Lavenstein
The Lavenstein was a defense tower of the outer city wall of the city of Aachen, which was built between 1300 and 1350 . It is one of the few remaining towers of the former city fortifications.
location
The Lavenstein stands in a small triangular park that is bordered by the streets Hubertusstraße, Boxgraben and Am Lavenstein. It was the only tower in the southwest of the outer wall ring between the Rostor and the Jakobstor .
history
The construction date of the Lavenstein is not known. In the razing of the city walls in the early 19th century, the tufa of escaped destruction.
From the 19th century, the Aacheners used the coolness within the brick walls of the Lavenstein. They lowered the floor of the tower and stored ice inside, which they procured from frozen ponds in the neighborhood in winter. Covered, it stayed between the walls until summer and could be used and sold to cool food and drinks.
description
The Lavenstein is a round tower made of quarry stone with a diameter of 6.60 m. However, the floor plan is not completely circular, but has a flattening on the city side on the wall with a length of 4.20 m.
The tower is two-story. The ground floor could be reached through a small gate at the foot of the city wall. Entering the upper floor was only possible via the crown of the city wall. From this a staircase leads to the roof on the wall on the city side. Both storeys have flat domed vaults, a cornice supports a flat conical roof .
The first floor had three loopholes for bow and crossbowmen , two on the side of the trench and one in the middle of the field. The upper floor had wider shooting hatches just above the loopholes for the use of guns such as B. Ballista .
However, the military importance of the Lavenstein was only minor. Due to its exposed location, it served as an observation tower. A memorial plaque reminds of the town's historical significance of the building.
See also
Individual evidence
literature
- Bruno Lerho : The great Aachen city wall with gates and towers . Helios Verlag, Aachen 2006, ISBN 3-938208-37-6 .
- Carl Rhoen : The fortifications of the free imperial city of Aachen . Anton Creutzer, Aachen 1894, urn : nbn: de: hbz: 061: 1-230540 ( ISL Aachen [PDF; accessed on May 7, 2016]).
Web links
Coordinates: 50 ° 46 ′ 7.9 " N , 6 ° 4 ′ 32.3" E