European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - December 13, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Quot fill Germany a Gsg a a a i r Isbir a it a �9�svv\ a a �v0p. A a a 5-�?T sir a a Quot a a is fir wry or amp i no i r lip pc ,e1& we Quot of s a it a \ t w a be to it it. To. Just Quot it Ltd a Ltd amp Quot to v a t above the former residence of Martin Luther now a museum. Right the Luther Oak. Martin Luther s City survives communist Rule k Wittenberg owes Moslof it s fume to Martin Luther. It was in this City on oct. 31, 1517, that the augustinian Monk theologian and University professor posted his 95 1 Hess and ignited the Scio religious firestorm of the a reformation. Quot the popular account of the event is that he nailed the document to the door of the Mehlos Skirchen but this May he apocryphal. The door and much of the Church were destroyed by fire in october 1760, during the seven years War both were later reconstructed and today attract thousands of visitors annually the new Bronze theses door dedicated in 1858 can be viewed from. Collegian Strasse the City s main Street. 1 Luther was not Wittenberg s Only famous  City was also Home to fellow Reform theologian Phillip Melanchton artist Lucas cranach the elder and Saxon Prince Frederick the Wise who founded the University where both Luther and Melanchton  of Wittenberg s value in attracting tourists East. Germany s former communist rulers were comparatively generous with restoration funds some of the sprucing up was done in conjunction with the Luther memorial year of a 1983. As a result the downtown area is More attractive a than Many Eastern German cities. There is less crumbling stucco More fresh paint and varnish. Surrounding Moslof the downtown area is , an extensive and Well kept band of greenery i  by foot paths. But though the landscaping and buildings Are Preller _ the. Reality behind  is the same As in the rest of the former German democratic Republic residents of the beautifully restored one time patrician Homes around the Market Square Stoke their Heaters from piles of Brown Coal piled on the sidewalks. Our hotel a the Goldener Adler a  Central Market Square featured filthy a. Carpeting Back breaking Beds and hallways that looked like a red army  its open air Market restaurants cafes and shops the area around the Central Square in Wittenberg has a vitality that approaches a Western City of its size 54,000. Toje carefully restored Renaissance style City Hall adds a special touch of class to the Market Square. A Block away from the Market Square is the. Marie Kirche Stmary s Church where Luther preached. Us spartan Interior is in keeping with the. Lutheran doctrine. All the windows but one. Are dear. Leaded Glace the wooden pews Are Plain a  tin padded the Only Flash Folio Lar is the splendid altarpiece w Ith its painting of the last supper done by Cmach the elder and his son. A  blocks away on College Strasse is tire. Mehlos Skirchen whose splendidly ornate Interior  Sarcophagi of Luther and Molane hilon a i in Sharp contrast to the  the Muir a Nirdi  soaring grandeur of the  equally impressive. The. C lurch s Tower a a strange combination of an Neadem onion dome and a Lili greed gothic spire a is one of the a mod  impressive in All of germane a a a. Massive bulwark that looms above the surrounding buildings its design is verbalized in a quote irom Luther a hymn a a mighty fortress is our Goc a that wraps the. Tower in a mosaic band. V to  the. Other end of  is the  and museum a treasure trove of artwork documents and historical artefacts. Included in the museum s extensive. A collection Are woodcuts books clothing letters paintings and jewelry. Among the priceless objects on . Cranach s the ten commandments and a Wittenberg Bible. Visitors can also View Luther s  few buildings away is Melanchton s House and a. A Block in the other direction is the Luther Oak which i. Commemorates the site where in 1.520, la her burned the papal Bull threatening him with  a Quot unless he recanted his Quot heresy. A.  Oiler noteworthy landmarks in the City arc the Castle a and the Elbe Bridge. V a a. Quot. A a outside the old City Are the same sights you find All Evera torn Germany ancient crumbling buildings Newar apartment Hocks built in huge numbingly uniform a o -mplexe., and dirty Industry. A. With a rubber products factory agrochemical Plab and foundries Wittenberg does Mure than its is Cue in. Contributing to Eastern Germany s most abundant expo pollution. A. A ,. A. 8 stripes Magazine december 13,1990