Druidenhain

Useful Information

Location:	Druidenhain Engenreuther Höhle, Muggendorf Wohlmannsgesees, 91346 Wiesenttal. 550 m southwest of Wohlmannsgesees, near Forchheim. Parking at the road to Burggaillenreuth. (49.786239, 11.260730)
Open:	no restrictions. [2025]
Fee:	free. [2025]
Classification:	Limestone Pavements
Light:	n/a
Dimension:	Ar=1 ha.
Guided tours:	self guided
Photography:	allowed
Accessibility:	no
Bibliography:	A. Baier, Th. Hochsieder (1990): Der Druidenhain bei Wohlmannsgesees/Oberfranken, Eine vermutete Kultstätte unter dem Aspekt klufttektonischer und bodenkundlicher Untersuchungen. Geol. Bl. NO-Bayern 40, 1/2: 35-72, 15 Abb., Erlangen 1990. W. Machalett (1986): Der Druidenhain bei Wohlmannsgesees und seine Beziehung zur Megalithkultur des Abendlandes, in: Druidenhain und Externsteine bei Wohlmannsgesees (Neuauflage): 3-6; Wohlmannsgesees. H. Roggenkamp (1986): Der Druidenhain bei Wohlmannsgesees/Krs. Ebermannstadt/Ofr., in: Druidenhain und Externsteine bei Wohlmannsgeseees (Neuauflage): 7-15; Wohlmannsgesees.
Address:	Tourist-Information Wiesenttal (TIWT), Forchheimer Str. 8, 91346 Wiesenttal, Tel: +49-9196-929931. E-mail:
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then. Please check rates and details directly with the companies in question if you need more recent info.

History

1863	the guess that offerings happened here before the area was christianzied is written in the town history of Wohlmannsgesees.
20th century	explored by Georg Richter, mayor of Wohlmannsgesees.
1986	explored by Machalett.
1986	explored by Roggenkamp.

Description

The Druidenhain (Druid Grove) is a very special sight, a collection of strikingly geometric boulders in the forest. The name suggests that druids, or at least pre-Christian or even megalithic people, created a place of worship here. Anyone who has read Asterix will immediately think of the annual meeting in the Carnute Forest. This idea is of course reinforced by local legends and the tourism industry. But these ideas are pure fantasy and originate from the Romantic period.

In fact, there is no archaeological evidence of any pre-Christian use of the site. Only very few decorations on the stones can be artificial, but their purpose is completely unclear due to a lack of comparative material. The stones themselves, as well as their seemingly artificial arrangement, are the result of a natural weathering process along cleavage lines. According to detailed investigations, not a single stone was moved by human hands.

Although Druidenhain is not the Franconian Carnac, the site is still extremely impressive. A labyrinth of moss-covered dolomite rocks can be found in an area of around 1 hectare. These rocks are two to five meters high, two to six meters long and form a kind of chessboard. The rows extend in a northwest-southeast direction. Unfortunately, it is unclear exactly how this weathering took place. It is obvious that rainwater has penetrated the limestone at fissures and widened them. At some point, the fissures are so large that individual standing boulders with almost straight walls are formed. The formation is similar to the formation of caves, and there are also speculations that there was a cave system here and that the rocks further away have a collapsed cave passage between them. There is actually a real cave on site, which is named Engenreuther Höhle.