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See also:RIESENGEBIRGE (Bohemian Krkonose) , or See also:Giant Mountains, a lofty and rugged See also:group on the boundary of See also:Silesia and Bohemia, between the upper courses of the See also:Elbe and the See also:Oder. They See also:form the highest portion of the Sudetic See also:system which separates See also:south-See also:east See also:Prussia from the See also:Austrian See also:empire, and finds its natural continuation towards the N.W. in the See also:Erzgebirge, the Thuringian See also:Forest and the Harz Mountains. Adjoining the Isergebirge and the Lausitzergebirge on the W., and the Eulengebirge and the Adlergebirge on the E. and S.E., the Riesengebirge proper run S.E. and N.W. between the See also:sources of the ' Zacken and the See also:Bober, for a distance of 23 m., with a breadth of 14 M. They See also:cover an See also:area of about 425 sq. m., three-fourths of which is in Austrian, and the See also:remainder in Prussian territory. The boundary See also:line follows the See also:crest of the See also:principal See also:chain or See also:ridge (Riesenkamm), which stretches along the See also:northern See also:side of the group, with an. See also:average height of over 4000 ft. The principal peaks are the Reiftrager (4430 ft.), the Hohe Rad (4968 ft.), the See also:Great Sturmhaube (4862 ft.), the Little Sturmhaube (4646 ft.), and, near the east extremity, the See also:Schneekoppe or Riesenkoppe (5266 ft.), the loftiest See also:mountain in northern or central See also:Germany. Roughly parallel to this northern ridge, and separated from it by a See also:long narrow valley known as the Siebengrtinde, there extends on the S. a second and See also:lower chain, of broad massive " saddles," with comparatively few peaks. The See also:chief heights here are Kesselkoppe (4708 ft.), the Krkonose (4849 ft.), the Ziegenriicken and the Brunnenberg (5072 ft.). From both ridges spurs of greater or less length are sent off at various angles, whence a magnificent view is obtained from See also:Breslau to See also:Prague; the lowlands of Silesia, watered by the Oder, and those of Bohemia, intersected by the Elbe and the Moldau, appearing to See also:lie mapped in See also:relief. The See also:summit is crowned by a See also:chapel dedicated to St See also:Lawrence, which once also served as a traveller's shelter. Since 185o the chapel has been restored to its religious use, and a hotel for the See also:accommodation of tourists is built See also:close by. A remarkable group of isolated columnar rocks are those known as the Adersbacher Felsen in a valley on the Bohemian side of - the Riesengebirge, 9 M. W.N.W. of Brannan. - On its northern side this mountain group rises ruggedly and precipitously from the Hirschberg valley; but on its See also:southern side its slope towards Bohemia is very much more See also:gradual. The scenery is in See also:general bold and See also:wild. The Bohemian ridge is cleft about the See also:middle by a deep See also:gorge through which pour the headwaters of the See also:river -Elbe, which finds its source in the Siebengrunde. The Iser, Bober, Aupa, Zacken, Queiss, and a great number of smaller streams also rise among these mountains or on -their skirts; and small lakes and tarns are not unfrequent in the valleys. The Great and Little Schneegruben—two deep rocky gorge-like valleys in which See also:snow remains all the See also:year See also:round—lie to the See also:north of the Hohe Rad. Nearly the whole of the Riesenkamm and the western portion of the southern chain are See also:granite; the eastern extremity of the See also:main ridge and several mountains to the south-east are formed of a See also:species of See also:gneiss; and the greater See also:part of the Bohemian chain, especially its summits, consists of See also:mica-See also:slate. Blocks of these minerals lie scattered on the sides and ridges of the mountains and in the beds of the streams; and extensive See also:turf See also:moors occupy many of the mountain slopes and valleys. The lower parts of the Riesengebirge are clad with forests of See also:oak, See also:beech, See also:pine and See also:fir; above 1600 ft. only the last two kinds of trees are found, and beyond about 3950 ft. only the See also:dwarf pine (Pinus Pumilio). Various alpine See also:plants are found on the Riesengebirge, some of them having been artificially introduced on the Schneekoppe. See also:Wheat is grown at an See also:elevation of 'Soo ft. above the See also:sea-level, and oats as high as 2700 ft. The inhabitants of this mountain region, who are tolerably numerous, especially on the Bohemian side, live for the most part, not in villages, but in scattered huts called " Bauden." They support themselves by the rearing of See also:cattle, tillage, See also:glass-making and See also:linen-See also:weaving. See also:Mining is carried on only to a small extent for See also:arsenic, although there are traces of former more extensive workings for other metals. The Riesengebirge has of See also:late years been made easily accessible by railway, several branches from the main lines, both on the Silesian and Bohemian side, penetrating the valleys, and thus many spots in the Riesengebirge are a See also:good See also:deal frequented in the summer. The Schneekoppe and other summits are annually visited by a considerable number of travellers, notably the spas of Warmbrunn (near Hirschberg) and See also:Flinsberg on the Gneis, and See also:Gorbersdorf, known as a See also:climate See also:health resort for consumptives. The Riesengebirge is the legendary See also:home of Number Nip (Riibezahl), a See also:half-mischievous, half-friendly goblin of See also:German See also:folklore, and various localities in the group are more or less directly associated with his name. See Beemann's Oratio de See also:monte Giganteo (See also:Frankfort a. O. 1679); See also:Daniel, Deutschland, vol. i. pp. 77—78; and Gebauer, See also:Lander- and Volkerkunde, vol. i. Additional information and CommentsThere are no comments yet for this article.
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