Jubiläumsbrunnen, Wuppertal

The Jubiläumsbrunnen is located on the northeastern side of Neumarkt, one of the most important inner-city squares in Wuppertal's Elberfeld district.

It was donated in 1895 by the Elberfelder Verschönerungsverein on the occasion of its 25th anniversary - hence "Jubiläumsbrunnen". It was decided that it would have its location in front of the Elberfeld town hall. Construction of the town hall also began in 1895, and the exact location, on the axis of Friedrichstraße and near the main entrance to the town hall, was announced by the town fathers in 1900.

The 11.5 meter high fountain made of red Main sandstone was created in 1900-1901 by the Düsseldorf sculptor Leo Müsch and is a replica of the Neptune Fountain in the Cathedral Square in Trento, Italy.

The multiple curved basin of eight meters in diameter is located on a stepped base. Depicted here are sea gods, mermaids and sea monsters. On a three-story superstructure rises a Neptune about three meters high, complete with accessories. The superstructure is enlivened with tritons, putti and dolphins.

A bronze cartouche on the edge of the pool bears the inscription: "Even before the inauguration, the protective cover of the fountain was removed on September 25, 1901, for the better completion of the remaining work. The moralists were indignant about the permissive depiction of Neptune, in the form of the anatomically correctly modeled pubic region - for them the figures were all too masculinely striking. The indignation of church circles knew no bounds, protest meetings were called and resolutions were drafted. The Bible was quoted by opponents as well as defenders of the fountain. In this heated debate, self-appointed popular educators made short work of cutting off outstanding parts of two of the fountain's corner figures overnight, targeting "the symbols of masculinity," as the local press noted at the time. Walter Bloem, writer from Elberfeld, wrote in verse against the unknown culprit: "He who creates and sustains the world, chops it off and cowardly puts it in the corner". Bloem's drama in 4 acts The Jubilee Fountain prompted the pastor who had once married Bloem to suggest that he leave the church.

In the city council meeting on October 1, the Neptune matter was part of the meeting, it was decided that Neptune should become a real man again. But on October 20, the center protested against the exposure at a meeting, from which the ladies were complimented out - because possibly delicate things could come up. In addition to the Catholic Church, the Protestant Church now also protested against the monument, sometimes thousands of people surrounded the offensive fountain.

On October 28, the Jubilee Fountain was handed over to the public without ceremony. The city councilors met again on October 29 to debate it. August Freiherr von der Heydt as chairman of the Verschönerungsverein was particularly strongly attacked. The initiator of the 40,000 monetary unit gift to the city, together with his wife Selma von der Heydt, had been the subject of public moral debate. In 1893, Selma had had a controversial Heinrich Heine monument erected in Küllenhahn, which was now up for debate again in 1901. Von der Heydt finally agreed to have the offensive body parts replaced with acanthus leaves. Nevertheless, the fight for the demolition of the fountain continued.

The question of how morality and art relate to each other was first postponed to the next city council meeting and then was to be finally resolved on February 4. By 17 votes to 13, the proposal was approved to have the fountain...

That is how it remained. The chipped symbols of Neptune's masculinity, however, were later repaired, and the scars can still be seen today.

As an outstanding example of the sculptural art of historicism, the fountain was entered in the list of monuments of the city of Wuppertal on March 30, 2000. There was a need for renovation: vandalism and frost damage had left their mark. However, the city lacked the money for a major renovation, so it took until July 2013 that the renovation could be tackled with the help of private donors. The main work on the fountain itself could be completed by April 18, 2014; work on the area surrounding the fountain is still pending.