Weblog - Various articles about Esslingen's History​​​​
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The “Grave” problem in Medieval Esslingen
Life for most people in the medieval times was short, brutish and miserable. Due to the plague, poor nutrition and water quality, lack of medical care for the nonaristocractic,the average age was about 29 years. Naturally, being in a walled city, there was very-limited space for burials in the cemetery, which was in the church yard around the Parish Church in Esslingen. Most of these graves had tombstones, but they were positioned horizontally, not vertically like today’s tombstones and were actually embedded directly into the ground so that one could walk on them. Of course, this caused them to wear out more quickly, but the wear was intentional and meant to symbolize transience (short duration) of life. And then in the 13th and 14th centuries Esslingen grew enormously as the economy was flourishing and the city was literally bursting at the seams. In 1344 a measure was taken to ensure that all graves where the proper size and one can see this evidence of this on the south wall of today's choir in the town church, including the carved inscription: “IS DIU LENGI/BRAITI THE GRAPSTAIN”, which was then on the outside wall next to the cemetery (photo). The undertakers were therefore able to make measurements directly on site for the grave and tombstone sizes and the grave length measurement is exactly 3.5 cubits, or about 63 inches. One can see the remains of many graves, which are now embedded and preserved in the church exteriors walls. (photo)
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Secrets of Esslingen Series – The “Neidkopf”
​One of the objects that many of my guests notice during our walking tours is the “Neidkopf” on the Webergasse in Esslingen. This is one of Esslingen’s oldest streets and has many interesting buildings and a long history. On one particular house, there is a model of a wolf (or dog) chained to the building and one of the few remaining “Neidkopf” (see picture) What is a Neidkopf you may ask? It comes from an old high German word “Neid”, which means hate, anger or envy and would roughly translate in English as “grotesque mask” They were mounted on house gables, city walls, or doors on medieval buildings and might have been used to ward off evil spirits, or the owners might have decorated their houses with them eliciting a range of emotions from funny to erudite, from beautiful to horrifying to grotesque. The wolf on its corner, is presumably there to keep predators or evil spirits away. If you are interested in Esslingen history, check out the new “Secrets of Esslingen Tour”
The Oldest Wooden House in Germany
As a tour guide in Esslingen, I am always excited to present the oldest wooden house in Germany from 1266. This date was verified using a technique called dendrochronologie, which identifies the wood's ring pattern and matches it to a known standard. This houses ground floor was originally built as a "hall",and the upper floors were added several centuries later. The eastern side of the house is the oldest,while the western portion burned and was rebuilt sometime after 1600. It may hold this age record permanently, because houses built prior to this time were "post and beam" structures, with the supporting posts were dug into the ground and rotted after 30 to 50 years at ground level. Therefore, it is unlikely that half-timbered houses will be found before 1200. It was only in the second half of the 13th century that the supporting posts were no longer dug into the ground, but placed as posts on stones or wall bases, allowing the houses to last for centuries.​​​
The Old City Hall (Das alte Rathaus)
This building built originally in 1424 is the iconic building on Esslingen’s market square and previously served as the tax office and official citizens hall. The baroque-style facade with Germany’s oldest astrological clock was an update to the original building in the 1580s. Today the building is used for official city meetings and for many civil weddings that take place on Fridays and Saturdays. Who would have thought that even the rock star Madonna found the building attractive and used it in one of her children’s books? It contains the oldest astronomical clock in Germany and must be seen (see picture - bottom right
The Onion Fable – Why are people from Esslingen called “Die Zwiebele”
Those who have lived in and know Esslingen, have heard that we are called the Zwiebel (onions), we even have a weekly paper with the name, a well-known restaurant and a fountain with an onion, and the former Zwiebelfest (now the Estival in August) Why is this? An old legend of Esslingen says that one day, the devil decided to come to the famous market in Esslingen, knowing that such a big and busy market would be the perfect place to steal a few souls
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He put on his best hat and even trousers, and as he wandered amongst the citizens he was pleased that his fine clothes seemed to hide his true nature. He thought fruit seller would be an excellent target, as he assumed some common farmer would be too dazzled by his outfit to be suspicious. He saw a market stall filled with beautiful apples, with a plain-looking farmer’s wife hawking her wares. He approached the woman. “How much for one of these fine apples?” he asked, with what he assumed was a charming grin.The farmer’s wife wasn’t as dull as the devil assumed. The strange sense of sulfur alerted her that this wasn’t a normal man, and looking at his fine pants is when she noticed hooves where his boots should be! The devil didn’t realize the jig was up. He knew that if anyone made an exchange with him, their soul was his. “That’s a half pfennig for the apple, sir,” she replied. He tossed her the coin, and she tossed him an apple in return. Or so he thought.The devil opened his mouth wide, as a bite of this juicy apple would seal the deal and...“Ugh, that’s a disgusting apple! It’s not sweet at all, it’s bitter and spicy! Wait a second...that’s not an apple, but an onion! You think you’re good enough to trick me, you arrogant wench?!” The devil screamed. “You’re nothing but an onion!” And with that he stamped his foot and disappeared in a puff of smoke to arch rival Stuttgart, while the farmer’s wife howled with laughter. And that’s why citizens of Esslingen are also called “Zwieblinge” to this day.
