The Goldene Aue (German: "golden lowland", also " ... bottom" or " ... meadow" / " ... pasture", with "Au[e]" referring to a low-lying area, often a wetland) is a valley in eastern Germany, in the states Thuringia and Saxony-Anhalt.
It is bordered by the mountain ranges Harz in the north, and Windleite [de] and Kyffhäuser in the south.
For a long time, the middle and lower Golden Aue formed a lake, which over time was transformed into an impenetrable swamp area due to silt deposits and natural erosion phenomena.
[1] The area was drained in the Middle Ages by Flemish settlers under the supervision of Walkenried Abbey, and transformed into farmland.
Goldene Aue is also the name of two Verwaltungsgemeinschaften ("collective municipalities") in the valley: This Thuringia location article is a stub.