Venue

A city of 200,000 inhabitants in the heart of Germany with the UNESCO world cultural heritage of the “Wasserspiele "* and the “Herkules”. Likewise, the entire mountain park of Kassel is considered a universal cultural heritage of mankind. In addition to these monumental buildings, art and culture always find a home through the local museums and the repeated exhibition of modern art, the "documenta".

Descending a long hill dominated by a giant statue of Herkules, the monumental water displays of Wilhelmshoehe were begun by Landgrave Carl of Hesse-Kassel in 1689 and were developed further into the 19^th century. Reservoirs and channels behind the Herkules Monument supply water to a complex system of hydro-pneumatic devices that supply the site’s large Baroque water theatre, grotto, fountains and 350-metre long Grand Cascade. Beyond this, channels and waterways wind across the axis, feeding a series of dramatic waterfalls and wild rapids, the geyser-like Grand Fountain which leaps 50 m high, the lake and secluded ponds that enliven the Romantic garden created in the 18^th century. The great size of the park and its waterworks along with the towering Herkules statue constitute an expression of the ideals of absolutist Monarchy while the ensemble is a remarkable testimony to the aesthetics of the Baroque and Romantic periods.

The Herkules statue is made of copper depicting the ancient Greek demigod Heracles (German: Herkules). The statue is located at the top of a pyramid, which in turn stands on top of an octagon. This octagon as well as the cascades which are leading over 200 steps to the entire monument are made of tuff stone [unesco.org].

In the Bergpark Wilhelmshoehe the two major monuments Octagon with Herkules statue and Loewenburg are built with tuff stone. Due to the softness and high porosity of the tuff, it is quite workable. But therefore, the resistance against weathering is rather low. From 2005 to 2018 the monuments have been restored, on the one hand with with original tuff from the Habichtswald or one the other hand with an artifical tuff, which was developed at University of Kassel. During the excursion the monumental water features of Wilhelmshoehe will be seen as well as the Octagon with Herkules statue and the Loewenburg.

*Historic water installation with waterfalls and fountains in the mountain park