Paulus Park
A commemoration of poet
Eduard Paulus
Eduard Paulus, the Younger – 1837-1907 – was a Schwabian poet, feuilletoniste, author and archeologist beloved by his fellow Württembergers for his incisive wit and unrelenting disapproval of the “triumphalism” typified by the brash and bombastic behavior of Kaiser Wilhelm II. Paulus disliked all of the other Prussians as well for their meddlesome presence throughout the German Empire, especially in Württemberg.
I’ve created this little park to commemorate his life and work. Alas, no such park exists in his native Stuttgart where, despite his manifest sophistication, he was loved for his earthy Schwabian view of the world and his constant needling of arrogant authority. The “sculptor”, Herr Paul Preiser, included the famous “Paulus Regenschirm” because Dr. Paulus carried his umbrella with him everywhere, spending much of his life at Celtic “digs” in southern Europe, too often in the rain. More than anyone, he would have appreciated the humor of the pigeon nestled on his Homburg hat.
Because the sculpture is only a few years old, it hasn’t yet acquired the verdigris patina that will turn it a greyish-green during the course of the twentieth century.