The name Schlenkerla comes from the word "schlenken" which means: "to dangle" ("to hang loosely", or "swing"). Several hundred years ago the owner of the tavern was a man who had been run over by a horse cart. He walked with crooked legs and he used to hang his arms out as he walked. People called him the "Schlenkerla" (the ending "la" on a word often happens in the Netherlands, Belgium, western Germany, and northern France). They would often say: "Let's go to the Schlenkerla" and so the tavern and the beer got its name. The image of this man can still be seen hanging over the entrance to the tavern.
Gabelmann
The Gabelmann ("Fork man") is a statue with a fountain in Bamberg, Germany. It is a Baroque statue of Neptune, the ancient Roman god of the sea, who is holding his three-pronged fork. This is why he has the name Gabelmann.
The Gabelmann stands in the part of the pedestrian precinct called "Grüner Markt" ("Green Market"). In the local Franconian dialect he is called Goblmoo. There is a well-known poem about him written in the dialect.
The Gabelmann is a favourite place for people to meet in Bamberg.
Bamberg Symphony Orchestra
The Bamberger Symphoniker (Bamberg Symphony Orchestra) is a world-famous orchestra from the city of Bamberg, Germany. It was formed in 1946. Most of the musicians who formed the orchestra were Germans who had been forced to leave Czechoslovakia after the World War II. Most of them had previously been members of the German Philharmonic Orchestra of Prague.
The Bamberger Symphoniker have a large modern concert hall in Bamberg which was opened in 1993. They give many concerts there, but they also do a lot of touring to all parts of the world. Their conductor is Jonathan Nott who is an English conductor. Every three years the orchestra organize a "Gustav Mahler Conducting Prize". This is a competition for young conductors. The competition first took place in 2004.
The orchestra have made several CD recordings.
Lübeck law
The Lübeck law () was one of a few charters for town privileges. The Lübeck law said there should be a city council ("Rat"). There should be 20 council members, which were usually elected for 2 years.
Many cities in the Hanseatic League used this law.
Alfonso Daniel Rodríguez Castelao
Alfonso Daniel (30 January 1886 – 7 January 1950), also known as Castelao, was a Spanish writer on Galician language and one of the main symbols of Galicia. As a politician, caricaturist, and writer, he is one of the leading figures of Galician culture and identity.
In 1886, Alfonso Daniel Rodríguez de Castelao was born on 30 January in Rianxo, Galicia, Spain.
Castelao spent his childhood and adolescence in Santa Rosa de Toay, Argentina. In 1900, the Castelao family returned to Rianxo. In 1908, he obtained his degree in Medicine from the University of Santiago de Compostela. The next year, he passed his doctorate in Madrid, where he started to become known as a caricaturist, and settled down in Rianxo, joining the political movement Action Galicia ("Acción Gallega" in Spanish). As a caricaturist, Castelao focussed on the everyday in a humorous way, although after the cruelty and tragedy of the Spanish Civil War, he turned to using his art to denounce the misery of Fascism.
In 1916, he moved to Pontevedra, where he joined the Irmandades da Fala and participated in the "Asembleia Nazonalista de Lugo", signing an important national declaration. In 1920, he became editor of the magazine "Nos" and travelled through France, the Netherlands and Germany. In 1922, he wrote the novel "Un Ollo de Vidro" and in 1924 he joined the "Seminario de Estudos Galegos" and founded the "Coral Polifonica de Pontevedra". Two years later he published "Cousas", and in 1929 he travelled to Brittany to study its stone crosses and publish "As Cruces de Pedra na Bretaña".
Emilia Pardo Bazán
Emilia Pardo Bazán (16 September 1851 – 12 May 1921) (also known as "Emilia, countess de Pardo Bazán") was a Spanish author and scholar.
Bazán was born in A Coruña (also known as La Coruña or Corunna), part of the region of Galicia, and the culture of that area was incorporated into some of her most popular novels, including "Los pazos de Ulloa" ("The Manors of Ulloa") and its sequel, "La Madre Naturaleza" ("Mother Nature"). She was also known for bringing naturalism to Spanish literature, for her detailed descriptions of reality, and for her role in feminist literature of her era.
Married at eighteen to Sr D. Jos Quiroga, a Galician country gentleman, she interested herself in politics, and is believed to have taken an active part in the underground campaign against Amadeo of Spain and, later, against the republic. In 1876 she came into notice as the successful competitor for a literary prize offered by the municipality of Oviedo, the subject of her essay being the Benedictine monk, Benito Jerónimo Feijoo. This was followed by a series of articles inserted in "La Ciencia cristiana", a magazine of the purest orthodoxy, edited by Juan M. Orti y plana.
Bamberg Cathedral
Bamberg Cathedral is one of the most famous cathedrals of Germany. It can be seen from a long distance near the top of the hill. It has a very rich history. Its official name is Bamberg Cathedral of St. Peter and St. George. It is also called the Kaiserdom (“Imperial Cathedral”). The cathedral is under the administration of the Roman Catholic Church and is the seat of the Archbishop of Bamberg.
The cathedral was founded in 1004 by the emperor Henry II, and was consecrated in 1012. During the next two centuries it was burnt down twice. The building now is a late Romanesque building with four big towers. It has a choir at both ends. The east chancel is dedicated to St. George. This symbolizes the Holy Roman Empire. The west chancel is dedicated to St. Peter symbolizing the Pope.
It took a long time for the cathedral to be built, and during that time tastes in architecture changed. This is why we can see several styles in different parts of the cathedral, particularly Romaneque and Gothic styles. Between these two styles is the Transitional style, and this is the way the nave was built.
The cathedral is about 94 m long, 28 m broad, 26 m high, and the four towers are each about 81 m high. There are lots of sculptures in the cathedral. One of the most magnificent ones is the marble tomb of Henry II, the founder of the cathedral, and his wife, the empress Cunigunde. It took the famous sculptor Tilman Riemenschneider 14 years to carve: between 1499 and 1513. The tomb is slightly higher than floor level because below there is a crypt. The carvings round the side tell of various episodes in the lives of the imperial couple.
There is a beautiful Nativity altar in the south transept made in limewood by the famous artist Veit Stoss. He made it when he was about 80 years old. His son asked him to build it. His son was a Carmelite prior in the nearby city of Nürnberg. He was expelled from Nürnberg because he was against the Protestants at the time of the Reformation. This meant that his father was never paid for his beautiful work, which was soon moved to Bamberg.