Tetzelstein

The Tetzelstein stands on a clearing in the Elm, a ridge about twenty kilometres east of Braunschweig. A low, square block of Elmkalkstein, it measures 1.36 m in length but only 88 cm above ground. First recorded in 1676 as the stone on the Great Rode, it was moved twice before archaeologists placed it in its present position in 1935. A cast-iron fence was added in 1856, and a ring of hornbeam now surrounds the stone. The monument draws its name from Johann Tetzel, the Dominican indulgence preacher who never visited the Elm. A neogothic column eight metres high, built in 1846 by Anton Reinhold Edler von Lübeck, stands about one hundred metres away and often causes confusion. Inside the column a plaque retells the local tale that an indulgence seller was robbed and killed on the spot in 1518. Historical records show Tetzel died peacefully in Leipzig the following year, yet the legend persisted and was shaped by figures such as Philipp Melanchthon and Wilhelm Bode. Visitors find the Tetzelstein on a broad forest clearing beside the Tetzelstein inn, a timber building in Swiss chalet style built in 1894. A gravel path leads from the car park to the stone, which bears a simple cross at its top. Behind the column a wooden notice explains the legend, while a small memorial to Gustav Mack stands a little further south. The clearing is also the start of the Elm mountain festival route and a popular Sunday meeting place for motorcyclists.