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Symbol of the southern Harz Mountains, the
Josephskreuz (Joseph's Cross) on the peak of the high Auerberg (579 m) is
a popular destination.
In 1896 an iron lookout tower was built in the form of the world's largest four-armed cross. The lookout tower is supported by a huge concrete slab
and is built on an iron shelter, which can hold about 500 people. The construction is held together by 100,000 rivets and has a weight
of 123 tons. At the time of building the construction cost 50,000 marks
and was financed by the "Östliche Kammer" in Stolberg and the "Harzclub".
This is not the first cross on the Auerberg. In 1833 Count Joseph zu Stolberg-Stolberg,
with his love of the arts, wanted to build an especially beautiful lookout
tower and therefore contacted the brilliant classical architect Karl-Friedrich
Schinkel (1781-1841). The first tower in the form of a four-armed cross
was built according to a design by Schinkel. This great construction, which had been made of wood, had not even reached an age of 50 years when it
was destroyed by lightning in 1880. In 1896 today's solid Josephskreuz
was built based on the original design by Karl-Friedrich Schinkel. The large
platform offers a wonderful panorama over the Harz Mountains to the foothills.
Distance
from hotel:
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