Little Aslan has been fascinated by a strange monument in the Hauptstraße for some time.
Just a stone's throw from Innsbrucker Platz, a large column sculpted out of stone stands in the middle of the traffic. At its top is a golden oval-shaped ornament with a pointed tip.
Aslan thinks that everyone will know about the column. However, on asking his friends, he discovers that very few people know anything about it. Worse still, people aren't even interested in it.
Even so, Aslan manages to find some information about the column. It is said to have been built in Prussian times more than 200 years ago. It reminds Aslan of the military helmets of the Prussian army.
There are other similar columns between Berlin and Potsdam. They served as way markers between the two cities. When Aslan returns to the Hauptstraße, he discovers an inscription engraved in the column with the words "1 Meile von Berlin". A "Meile" was the distance that could be travelled in one hour on horseback.
What did Hauptstraße look like in the past?
It was a path on which citizens and goods travelled, guided by the triumphant column. The column was a beacon, like a lighthouse for the rural areas.
Aslan wondered how the Prussians would manage in the today's Hauptstraße.
Drowned in a dense urban landscape, the column is no longer so visible. It even seems somewhat neglected, with the exception of its golden ornament. The other day, Aslan saw someone at the foot of the column giving it back some of its former glory.
Aslan is pleased to know that he is not the only one for whom this monument has special meaning.
