When did Goethe write the poem on the Goethehäuschen?

On the hut's wall in September 1780, during one of his working visits to Ilmenau as the district's mining and tax administrator.

Can visitors read the poem there today?

Yes — a photograph of Goethe's original inscription is shown alongside the poem in sixteen languages, free for anyone who makes the climb.

Literary landmark

Est. 1780

Goethehäuschen

About This Site

The Goethehäuschen is the small shelter on the summit of the Kickelhahn, Ilmenau's 861-metre home mountain, where on 6 September 1780 Goethe wrote the eight lines that became "Wandrers Nachtlied II" — "Über allen Gipfeln ist Ruh." The building burned down in 1870 and was rebuilt to the original design four years later; it stands open to anyone who climbs the mountain, the verses now shown in sixteen languages.^[1]

Eight lines on a wall, September 1780

Goethe wrote the poem on the hut's wall during a stay on the mountain in September 1780, one of his many working visits to Ilmenau as the district's mining and tax administrator. The poem closes on the line often translated as "soon you too will be at rest."

Burned and rebuilt, 1870–1874

Carelessness by berry-pickers burned the shelter down on 12 August 1870. It was reconstructed to the original design four years later, in 1874, and today shows a photograph of Goethe's original inscription along with the poem in sixteen languages, free for any visitor who makes the climb to read.^[1]

The mountain it stands on

The Kickelhahn, at 861 metres, is Ilmenau's home mountain and the highest point on the twenty-kilometre Goethewanderweg. A viewing tower on the summit, built in 1855 and thoroughly restored between 2019 and 2021, climbs 107 steps to a platform at 882 metres.^[2]

Questions visitors ask

When did Goethe write the poem on the Goethehäuschen?: On the hut's wall in September 1780, during one of his working visits to Ilmenau as the district's mining and tax administrator.
What happened to the original building?: Berry-pickers' carelessness burned it down on 12 August 1870; it was reconstructed to the original design four years later, in 1874.^[1]
Can visitors read the poem there today?: Yes — a photograph of Goethe's original inscription is shown alongside the poem in sixteen languages, free for anyone who makes the climb.
What mountain is the Goethehäuschen on?: The Kickelhahn, at 861 metres Ilmenau's home mountain and the highest point on the twenty-kilometre Goethewanderweg, with a viewing tower built in 1855 and restored between 2019 and 2021.^[2]