Love stories in Cologne
Liebesgeschichten in Köln
“Love locks” (Liebesschlösser) are for many a concrete declaration and manifestation of new and continuing love.
Found also in other places around the world, these locks now decorate the south fence of the Hohenzollernbrücke bridge in Köln (Cologne), Germany. Since their appearance here in 2008, the locks have been described by various sources, including the following from Germany and written in English:
- Locks of love tinkling in Cologne – Rhein Online
- Cologne Gets a Lock on Love – Deutsche Welle
- Folklorists baffled over ‘love locks’ in Cologne – The Local
At the end of September 2011, Altweibersommer or Germany’s version of “Indian summer” was in full effect with warm sunny days and many people escaping work and school to spend as much possible time lounging along the river Rhein.
I’ve been to Köln frequently to visit friends, drink Kölsch, eat döner. The conditions were perfect, and curiosity got the better of me – I finally made my way to the Hohenzollernbrücke.
After taking my own time on the bridge, I was pleasantly surprised by the size and shape of locks, and by the various inscriptions.
“Bridge lock including engraving, from 29.50 Euros …”
Ribbon and memento
Lining up the locks
Out of pure love | aus lauter Liebe
A mysterious (love-) equation.
Hohenzollernbrücke: Cathedral (left), RE5 train to Emmerich (right).
Our journey together | unsere gemeinsame Reise
Silver wedding anniversary | zur silbernen Hochzeit
The key to unlocking someone’s shell
Design
Sacred figure
Furious directive or willful fantasy?
Hey you | Hey du
Honey | Schatzi
The big five-oh
Well worn
Will you marry me? | Willst du mich Heiraten?
A and J
Rainbow love
More rainbow love
“Love is only a four letter word.”
What does it say about society when a padlock is a symbol for love? | Was ist das für eine Gesellschaft in der das Symbol für Liebe ein Vorhängeschloss ist?
Watchful eye by dawn
Most of the love-locks on Cologne’s Hohenzollernbrücke are on the south side of the bridge. Shown in the map below are the west (blue) and east (green) approaches on foot, after alighting from trains at either Cologne Main Train Station (Köln Hauptbahnhof, Köln Hbf) or Cologne Messe/Deutz Station (K-Messe/Deutz), respectively. Regional trains, S-Bahn trains, and local U-Bahn trains pass through both stations on either side of the river Rhein.
I made all of the photos above on 29 September and 1 October 2011. This post appears on Fotoeins Fotopress at fotoeins.com.
PostScript:
- Nicole Blaess-Smith found beautiful love locks in Copenhagen and in Helsinki.
- Anita Mac wrote about a different and historical perspective to the locks she found and photographed in Prague.
- Anita also provided a wonderful summary (and a bucket list!) of where else in the world love locks appear.
Fotoeins Fotografie 
27 Responses to “Love stories in Cologne”
The close-ups of the locks are great! I’d been to Seoul, where there’s a love lock monument as well. You’ve inspired me to write about it!
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Hi, Sarahlynn. I’m interested in reading about how lovelocks are displayed in Seoul, and about the similarities and differences by comparison. Thanks again for reading and for your comment!
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Great collection! Love the turtle lock. Saw something similar in Prague, although not quite so many! Nice post, especially on the eve of St Valentine!
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Hi, Anita. I’d been working on this post for a little while, but when I saw your post about a similar version in Prague, it was time, and indeed timely to get that post done in time for February 14. 🙂 Thanks again for reading!
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What a special post!!!! 🙂 Stunning photos Henry…. just loving all the locks!!! 😀 **
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Thank you, Xandré! The locks are pretty and cool, aren’t they? 😉
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That’s such a neat concept. You captured it very well with your photos Henry.
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Hey, Samuel. It’s generally a little difficult to find a proper balance between text and description with visuals and photographs. In this case, the locks themselves were compelling, and I’m sure you’d agree that a minimum of words in this case was the right choice. 😉 Thanks again for reading and commenting!
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I’ve heard about this, but haven’t seen it yet, what an interesting idea. Great closeups!
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Hi, Laurel – does this post or other similar descriptions now entice you to visit Köln and have a look? 😉 Thanks for your comment!
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These are wonderful photos of the Hohenzollernbrücke and the love locks! I really like the concept of them — so romantic. I also loved visiting Cologne.
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Hi, Cathy. Thanks for coming by and reading my post on the love locks in Cologne! I like the concept, too, especially when people put the locks down and throw the lock-key over into the river. Cologne is a great party town, and it’s got great people there: it is one of my favourite cities in Germany. Thanks again for your comment!
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Henry, I’ve seen a few love locks in Berlin and London but never so many in one place. Great post!
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Hi! If you haven’t yet visited or if you haven’t been back in awhile, Köln is not that far by train, as you know, and the place is good for a short weekend trip. A short distance from both Dom and Hauptbahnhof, the walk across the Hohenzollernbrücke is worth a look. I don’t know why I didn’t so in past visits, but I’m glad I finally did. Thanks for reading and for your comment! 🙂
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Great lock collection – there are some truly special locks in your photos! I hope you don’t mind, but I am going to add your link to the post I did on the Love Locks in Prague – I love your collection!
http://traveldestinationbucketlist.com/2012/01/29/love-locks-prague/
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Hi, Anita: I don’t mind if you add a link to your post. Thank you kindly!
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[…] For an amazing photographic collection of Love Locks, click here. Fotoeins Fotopress also has an impressive collection at Love Stories in Cologne. […]
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Amazing photos, Henry. I’ve seen similar bridges of padlocks in various cities across Europe, but nothing to the scale of Cologne (although I guess it depends on the availability of long bridges too). Last year, for our anniversary, we visited Warsaw and added our own engraved padlock to the bridge there. This year, I think we’ll get to Cologne for the Cologne Christmas markets 2012 and add another padlock to those already there 🙂 It would be so nice to have a padlock in all major European cities, one for each year we’ve been together.
I notice a lot of similar locks in your photos – are there a lot of shops close to the area that sell them to tourists? Perhaps along with engraving services? I’ll bet that’s a great little earner if you can get a shopfront in eyeshot of the bridge.
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Hi, Emma.
The sign in the second photo (from the top of the post) indicates that one can in fact purchase a lock with engraving to be placed onto the bridge. I don’t think they were the only service available …
However, at either end of the bridge, there was no visible “hawker” selling locks or engraving services.
Thank you again for stopping by and for your comment!
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[…] The place is rich with Roman history (Colonia, anyone?), you can drink some fine Kölsch beer, learn about the history of “cologne” in Cologne, or cheer on the homeside at the Rhein-Energie Stadion and sing chants in the local Kölsch dialect in support of the football team 1. FC Köln. Then again, another highlight may well be the “love locks” on the Hohenzollern bridge. […]
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[…] Love Stories in Cologne […]
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I love love locks. 🙂 The ones you’ve photographed on the bridge in Cologne are particularly cool because some are so unusual. But I’m a fan of love locks everywhere. Nothing wrong with a little romance.
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Hi, Cathy! I have no problem with the locks either: just as love is diverse, I really enjoyed looking for diversity in the locks themselves. One of my photos in Cologne is of some graffiti on the bridge’s pavement: a question of the importance of the symbolism from the locks versus the actual love itself. When I was in Cologne last month (January), I walked across the bridge a couple of times, and that “graffiti question” was no longer there. From an engineering perspective, it is interesting to ask just how much extra weight the bridge can take from the padded locks before there’s a real issue. Finally, I was surprised by the sight of some locks in Perth, Australia, but on a much smaller scale and the locks had to be “approved”; I guess I’ll have to write that up some time, too! 🙂 Thanks for reading and for your comment!
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[…] to each other, and throw the key over and into the river. You can see more photos of these locks here. “Aus lauter Liebe” is the title of the 2011 album by the Cologne-based band Klee, and […]
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