Tuesday, June 2, 2020

GERMANY ~ Till Eulenspiegel Fountain - Brunswick ~

... Great bronze statue on a stone fountain showing a well known character from German folklore and the protagonist in a number of folktales... a world famous literary figure... the fountain consists of a hexagonal base with shell... on an elevated part sits Till Eulenspiegel, while on the fountain edge two owls and three monkeys sitting, exectuted as gargoyles.... according to legend Till Eulenspiegel has been repeatedly delayed in Braunschweig, and that he had a bakery on Bäckerklint 11, where he baked owls and monkeys instead of bread... a collection of stories featuring Till Eulenspiegel was first published anonymously in Strasburg in the early 16thC... within 15 years, the book was translated into other languages and became an early bestseller among printed books... three of the 95 stories take place in Braunschweig... during the heavy bombing raid on October 15, 1944, the fountain remained undamaged in the middle of completely destroyed houses... with lovely stamp and postmark celebrating the 300th Anniversary of the Birth of Baron von Münchhausen another famous literary figure of Lower Saxony🙂... Thanks Dustin!!❁◕ ‿ ◕❁
Till Eulenspiegel fountain by German sculptor Arnold Kramer 1863-1918 was unveiled in 1906. The sculpture of Eulenspiegel is a cast from a statue of 1639. Located in Bäckerklint, a square in Braunschweig, where a bakery claimed to be the one where Eulenspiegel had baked his owls and guenons.

It has been suggested that Till Eulenspiegel was based on a real person. He is believed to have been born in Kneitlingen, Brunswick, and died in Mölln, Schleswig-Holstein, in 1350, after succumbing to the Black Plague. His alleged tombstone can be found in that German city and has been known since the 16th century. Till traveled extensively across the Holy Roman Empire, Denmark, Poland, and Italy, during which many of his mischievous adventures take place.



Stamp:

The 300th Anniversary of the Birth of Baron von Münchhausen, 1720-1797
(Issued 07-05-2020)

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