Germany's mystery statues: Hammelburg

In the hills above the German town of Hammelburg are four mysterious statues. Nobody knows who they depict, or who made them -- and that's not even the most mysterious part of the story.
Try this video next: • Elvis was here: Bad Na...
The Philosopher:
N 50°07'36.27", E 9°54'44.55"
The Dancer with Child:
N 50°07'37.58", E 9°54'48.16"
Amalberga:
N 50°07'39.35", E9°54'52.27"
Chapters:
00:00 Welcome to Hammelburg
01:49 Walking the trail
03:13 The Philosopher
04:38 The Dancer with Child
05:38 Amalberga
06:43 Who are the artists?
07:35 Travel tips
Music:
"On My Way Home"
by The 126ers
KZbin Audio Library
"Large Smile Mood"
by Nico Staf
KZbin Audio Library
"Style Funk" and "Hot Swing"
by Kevin MacLeod incompetech.com/
Creative Commons Attribution licence
Image of original Amalberga:
by Darev, Wikimedia Commons
Creative Commons Attribution Share alike licence
Data for street maps:
OpenStreetMaps
openstreetmaps.org
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/ rewboss
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Rewboss
Postfach 10 06 29
63704 Aschaffenburg
Germany
Please don't send parcels or packages, or anything that has to be signed for.
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www.rewboss.com/
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[@ronin667]

Thanks for the interesting video! My grandfather was mayor of Hammelburg from the late 1950s to the mid-1960s, and my dad spent a good part of his youth there. It's unlikely though that my dad knows anything more about these statues, though.

[@AnnaCurser]

my tiny inner detective conan tells me, that if these statues could not get lifted uphill, then they must have been produced on the hill. probably cast into some mold. it would be much easier to bring the ingredients uphill sack by sack and then mix it into the mold in the cover of night. it would only take a day or two to harden out, either in the forest or directly where they stand now. you could possibly even cover it up with camoflage or time it right with the seasons or deny access to the path for a short time. i dont think that people go up that hill everyday. so it is possible to work without getting seen. most people are way less perceptive than you'd think. they would notice a statue on the edge of a cliff, but they would probably not notice a dark block lying in the undergrowth.

[@Sanyaenyenwa]

That's what I would be guessing as well: Cast in place using some kind of quick set concrete (there are some special types that harden in like half an hour). Still a remarkable feat to pull this off without anyone noticing, but the only way I can think of how this would even be realistically possible at all.

[@McGhinch]

There must be some techniques available to do some heavy lifting in awkward places unnoticed by others. In the 1990s a Ronald McDonald statue was stolen in Wallisellen only to appear months later on top of the hill in the middle of the Rhine waterfalls in Schaffhausen. It was -- to my knowledge -- never uncovered who was responsible.

[@someoneelse9637]

Maybe they used inflatable concrete?

[@Dave_Sisson]

It looks like a quad-bike could tow a small trailer up that track. Any tyre marks would disappear the next time it rained.

[@stroke_of_luck]

Such a marvelous thing! Who did it is not relevant, what is important is they are there and they give joy. The unfortunate reality is most public art these days don’t bring joy like these do. I will never be able to see them. I can’t go on trails like this anymore. But I am grateful to you to bringing them to my attention

[@Erinnerungslager]

I’ve seen that Doctor Who episode! Don’t look away! Don’t even blink! 😬

[@eisikater1584]

No, not that one. See my comment.

[@99onthebeach]

I was also thinking of the weeping angels and instantly got afraid they are real.

[@mistervacation23]

One thing is for sure there's no shortage of birds in Hammelburg.

[@WooShell]

astounding that even nowadays it seems possible for some people to get those statues made and moved around without anyone noticing.. i really hope it stays a mystery :)

[@ViolettaSachra]

never heard about the statues, fascinating! thanks for telling us about them :)

[@varana]

1:38 "And of course, we're not here to see any of _that_ ." ;D

[@streunekatze8205]

those are beautiful statures, and such a wonderful mystery. I wouldn't mind art like that just popping up.

[@lonestarr1490]

What a stunning scenery and what a great video! Definitely gave me The Tim Traveller vibes ;)

[@harrietriddle2197]

Was half-expecting "we're not here to see any of that" at 1:40, lol.

[@globus3671]

I was stationed in Hammelburg. Very nice scenery indeed.

[@soundscape26]

Filming down those tight and steep stars shows quite the dedication. I'm always up for some mystery and enjoyed the video a lot. Thanks!

[@NF-bz8uk]

I absolutely love these videos. I love seeing videos of the less documented areas of Germany. This channel is the only one I know of that covers such a broad idea of what Germany is.

[@AndreWinter]

Maybe the kindliest way to troll a whole town 😅

[@NaomiClareNL]

As a former archivist the first thing that comes to mind is wondering if there is an envelope in the archives of that period that says: open only after 78 have passed after Rewboss has made a youtube video about it. Any archivist worth their salt will respect that. 😉

[@oirandochu]

This is plain brilliant. Luv it. ❤

[@beeble2003]

The vandalism might just be damage from water getting into cracks and expanding when it freezes.

[@marcofrank2082]

A magnificent and interesting video. I absolutely enjoyed it. Thank you. Another place for my bucket list. Thankfully quite near by

[@MonicaTheMad]

You never mentioned that this is the location of Stalag 13 from Hogan's Heroes fame! Too cool!

[@markusjuenemann]

I thought I'd be the only one thinking this at first...

[@NicolaW72]

Thank you very much!😀👍

[@floris3239]

For strange things in France we have The Tim Traveller. And for strange things in Germany we have Rewboss. 😁

[@jillwheeler6207]

Sehr cool; interesting and an oddity too. 🗿

[@OpaSpielt]

Fascinating story. 🖐👴👍

[@5thElem3nt]

The fact, that the town council repaired the statues makes it higly possible to me, that they and/or the mayor had something to do with it.

[@chrisrudolf9839]

I don't see any connection between repairing them and knowing about their creation. If a tourist attraction mysteriously drops into your lap for free in a small town that doesn't have too much to offer to tourists beside beautiful landscape and some remains of a medieval city core, of course the sensible thing to do is to preserve that attraction, if the cost isn't too high. Especially if the cost for removing that illegally built stuff would be much higher than preserving it and profiting from it. Of course it's possible that they might have secretly known of the project, but if public money was secretly spent on it (without it going through the books and - depending on the volume - probably also the council making a documented decision on it during an official council meeting) would have been highly illegal. Furthermore, erecting permanent sculptures outside the confines of the cities building land in the middle of free nature ("Außenbereich") would require a building permit, which actually would be quite hard to get, because German building laws are very restrictive when it comes to building stuff outside city limits that doesn't have a special reason why it needs to be outside city limits. So, if the mayor was in contact with the artist and directed some payment his way, it probably came from private pockets.

[@Eldoran1989]

That's a pretty wide leap. And also unlikely. While corruption is ofc not unseen in Germany it's seems to be too big of a risk for a serious punishment without any real motive

[@NicolaW72]

@@chrisrudolf9839 Indeed.

[@chrisrudolf9839]

@@DeadGuye1995 I'd say the mystery of their creation and the placement are an essential part of the artistic idea and are really the main thing about them which makes them truly a work of art. If someone made the very same scuptures and just put them into an art gallery, critics would dismiss them as uninspired kitsch. But having them mysteriously appear in a remote location in nature like that makes them interesting.

[@beeble2003]

@@Eldoran1989 What's corrupt? The statues are essentially anonymous gifts from _somebody_ to the town. It's reasonable for the town to choose to maintain them, whoever put them there. If it happened that the gift was from the mayor, what difference would it make?

[@vickenkodjaian5265]

Very nice and interesting 🤔 indeed. The country side is beyond this world. Thank you.

[@berndbeispielmensch]

First time I heard about the city of Hammelburg was from Colonel Hogan ('Hogans Heroes' / 'Ein Käfig voller Helden'). For a long time I assumed it was a fictitious name. However all the Hammelburg scenes were filmed in a studio and most of the facts are made up as well (e.g. in the series Hammelburg is close to the sea).

[@olli9441]

I love a good local mystery!

[@eisikater1584]

I'd suggest that these once were living people and Dr Who overlooked some of the extraterrestrials living in Mount Vesuvius, now being around at Mutton Castle.

[@mergele1000]

Could have also been some angels, those are pretty sneaky.

[@eisikater1584]

@@mergele1000 Or Saints. I sometimes walk into our catholic church, head forward to the altar, put a 50 cent coin into the collection box, and light a candle for my deceased grandma, and I do not twinkle. There are wooden statues, or figurines, rather, of Saints, and they all seem to look at me and move when I'm turning my back. I even feel watched by the wall paintings which show biblical scenes, but when I turn around, Moses' eyes stop moving. Before entering the church, I look at my watch: Is it safe to go inside? I might twinkle when the noon bell starts ringing, and who knows what's happening then? I officially quit church 30 years ago, and maybe the devil will carry me away? The church I'm talking about is creepy by itself because it exhibits the (dressed) bones of an alleged Saint in a glass sarcophagus, and her skull is clearly visible. Really scared me when I was a child.

[@eisikater1584]

@@DeadGuye1995 Isn't it? Like the spirits of the dead stepping out of a picture, becoming flesh and bone, and being after you? If churches aren't scary enough, visit an Egyptian museum at night. Once upon a time in Berlin, there was the long museum night, and I found myself alone in a room with some scrolls, and a pharaoh, I think it was Ramses III., stepped out of them and told me all about the universe and everything, but by punishment of death and eternal damnation, I am not to reveal it to humankind before they found the final question to the answer, which, as we all know, is 42. Having arrived at that point, the sun rose outside, and my very best girlfriend called me and said, "Museum's closing, can I have a toke, too?". btw, H.P. Lovecraft anyone?

[@DarthLenaPlant]

Plot twist: it WAS the local library! ;DDDDDDD

[@NicolaW72]

YES!😅

[@NicolaW72]

@@DeadGuye1995 As a professional artist you will (and often must) earn your living with your art.

[@MsUUUUUUUUUU]

Cooles Video

[@dennisbrown3641]

Thanks for a great video! Interesting statues, great views of Hammelburg. My GGF Georg Breun and 3 siblings emigrated to America in about 1850, their dad Georg Breun ran a meat market and Adler tavern in Hammelburg. 3 generations of meat market in America. Many Brown descendants in Rochester, NY, St. Paul MN and Cleveland, Ohio. Many Heim descendants from Pfaffenhausen. Many Englert descendants from Hundsfeld in Rochester.

[@uliuchu4318]

Although I don't think that one could call you still an outsider, by any means (!), it's really fun to get a 'outside' or 3rd eye view on a region I spent a lot of my childhood hiking with my grandparents and still have quite fond memories of especially regarding the nature and historical sites...

[@_np7]

I was born in Fulda and lived in the Röhn for some time but never visited Hammelburg, might go for a visit :D

[@Rabascan]

Considering the infantry school nearby, my money is on 'bored soldiers'. Also, if you're in the area, be very weary of such signs as: 'Military Security Area, do not enter' or 'Live fire exercises ahead'.

[@Huarasson]

You are the Tom Scott of Germany!

[@EmilGlockner]

Faszinierend. Und in der Tat gut, dass niemand weiß, warum die Statuen da sind. Anyway, if only you had a drone, rewboss. How awesome it would have been to get a 360° drone shot of the dancer with child and Amalberga.

[@rewboss]

Drones are always very tricky. In this case not only are there trees in the way, but a biosphere reservation behind me (where it is illegal to fly drones) and a railway just below the hillside (over which it is illegal to fly drones).

[@EmilGlockner]

@@rewboss Ah, yes. Getting permission to fly drones for commercial video can be a pain. How about a GoPro and a long stick? ;)

[@_SpamMe]

PR theory sounds likeliest to me. Doesn't really explain who and how precisely, but seems like the sorta thing somebody might come up with.

[@kevinmottram9491]

Looking at her hair style, it's Aunt Flo from Bod.

[@thulex]

I've been there!

[@poppers7317]

Ah, Hammelburg. I still remember the pool parties in the bathroom of the medic quarters (they looked like an old horse stable) one the military base. Once every 3 months we took a table, duct tapted it to the door and started all the showers until the water was a meter high.

[@hurz506]

I love your videos! Will you maybe publish a video in German?

[@icetwo]

In Hammelburg? Das ist vermutlich die Kalinke

[@relgeiz2]

Sieht eher wie Helga aus, wenn Du mich fragst.

[@user-tw6nd5gh2x]

Your videos are just perfect. Do you have them in German?

[@beeble2003]

He mentions in another video that he's decided to do them in English, as his goal is to show non-Germans what Germany is like.

[@user-tw6nd5gh2x]

@@beeble2003 thanks

[@gerhardrobertbieber4129]

when do you go to Ostheim vor der Rhön nice having you in the Rhön . Neuer heard about the Statues . do you see the Erdfunkstelle at Fuchsstadt.

[@gerhardrobertbieber4129]

have not seeing to the end as i written it

[@Bayerwaldler]

Banksy, take that!

[@katzenkralle7262]

you can see my house in the first shot

[@PanzerschrekCN]

Is there any road above the statues? I think in such case it was pretty easy to deliver a statue by the road and then bring it down using sled and ropes.

[@rewboss]

Through the trees, you mean?

[@PanzerschrekCN]

@@rewboss between the trees. It may be possible if the forest is sparse enough.

[@geheimnisvollerundbelanglo9396]

@@PanzerschrekCN There's a dirt road about a hundred meters away on the top of the hill and the forest is relatively sparse. But I still think doing it the way you described should leave some pretty recognizable traces...

[@gottfriedneuner3721]

that's odd. I never heard about that before. I thought I would hear about something like that, but I guess 4 (5) statues are not that many.

[@ricdotdev]

That don't look like a snake...

[@TremereTT]

Weren't Hogans Heroes "imprisoned" in Hammelburg?

[@katzenkralle7262]

yes, but the show took quite a lot of liberties

[@chrishalle1982]

Ist da ein Unterschied zwischen der Fränkischen Saale und der normalen Saale oder ist damit nur der Teil der Saale gemeint der durch Franken fliesst?

[@Primljosef]

Wenn du mit der normalen Saale die meinst, an der Halle liegt, sind es zwei unterschiedliche Flüsse... Die Fränkische Saale fließt bei Gemünden in den Main, die andere fließt bei Barby in die Elbe

[@konradmichels1362]

Beide heißen schlicht "Saale". Eine "normale" Saale gibt es nicht. Die meisten geografischen Namen gibt es mehrfach. Auch gibt es z.B. Halle auch in Westfalen und eine Hauptstraße und einen Lindenweg fast in jedem Kaff. Nur manchen Fällen kommen sie besonders spezifiziert daher,, z.B. "Neustadt an der Weinstraße" oder "Rödelheimer Parkweg", diese übrigens nicht die beste Adresse 😉

[@rbcc_ab]

How did you manage to make a video about Hammelburg and not mention the military (Bundeswehr) and the music academy (Musikakademie)?

[@rewboss]

By making a video that focuses primarily on the statues.

[@Arcturus367]

I always thought, Hammelburg was a more or less dull City with more or less dull Bundeswehr barracks as only point of interest

[@Ned-Ryerson]

Well, I spent a year in those Barracks, and we were always quite happy to be let out to the town (if you could find somebody to drive you down).

[@hansberger4939]

Ich kannte Hammelburg bisher nur aus "Käfig voller Helden". Das gibts also wirklich!

[@knownothing5518]

Probably an artist with friends that decided to do a little trolling and stay anonymous to put the focus on the art and away from the artist. Enough strong people can potentially carry these statues with a coordinated effort.

[@salzach353thomas8]

A real sheepy story. But no sign of sheep. Still, wonderfull landscape. Dont worry about the statues,; I saw depictions of horses in the fields of Dorset, England. As usual those aliens up to their tricks.

[@Weissenschenkel]

According to Hollywood, the butler is the culprit. The mayor's hypothesis is very plausible, though.

[@globus3671]

Lager Hammelburg Gang