern, while the beaters will supposedly disturb the Elwetritsch. The light of the lantern is said to be attractive to the curious creature, so it will come to investigate and will then be caught by the catcher. While he waits, everyone heads back to the pub to wait for the catcher to realize that he has been fooled!
Zeller
Schwarze Katz
The Mosel Region in Germany is noted for its fine
wine. Each village has its own
distinctive vineyards and it is easy to find a wine which is suitable to ones
taste. The wine from the village of Zell is particularly notable and is
known as ‘Schwarze Katz’ or Black Cat.
Legend has it that in 1863, three wine merchants from Aachen were in Zell to taste the wine and
find out which was the best cellar to buy from.
In one particular winery they went into lengthy negotiations and finally
they opted to choose from three casks.
Suddenly the owner’s black cat sprang onto one of the casks and arched
its back in a threatening manner, whereupon the merchants took it as an omen
that it was the best wine and without even tasting it, they bought it. Since that time, Zell wine has been known as
‘Schwarze Katz’.
The Roman Wine Ship
In 1884, workers on road extensions through
Neumagen-Drohn on the Mosel in Germany , were
amazed when they exposed a massive Roman Fort which had been built by Emperor
Constantine. Amongst the many treasures
unearthed was an incredible 3rd century tombstone in the shape of a
Roman wine ship. Whilst the actual
relic can be seen in the museum at Trier ,
a copy can be seen at Neumagen.
The Bridge Monkey
Just alongside the
town gate on the bridge over the River Neckar at Heidelberg in Germany there is a bronze monkey or
‘bruckenaff’ holding a mirror. Installed in 1979 it was sculptured by Professor
Gernot Rumpf and the theme of the sculpture is ‘humility’. Alongside is a plaque which reads:
“Why are you looking at me?
Haven’t you seen a monkey in Heidelberg ?
Look around and you will probably see
More monkey’s like me”.
To touch the
bronze is said to bring good luck!
Largest
Cuckoo Clock
What is said to be the largest free-hanging cuckoo clock in the world
can be seen suspended outside a shop in St Goar on the Middle Rhine in Germany . Some 33 years old, this time piece is 3.5
metres high and 2.5 metres wide. It
weighs about 5 cwts. Carved from linden
wood it is entirely handmade and handpainted.
Because the clock has two faces, the biggest problem faced by the
designers was to arrange the working so that a cuckoo pops out on both sides to
call time every half hour. Music also
plays as a stage at the top of the clock revolves, revealing a set of four
dancing figures.
Another very large cuckoo clock seen at Triburg in the Black Forest.
Der Kieschtock
The Black Forest is of course noted for its wood carvings. In the lovely village of Unterkirnach a strange carving can be seen standing outside the town hall. It depicts Der Kieschtock, a huge grotesque figure carved from a tree trunk and roots which is a symbolic figure of the area. It is a kind of bogeyman which reminds people of the power of the forest and is much in evidence at the shrovetide festival 'Fastnet'.
The Squares
of Mannheim
The city centre of
Mannheim in Germany is
divided into squares and instead of street names, letters and numbers show the
way to the correct address. This unique system is based on chess and was
introduced in the 18th century.
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