We drove south through
Odenwald through a mixed bag of weather: from sun to rain to hail and back to sun, the sky offered a dramatic scenery of fast moving clouds.
While meandering through said low mountain range we discovered a sign that raised our curiosity.
Burg (castle) Frankenstein. Rings a bell?
Once upon a time there was a castle on top of a mountain. It was founded long before our time in the midst of the 13th century, and named Frankenstein by its owners. Generations passed and the walls which are still holding strong saw lives and deaths, sieges and wars, losses and gains.
Fast forward to the 17th century a certain
Johann Dippel was born on the premises. The man later studied theology, philosophy and alchemy. He got incarcerated for heresy, and rumor has it that he ran a cult and experimented with cadavers in order to learn about the transgression of the soul and resurrection of the dead. He also claimed to have found the elixir of life.
We walked up the worn out steps imagining what this walls must have seen. If only rocks and bricks could talk...
The Frankenstein monster however stayed out of sight, and all we got is some pretty vistas from the roof top on top of the mountain.
As we continued our journey we wondered if this wicked real life character might have inspired stories such as Grimm's fairy tales or even
Mary Shelley's Frankenstein.
Pretty views from atop the castle.
ReplyDeleteTruth is usually stranger than fiction so you never know what tales those walls would tell. Probably best they stay silent.
You're probably right. I guess those walls would weep at the gruesome things the'd seen.
DeleteDamn good write up SonjaM, you made an old castle come alive...
ReplyDeleteDom
Beautiful photos and an interesting stories. I agree with Trobairitz, the made up stories were bad enough. I'd hate to hear about the real ones.
ReplyDeleteRichard, where there people are or have been there are horrifying stories. We are a pretty weird bunch.
DeleteIsn't that hilarious? Every stone you turn can tell a story. I guess I had to be away for longer to appreciate the history of things in Europe. I can't wait to travel Italy again.
ReplyDeleteStunning photos Sonja and a great write up! One of my favourite stories is Frankenstein and like you, I have to wonder if Mary Shelley knew about the castle and it's unusual resident, it seems too much of a coincidence doesn't it.
ReplyDeleteFacinating stuff history isn't it, just another reason I'd love to visit Europe. Our history only goes back a couple of hundred years and the original owners of this land were nomadic so there aren't many landmarks from their history .. tho they have some pretty wonderful stories too.