Stable isotopic data from the high-resolution limnic sequence in the opencast mine at Grobern (central Germany) confirm the relatively stable climate of the last interglacial deduced from pollen analyses. After significant warming during the transition from the Saalian to the Eemian, stable warm climatic conditions set in once the climatic optimum was reached in the course of biozones E4 to E5. From the middle of biozone E6b, a gradual temperature decrease can be observed, reaching a minimum at the start of biozone E7. The division of the early Weichselian glacial in central Germany into two stadials (Herning, Rederstall) and two interstadials (Brorup, Odderade) is also documented by the findings. Copyright © 2000 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.