Small pure well

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The Reinsbrunnen enclosed to the grotto
Water woman with child.

The Kleine Reinsbrunnen is a historical fountain in Göttingen . It is located in the eastern part of Göttingen above the Schillerwiese and in the lower area of ​​the Hainberg on the so-called Molkegrund (corner of Herzberger Landstrasse and Bismarckstrasse). In the spring grotto there is a bronze sculpture depicting a water woman emerging from the water , holding a child in her arms to hand it to its mother. It is reminiscent of a legend that is linked to this fountain, in which you can see your unborn siblings in the spring water.

history

Swan pond at the city wall (Cheltenhampark), which is fed by the water of the Reinsbrunnen

At the Molkengrund there used to be various springs whose water was collected in the Reinsbrunnen (also called Reinhardsbrunnen) and supplied the city with water. The Reinsbrunnen supplied the city of Göttingen with fresh drinking water well into the 19th century . Its first edging was probably made as early as 1568. A small water pipe made of wooden pipes led to the extinguishing water pond on the city moat. Today the swan pond is located there . The final version and vaulting took place in 1873, under Lord Mayor Georg Merkel , when the first large urban water pipe and its container were installed on Hainholzweg . In the vicinity of the Reinsbrunnen is the secondary source, the Kleine Reinsbrunnen , whose water is fed to the city together with that of the main source.

The Kleine Reinsbrunnen was a spring set in stone in the style of a grotto and thus a popular destination for students . The fountain is often recommended in historical travel guides as a worthwhile excursion destination for lovers . The composer Johannes Brahms is said to have met the professor's daughter Agathe von Siebold here in 1859.

At Pentecost it was once the custom for mothers and girls to take their young children there. As a gift they threw bread, cakes, rusks or flowers into the water for the unborn babies. According to legend, you could see your future siblings and a woman in the spring water. “(...) it was customary for the girls and women from Göttingen to go to the Reinsbrunnen on Easter night. According to legend, they could see the picture of their future lover in the water and the enjoyment of Easter water from this fountain promised children's blessings. When the children of Göttingen arrived, the children were told that the mermaid from the Reinsbrunnen had brought the siblings. "

Since 1775 the Hainberg, which previously served as pastureland for sheep, goats and pigs, was slowly reforested with extensive planting measures. In 1897/98 the Reinsbrunnen was bricked up in the course of this reforestation for hygienic reasons. The water woman with the child was only made and erected by the sculptor Friedrich Küsthardt in 1901 on the initiative of the Göttingen Beautification Association so that the children's legend of the Reinsbrunnen would not be forgotten. Often flowers or other gifts are placed in the grotto as offerings to the water woman so that an unfulfilled wish to have children can be fulfilled. The beautification association actually wanted to collect money for the construction of a new market fountain. However, since the city administration unexpectedly took over these costs, the association finally had the money for a water woman figure on Molkengrund. The Göttinger Gänseliesel and the Wasserfraufigur were both erected in the spring of 1901.

As a result of vandalism in May 2010, an arm of the baby figure was stolen, it was later found by hikers and given to the local forest administration . The bronze sculpture was completely restored through sponsorship of a metal construction company. The Reinsbrunnen has been supplied with water again since August 2015, before the water supply to the more than one hundred year old systems on the Schillerwiese was interrupted due to a fault in the supply line.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Johann Daniel Gruber, Description of time and history of the city of Göttingen , first volume, Hanover Göttingen 1734 (p. 24)
  2. ↑ Daniel Ludwig Wallis: The Göttingen Student, or remarks, advice and instructions about Göttingen and student life on the Georgia Augusta , Vandenhoeck and Ruprecht , Göttingen 1813 (p. 52)
  3. ↑ the city of Göttingen: In -Waldblatt No. 8 (Der Molkengrund) . Information from the Göttingen city forest
  4. ↑ Göttinger Tageblatt : Visit the mermaid and child at the Kleiner Reinsbrunnen (newspaper article from August 1, 2011)
  5. ↑ Göttinger Tageblatt: Göttinger Reinsbrunnen is bubbling again (newspaper article from August 19, 2015)

Web links and sources

Coordinates: 51 ° 32 ′ 6.3 "  N , 9 ° 57 ′ 36.4"  E