Gelnhausen - Kaiserpfalz Palace

 A number of cities lay claim to be the geographic center of the European Union.   Of course the Union is constantly changing boundaries as new countries are added.  This one probably has a somewhat biased perspective in that it was done by the National Geographic Foundation of Germany.

Gelnhausen was founded by Staufer Emperor Friedrich I. Barbarossa. The Kaiserpfalz is one of the best preserved palaces of the Staufer Dynasty.

The half timbered houses stand out because of their color and meticulous maintenance.  This city is also known for the Witches Tower. The tower (not displayed here) was preserved in its original condition.   It was impressive as the walls were 2 and a half meters thick and 24 meters tall.  The front door is 4 meters above ground level and is accessed via a wooden staircase from the passing wall walk.

The restaurant "Zum Löwen"  and the plaque on this restaurant says it is "one of the oldest restaurants in Germany, first mentioned in 1506 (by Dr. Johannes Faustus). Owned by the same family since 1639."

"Zum Löwen" means "to the lion", and Dr. Johannes Faustus was a German alchemist, magician and author who lived from about 1480 to about 1540. Not much is known about his life, but there is evidence that he was in Gelnhausen in 1506 as a performer of magic tricks and horoscopes. After his death he became the protagonist of numerous folk tales, puppet shows and finally serious works of literature such as Faust by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.

And of course there have been several operas based on the Faust legend or on Goethe's Faust, including the marvelous "dramatic legend" called The Damnation of Faust by Hector Berlioz (1803-1869)