Gänseliesel
Encyclopedia
Göttingen
Göttingen is a university town in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is the capital of the district of Göttingen. The Leine river runs through the town. In 2006 the population was 129,686.-General information:...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
. Although rather small in size, the fountain is the most well-known landmark of the city. Today, it is an essential part of the graduation celebrations for every student who finishes a doctorate
Doctorate
A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder to teach in a specific field, A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder...
at the George August University Göttingen
Georg-August University of Göttingen
The University of Göttingen , known informally as Georgia Augusta, is a university in the city of Göttingen, Germany.Founded in 1734 by King George II of Great Britain and the Elector of Hanover, it opened for classes in 1737. The University of Göttingen soon grew in size and popularity...
to climb the fountain and to kiss the statue of the goose girl.
A Gänseliesel is also situated in Monheim am Rhein
Monheim am Rhein
Monheim am Rhein is a town on the right bank of the river Rhine in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Monheim belongs to the district of Mettmann - with the southern suburbs of Düsseldorf to the north, and the Bergisches Land to the south...
, Hanover
Hanover
Hanover or Hannover, on the river Leine, is the capital of the federal state of Lower Saxony , Germany and was once by personal union the family seat of the Hanoverian Kings of Great Britain, under their title as the dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg...
's Steintor Square and Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
's Nikolsburger Square.
History
Since the 18th century, a fountain was located on the site of the Gänseliesel. However, the old fountain was partially pulled down in the early 19th century due to deterioration. In 1898, the city council decided to construct a new fountain, for which sculptors from all over Germany presented their proposals. From all designs, the neo-gothicalGothic Revival architecture
The Gothic Revival is an architectural movement that began in the 1740s in England...
proposal "Im Geiste der Alten/Tugendbrunnen" ("In the Spirit of the Ancients/Fountain of Virtue") by the sculptors Mehs and Jehs was favoured while the goose girl design by the architect Heinrich Stöckhardt was only ranked second place. However, after the official ranking the three best designs were put on exhibition. The citizens of Göttingen widely preferred the simpler design of the goose girl, probably because the simple girl image best represents the common people - in contrast to the numerous statues of famous university scientists found in the city. After long discussion, the Gänseliesel, then designed by the architect Heinrich Stöckhardt
Friedrich Heinrich Stöckhardt
Friedrich Heinrich Stöckhardt was a German architect.- Life and artwork:Heinrich Stöckhardt was born in Sankt Petersburg. His father, Robert Stöckhardt, had been appointed there as professor of Roman law. After the father's early death in 1848 his widow, Emilie née Voigt, returned with her...
and created by the sculptor Paul Nisse, was finally put up in 1901 without any official ceremony. The Gänseliesel fountain does not have any particular connection to the history of the town.
Traditions
Soon after the fountain was erected, newly-enrolled students of the Georgia Augusta universityGeorg-August University of Göttingen
The University of Göttingen , known informally as Georgia Augusta, is a university in the city of Göttingen, Germany.Founded in 1734 by King George II of Great Britain and the Elector of Hanover, it opened for classes in 1737. The University of Göttingen soon grew in size and popularity...
began to climb up the fountain and to kiss the statue which rapidly became a university tradition. Because the climbing of the fountain was usually celebrated with excessive consumption of alcohol and loud cheers of fellow students and because the number of students largely increased after World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, police issued a decree in 1926 that officially forbade the climbing and kissing of the statue. A law student who was prosecuted for kissing the goose girl in the same year, took the case to court. However, the superior court of justice in Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
legitimated the edict.
The tradition itself has changed over time, and today it is unusual for first year students to kiss the statue; it is now more common to bring a bouquet of flowers to the Gänseliesel and to give her a kiss after one's official reception of the doctorate
Doctorate
A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder to teach in a specific field, A doctorate is an academic degree or professional degree that in most countries refers to a class of degrees which qualify the holder...
degree. It is for this reason that the fountain is decorated with flowers very frequently, and throughout the year. Until today, climbing and kissing of the monument remains officially forbidden although both the city of Göttingen and the university advertise themselves with pictures of PhD graduates kissing the girl.
As the fountain has been subject to vandalism, the original statue of the goose girl can today be seen in the Stadtmuseum while the fountain only carries a copy. After a severe assault during the winter of 2004 (malicious arson), the fountain needed to be disassembled and underwent major restoration.
Since 1995, each year on a weekend in September the city of Göttingen stages the so-called "Gänselieselfest" in honor of the goose girl. Main event of these festivities is the election of a young woman from Göttingen as the Gänseliesel, representing the town and the statue for one year.