A prize money of one million euros promised the city of Bielefeld in the summer to anyone who could prove that Bielefeld does not exist. Now the city announced: Nobody did it. "We say goodbye to the myth that we do not exist," said Mayor Pit Clausen.
Around 2,000 people took part in the competition, according to city marketing. With scientific treatises, children's pictures, comics and historical maps they tried to prove Bielefeld's non-existence. Alone 350 shipments came from abroad.
"For laymen, these essays were often incomprehensible," said the communication manager of Bielefeld Marketing. "So we had the fun to crack this alleged evidence together with scientists from the University of Bielefeld and the City Archive Bielefeld."
Background is a flaring up conspiracy theory: Bielefeld does not exist. It goes back to a satirical text that appeared on the internet 25 years ago. "When I published the satire on the Bielefeld conspiracy in 1994 on the Internet, I wanted to make fun of conspiracy theories in general," said author Achim hero. "It was not primarily about Bielefeld."
The joke became a perennial favorite. Bielefeld proves its existence after the end of the action for final proof. A 600-pound memorial stone in the old town is now to remember what - hopefully the Bielefeld - now once and for all is clear. Bielefeld exists. For real.
