ABSTRACT
In 1828, when Goethe wrote these verses as a caption for a copperplate of his house in Weimar, engraved by Ludwig Schütze after a drawing by Otto Wagner in 1827, he had become not only a literary, but also a tourist celebrity (see Figure 4.1). For an increasing number of visitors Goethe’s house at the Frauenplan was an obligatory part of their sightseeing tours. One could even say that some people went on a pilgrimage to Weimar. 3 If people could not meet the great poet in person, let alone talk to him, they at least wanted to have a look at his domain. To this day, no visitor to Weimar can evade the influence of the genius loci, the spirit of the place. 4 Otto Wagner and Ludwig Schütze, Goethe's House in Weimar, with autograph verses by Goethe, 1828 (© Klassik Stiftung Weimar) https://s3-euw1-ap-pe-df-pch-content-public-p.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/9780203939680/9ceb79b3-f9a4-4359-b807-ff39f2e7abf3/content/fig4_1_B.jpg" xmlns:xlink="https://www.w3.org/1999/xlink"/>
