The stone figure of the Erlkönig

The Erlkönig monument stands in the Saale flood plain in front of a rock face. It is located on the path from Wenigenjena to Kunitz and commemorates the ballad of the same name by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. While the original sculpture was a wooden work by Theodor Wolff, it was replaced in 1891 by a stone figure created by Wilhelm Otto Späte, commissioned by Wolf von Tümpling, the owner of Schloss Thalstein.

The monument depicts the Erlkönig as a powerful, life-sized old man with a long beard and robe. The figure reaches its hand over a pond lying beneath it. Although the statue originally held a sword in its right hand, the sword was re-attached during the last restoration but was later removed or destroyed by unknown people.

According to legend, Goethe learned the story of the Erlkönig from a farmer at the 'Grüne Tanne' inn. The location of the ballad is said to be identical to the location of the monument, where the landscape of the flood plain, featuring trees and fog, is recognizable in the poem. The term 'Erlkönig' refers to the nearby Schwarzerlenbruchwald, which has been considered an eerie, mythical place since the Middle Ages.

While a debunked legend claims Goethe was inspired by the Saale mists during a ride from Jena to Dornburg, the site is now a protected natural monument of 0.6 hectares. Since 2004, the monument has been a designated station of the Saale cycle path, which leads toward Schloss Thalstein and further to Kunitz.

Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons