Rudolf Diesel Memorial Grove
The Rudolf Diesel Memorial Grove is a publicly accessible Japanese garden that was built in Augsburg in honor of the inventor Rudolf Diesel . It is located on the southwestern edge of Wittelsbacher Park and has existed since 1957.
history
Magokichi Yamaoka , founder of the Japanese mechanical engineering company Yanmar , visited Augsburg in 1953 during a trip to Europe and intended to honor the inventor of the diesel engine there. However, since there was no Rudolf Diesel memorial in the city, Yamaoka made the decision to erect a memorial himself. It was to be inaugurated in 1957 and thus both honor the 100th birthday of Rudolf Diesel and the 60th anniversary of the diesel engine and strengthen the bond of friendship between the German and Japanese people.
Yamaoka commissioned the architect Junzo Sakakura to design a traditional Japanese garden. A large main stone bearing the profile of Rudolf Diesel was to be placed in the middle. The architect planned the arrangement of 56 rocks of different sizes around the main stone and a stone path was planned between the rocks as a guide line through the complex.
The memorial grove was first built in Japan and then inaugurated on December 10, 1956. After a few weeks, it was dismantled and transported to Augsburg. There the system was rebuilt in exactly the same arrangement in Wittelsbacher Park. The ceremonial handover of the Japanese garden finally took place on October 5th and 6th, 1957.
literature
- Franz Häussler: Augsburg's green island. context Verlag, Augsburg 2012, ISBN 978-3-939645-48-1 , pages 77 to 79
Web links
Coordinates: 48 ° 21 '27.4 " N , 10 ° 52' 48.1" E