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Klagenfurt
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Neuer Platz

Lindwurmbrunnen und Herkulesfigur

Lindworm Fountain and Hercules Statue

Ulrich Vogelsang & Michael Hönel
c.1590-1633/36

Klagenfurt /  Lindwurmbrunnen und Herkulesfigur   Klagenfurt /  Lindwurmbrunnen und Herkulesfigur

Description

The lindworm is the heraldic animal of Klagenfurt. A tale from the 13th century tells of a lindworm that lived near Klagenfurt. Flooding threatened travelers along the river, and the presence of a dragon was blamed. The story tells that a Duke offered a reward for anyone who could capture it; so some young men tied a bull to a chain, and when the lindworm swallowed the bull, it was hooked like a fish and killed. The head of a 1590 lindworm statue in Klagenfurt is modeled on the skull of a wooly rhinoceros found in a nearby quarry in 1335. It has been cited as the earliest reconstruction of an extinct animal.

The Hercules statue was added in 1633 and represents the strength of the men who slew the Lindworm.

At the sides of the base of the lindworm are white marble (?) coat of arms of the city council (?):

Inscription(s)

im sumpf um klagenfurt
hauste einst der lind-
wurm, mit dessen tod
die sage die gründung
dieser stadt verbindet.
ulrich vogelsang schlug
um 1600 das klagenfurter
wappentier aus einem
block; der meister des
gurker altars, hönel,
schuf 1636 den herkules

In the swamp around Klagenfurt
once lived the lind-
worm, with his death
the saying connects the
foundation of this town.
Ulrich Vogelsang struck
around 1600 the Klagenfurt
heraldic animal from one
block; the master of the
Gurk altar, Hönel,
created in 1636 the Hercules

Klagenfurt - Lindwurmbrunnen und Herkulesfigur

Sculptors

Sources & Information

Tags

Locatie (N 46°37'26" - E 14°18'27") (Satellite view: Google Maps)

Item Code: atka019; Photograph: 12 September 2016
Of each statue we made photos from various angles and also detail photos of the various texts.
If you want to use photos, please contact us via the contact form (in Dutch, English or German).
© Website and photos: René & Peter van der Krogt

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