A Well Kept Man

The first overnight stop on my German Heritage Tour was a stop in the birthplace (on subsequently death place) of Martin Luther, Eisleben. It was quite obvious that I was now in what was formerly East Germany due to the deteriorating buildings and lack of charm. Most of my time was spent in the streets wandering about looking for the various sights, but being a small town I was able to find everything quite easily. Although the house we he was born burned to the ground many years ago, it has been rebuilt in what they assume to be an indicative style of the time as no original plans exist of the house. A rather large museum adjoins the home which is dedicated to his life and the reformation (very well presented).

Across town is the home he died in, which is a little less exciting except for those who are a bit morbid and like such things. A death mask sits in a glass case at this house to show that he died here (I don't think they had CSI Miami in Germany back then so they made the mask to prove to everyone else that he actually died I guess). I tried to get into the various churches in town where he either was baptised, parishioned (I think I made up that word), and preached before his death but they were all locked up. For the diehard Luther fans out there, this town is worth the visit, but for those who just want to see one Luther site while in Germany this is probably not your place (Wittenberg is much better).

A recurring item of interest is that every town that Luther is associated with in Germany seems to have a statue in the town square of him. I've included a snapshot of this as well as a curious picture of a Soviet cemetery near my hotel (definitely Eastern Germany).