Kyffhäuser Hills

Land: Thuringia

Situation and topography

The Kyffhäuser range, 19km/12mi long by 7km/4.5mi wide, rises like a miniature version of the Harz above the Goldene Aue ("Golden Meadow") below the southern edge of the Harz, a fertile and densely populated depression watered by the river Helme, and the Frankenhausen valley (the Diamantene Aue, "Diamond Meadow"), both of which merge into the Unstrut depression.

There is a famous cave in the range, as well as a monument and a museum.

In the spa town of Bad Frankenhausen at the foot of the range can be found a Baroque palace (now a museum), several churches and some burghers' houses from the heyday of the salt trade in the region.