Kloster Göllingen

Kloster Göllingen is a Benedictine monastery in Kyffhäuserland with a complex of preserved buildings including towers, cloisters, and underground chambers. The structures display medieval stonework with columns and carefully crafted arches throughout the grounds.

The site was founded around 1005 as a daughter house of Hersfeld Abbey and shaped the region's religious landscape for centuries. Following the Reformation and secularization in the early 1600s, the monastery was converted to secular uses.

The monastery today serves as a place of spiritual reflection where visitors can sense the deep religious roots of the community that once lived here. The sacred spaces retain a contemplative quality shaped by centuries of monastic life.

The monastery is best visited by car or bus from Sondershausen station, as it sits in a rural setting away from town centers. Wear sturdy shoes for exploring the grounds, as pathways are sometimes uneven and underground areas can be damp.

Beneath the monastery complex runs a long water tunnel that carried water from the Kleine Wipper river to salt production facilities in Bad Frankenhausen. This underground channel reveals how monks used their surroundings for economic purposes and applied their engineering skills.