Loreley

The Lorelei is a steep slate rock rising 132 metres above the right bank of the River Rhine in the Rhine Gorge. It stands near Sankt Goarshausen in the Rhine-Lahn district of western Germany. The site forms part of the Upper Middle Rhine Valley UNESCO World Heritage Site. A small waterfall once created a murmuring sound here, giving the rock its name. The rock produces a strong echo that amplifies the noise of the river. Over the centuries the area has been an accident blackspot for shipping. The rock’s fame rests on centuries of myth and song. In the 10th century local records already mention frequent shipwrecks at the site. In 1801 Clemens Brentano wrote a ballad about a woman named Lore Lay who died at the rock. Heinrich Heine turned the tale into his famous 1824 poem ‘Die Lorelei’. Friedrich Silcher set Heine’s words to music in 1837, and the song became widely known. The character later appeared in works by Schumann, Apollinaire and Shostakovich. Visitors reach the rock by road or river cruise. A modern amphitheatre stands on the summit, built in the 1930s. The Rhine’s swift currents and narrow channel still make navigation hazardous. A barge carrying 2,400 tonnes of sulphuric acid capsized here in 2011, blocking one of Europe’s busiest waterways. The echo that once carried the murmur of the waterfall is now harder to hear because of riverside development. Yet the legend and the view across the gorge remain unforgettable.