Black Lake, Rügen · The Lake Where the Goddess Bathed

In the Jasmund forest on Rügen there is a small lake of black water, ringed by beeches. The goddess Hertha is said to bathe in the lake once a year and then return to the woods; those who drive her wagon must cover their faces, and anyone who sees her must stay in the lake.

Scholars of the 19th century recorded this as a survival of a northern goddess, and the lake took the name “Hertha Lake”.

A wooden boardwalk runs by the lake. The woods are so quiet that no birdsong is heard, and that much is true — locals say the trees are too dense, so the birds have gone to the far shore.

Folklore / Rügen · Germany / Time immemorial