Minerva fountain (Erfurt)

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The Minerva fountain, behind it the cathedral and Severikirche

The Minervabrunnen is a fountain on the Domplatz in Erfurt .

The Minerva fountain is the oldest preserved fountain in Erfurt and the last of the 55 fountains that were once used for public water supply in early modern Erfurt. It was built in 1784 and shows a sculpture (made of Seeberger sandstone) of the Roman goddess Minerva with a helmet, shield and spear on a base . It stands for craft, trade, art and science. The fountain is an expression of the self-confident bourgeoisie of Erfurt at the time and of the cultural life in the city, which flourished under Karl Theodor von Dalberg (between 1772 and 1802 Kurmainz governor in Erfurt), which was also reflected in the founding of the Academy of Non-Profit Science . The original location of the fountain was in front of the "Hohe Lilie" inn. There he had to give way to the tram in 1936. After several moves on the cathedral square, the restored Minerva fountain was given its current location in 1976 in the south-western area of ​​the square.

Apart from the winter months, the well has drinking water.

In 1991/1992, after the political change , Minerva, which was in dire need of renovation, was renewed with funds (33,000 DM) from the Erfurt home loyal association from West Germany. For this, the city of Erfurt thanks the association and its chairman at the time, Dr. Lorenz Drehann . The work was carried out by the Erfurt branch of the Denkmalpflege- und Restaurierungs-GmbH Chemnitz. On the occasion of the last meeting of the Erfurt Home Loyalty Association, the restored Minerva fountain was ceremoniously handed over to the Erfurt citizens on September 5, 1992 as a gift for the 1250th anniversary. This fulfilled the request of the Mayor of Erfurt, Manfred Ruge, to the members of the association at their meeting in Mainz in 1990.

The Minerva statue had to be repaired several times between 2004 and 2011 due to arbitrary damage. In August and September 2013 it will be subjected to a thorough restoration, also because of damage caused by road salt.

literature

  • Steffen Raßloff : 100 monuments in Erfurt. History and stories. With photographs by Sascha Fromm. Essen 2013. P. 90 f.
  • Steffen Raßloff: Monuments in Erfurt: Goddess of wisdom. The Minerva fountain. In: Thüringer Allgemeine from May 11, 2013 ( online )

Web links

Commons : Minerva fountain  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Erfurt Heimatbrief No. 61-64 (1990-1992)
  2. ↑ Too much salt for Minerva. The fountain will be restored until the Oktoberfest in Erfurt , Thüringische Landeszeitung, August 9, 2013

Coordinates: 50 ° 58 ′ 34.5 ″  N , 11 ° 1 ′ 27.6 ″  E