GutsMuths Monument

Honor where honor is due

The GutsMuths memorial is a memorial to Johann Christoph Friedrich GutsMuths, the founder of the German gymnastics movement and an important reform pedagogue.
The memorial was erected in 1904 on what was then Mummentalplatz, which was renamed GutsMuths-Platz in 2009. It was created by the Berlin sculptor Richard Anders and inaugurated on May 20, 1904. The foundation was made by the German Gymnastics Teachers Association.
The memorial consists of a larger-than-life figurative representation of GutsMuth, who is depicted as a hiker accompanied by his favorite student, Carl Ritter. Ritter is considered one of the co-founders of scientific geography and was also born in Quedlinburg. The group of figures stands on a high pedestal made of granite. The design of the group of figures is based on the Francke monument in Halle (Saale).
The base is octagonal at the bottom and then turns into a cylindrical shape. Originally there were four pedestal reliefs separated by stylized oak trees on the monument, which depicted scenes from GutsMuth's life. The Art Nouveau reliefs were reconstructed around 1995, but are no longer on the monument.
On the edge of the base, a circulating writing refers to GutsMuths.
In 1945, the bronze plaques on the memorial were removed and reattached in 1989 to celebrate GutsMuth's 200th birthday.

GutsMuths was a pedagogue and teacher. He found sport especially important for developing body and mind. He is also seen as the founder of modern gymnastics.