Germany (Lonely Planet, 6th Edition) - Andrea Schulte-Peevers [231]
On weekends, the Wanderbus (Hiking Bus) makes four trips out here from Mühlhausen. Check the schedule with the Mühlhausen tourist office or call 03601-801 710.
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KYFFHÄUSER MOUNTAINS
It’s not particularly mighty or large, but there’s an undeniable mystique to the densely forested Kyffhäuser low-mountain range. In history, this rural area is famous as the site of a bloody key battle in the Peasants’ War of 1525 that left at least 6000 peasants dead and resulted in the capture and execution of their leader, the radical reformer Thomas Müntzer.
The main town is Bad Frankenhausen, where the regional tourist office ( 034671-717 16; www.kyffhaeuser-tourismus.de; Anger 14; 10am-6pm Mon-Fri, 10am-3pm Sat, 10am-noon Sun Apr-Oct, 10am-5pm Mon-Fri, 9am-noon Sat Nov-Mar) can help with maps, directions and general information.
Because the area is so sparsely populated, it’s poorly served by public transportation, but bike trails and roads lead to all the main sights.
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Sights
KYFFHÄUSER DENKMAL
The Kyffhäuser was once home to one of Germany’s largest medieval castles, the massive Reichsburg, built in the 12th century during the reign of Emperor Friedrich Barbarossa. It’s now merely a romantic ruin but, according to legend, Barbarossa lies in eternal sleep in the belly of the mountain, awaiting the time when he’ll be needed to bring honour and prosperity back to his people. In the 19th century, Emperor Wilhelm I was seen as Barbarossa’s spiritual successor and a bombastic statue was erected in 1896 on top of the foundations of the medieval castle. Showing the emperor on horseback, the Kyffhäuser Denkmal (Kyffhäuser Monument; 034651-2780; www.kyffhaeuser-denkmal.de; adult/concession/family €5/2.50/13; 9.30am-6pm Apr-Oct, 10am-5pm Nov-Mar) stands below a 60m-high tower and above a sculpture of Barbarossa sitting on a stone throne. To get to the monument, follow the B85 north from Bad Frankenhausen for about 10km, then turn right at the sign and continue for another 2km.
BARBAROSSAHÖHLE
One of the largest gypsum caves in Europe, the Barbarossahöhle ( 034671-545 13; www.hoehle.de; Mühlen 6, Rottleben; adult/child/family €7.50/4/21; 10am‑5pm daily Apr-Oct, 10am-4pm Tue-Sun Nov-Mar, tours hourly) was discovered in 1865 and, because of its proximity to the Kyffhäuser mountain, immediately became associated with the Barbarossa legend. Tours last about 50 minutes and take you past shimmering underground lakes and bizarre gypsum sheets that hang from the ceiling like drying hides, as well as slabs described by legend as Barbarossa’s table and chair. The caves are 7km west of Bad Frankenhausen, north of Rottleben.
PANORAMA MUSEUM
On the very site where thousands of peasants were slaughtered in 1525 now looms the Panorama Museum ( 034671-6190; www.panorama-museum.de, in German; Am Schlachtberg 9; adult/concession/child €5/4/2; 10am-6pm Tue-Sun Apr-Oct, to 5pm Nov-Mar, also 1-6pm Mon Jul & Aug), one of the Kyffhäuser’s unique sights. There’s just one painting inside the giant cylindrical structure, but what a painting it is! Called Frühbürgerliche Revolution in Deutschland (Early Civil Revolution in Germany), it measures an astonishing 14m by 123m and is painted in a vivid, colourful style reminiscent of Bruegel and Hieronymus Bosch. More than 3000 figures, assembled in numerous scenes, depict not the actual battle but an allegorical interpretation of the tumultuous transition from the Middle Ages to the modern era.
It took artist Werner Tübke and his assistants five years to complete this complex work, which was inaugurated in 1989, just a couple of months before the fall of the Berlin Wall. Its artistic merit and political context have been hotly debated, but its size and ambitious themes do not fail to impress.
The museum