Location: Wunsiedel, Bavaria Map
Luisenburg Rock Labyrinth (Luisenburg-Felsenlabyrinth) is located near Wunsiedel in the state of
Bavaria in Germany. Luisenburg Rock Labyrinth consists of massive
granite blocks that formed intricate formation due to geologic
erosions. Luisenburg Rock Labyrinth was commonly visited by tourists
since the 18th century. It was one of the first sites that were
especially designed as a tourist attraction. Paths were laid out,
steps were cut in the rock to ease the access to the site. Many of
visitors left beautiful autographs and passages. German writer
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe described rocks of Luisenburg Rock
Labyrinth in 1820.
The enormous size of the granite blocks,
piled on one another without rhyme or reason gives an impression the
like of which I have never come across on all my walks and no-one
can be blamed for explaining this chaotic state of affairs that
excites astonishment, fear and dread, by calling on the help of
floods and cloudbursts, storms and earthquakes, volcanoes and
whatever else nature may violently conjure up. However on closer
inspection, and with a detailed knowledge of that which nature,
acting quietly and patiently, is able to do in a most extraordinary
way, another solution to this puzzle offers itself to us.
The Blockmeer, named after Queen
Luise, has been open to tourists since the 18th century and is also
known today for the natural stage framed by the rocks and the annual
Luisenburg Festival there.
The idea of opening up was
noticeably influenced by the "Society for the Enlightenment of
Patriotic History, Customs and Rights", which was founded in
Wunsiedel in 1784. Around 1790 citizens of the place started to
design the rock area as a landscape garden. The first expansion
phase lasted until around 1800 and brought the name “Luxburg” in
memory of the Lugsburg castle stables. Visitors to the facility had
to bend down or even crawl if they wanted to explore the natural
beauty. For the aristocrats of that time, these were rare postures
that developed an additional attraction for some. The Prussian Queen
visited with her husband Friedrich Wilhelm III. 1805 the original
natural wonder and enthusiastically told her son about this
experience. A second expansion phase began between 1811 and 1815.
The Luisenburg thus developed into a gem of bourgeois culture and
landscape architecture.
The area was used in 1794 for the
performance of the Singspiel Die kleine Ährenleserin by Johann Adam
Hiller and Christian Felix Weisse.
The rock
labyrinth is a popular destination and can be explored with sturdy
shoes. Children also enjoy crawling and climbing. In 2002 the rock
labyrinth was awarded the official seal of approval “Bavaria's most
beautiful geotopes” by the Bavarian Ministry of the Environment. In
2006 it was included in the list of 77 awarded national geotopes in
Germany.
The Bavarian State Office for the Environment has
designated the granite block field as a particularly valuable
geotope (geotope number: 479R011).
The facility is looked
after and maintained by the city administration of Wunsiedel (city
forester). This charges an entrance fee for the rock labyrinth,
which is used for the care and preservation of the natural monument.