Freiberg is just as down-to-earth as it is worth seeing. This is the first impression when walking on the cobblestones of the old town on a sunny working day. The center is full of listed Renaissance and Baroque buildings. And yet there are few tourists on this day, except for a few cyclists. Also, unlike in comparable old towns in Germany, there are only a few souvenir shops. For hairdressers, bakers, butchers and an infocafé for students of the TU Bergakademie Freiberg.
The Golden Gate of the cathedral dates back to the Romanesque predecessor, which was destroyed in a city fire in 1484
Freiberg is located in the north of the Erzgebirge, almost exactly in the middle of the Free State of Saxony. Because silver was discovered by chance in the 12th century, Freiberg became an important city in the Middle Ages. Mining and mineral resources provided growth and prosperity.
The central submarket shows the visitor both at a glance, the wealth and the basis for early development. On the one side the Cathedral of St. Mary, a late Gothic hall church with the Golden Gate from the 13th century. Right next to it is the former Domherrenhof, which has been home to the Mining Museum since 1903. Freiberger citizens have been collecting since 1860, so the appreciation of their own special history has a long tradition.
Good luck, Steiger is coming
Sven Krüger, Lord Mayor of Freiberg, resides in the town hall, an elongated Renaissance building on the Obermarkt. He greets his guests with "happiness on", the traditional greeting of the miners. He also raves about the richness of the cultural landscape, about the mining tradition in the Erzgebirge. Only recently did they uncover old shafts from the 12th and 13th centuries in Freiberg during construction works.
Town Hall and fountain monument with city founder Otto the Rich, his nickname he owes the silver finds of Freiberg
For the Bergakademie in Freiberg, founded in 1765, the young Alexander von Humboldt submitted an opinion for the drainage of a tunnel. In addition, Freiberg had already defined sustainability for the first time in 1913, stresses Sven Krüger. At that time it was about planting new forests – in compensation for the wood consumption to protect the mining tunnels.
For visitors who want to get an idea of the living tradition of the Erzgebirge, the Lord Mayor recommends the mountain parades of the pre-Christmas period. Although mining has been a history since 1990, there are numerous clubs that then festively roam the streets in cities like Annaberg-Buchholz, Freiberg or Schneeberg in historic miner's clothing.
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World Heritage candidate: Montanregion Erzgebirge
Jáchymov – birthplace of the dollar
For the science of the mining industry the renaissance city in the Czech Republic is of central importance. But Jáchimov is famous for his silver coins. The first "Joachimsthaler" – a large silver coin – was minted here in 1520 in the Royal Mint. Over two million coins are said to have been in circulation. The popular coin became the name godfather for the dollar.
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World Heritage candidate: Montanregion Erzgebirge
Red Tower of Death, Jáchymov
The tower was part of the labor camp Vykmanov II, which was built in 1951 near Jáchymov. For years Uranerz was processed here before it was delivered to the Soviet Union. Political inmates detained in labor camps in inhuman conditions toiled here. The Red Tower of Death, today a national cultural monument, is reminiscent of its ailments.
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World Heritage candidate: Montanregion Erzgebirge
Frohnauer Hammer, Annaberg-Bucholz
Used until the 15th century as a flour mill, the plant was rebuilt in 1621 to make silver blanks for coins. Later came the copper and iron processing, until 1904 were produced here tools for mining and agriculture. Today it is the oldest blacksmith museum in Germany.
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World Heritage candidate: Montanregion Erzgebirge
Geotop disk mountain
30 meters high, the basalt columns of the Scheibenberg tower into the sky. He is one of three large basalt mountains in the Western Erzgebirge. Popularly they are called "organ pipes". Created millions of years ago from cooling lava. A geological phenomenon that provided important insights into the formation of the earth's surface. It is one of the most important geotopes in Germany.
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World Heritage candidate: Montanregion Erzgebirge
Old town Marienberg
Like many other towns in the Erzgebirge, Marienberg was founded because it was here that rich ore deposits were discovered. That was 1521. From a bird's-eye view you can see very well the symmetrical structure of the city. From the one-hectare square marketplace, a right-angled road network goes to all sides. The historic center in the Renaissance style is a listed building.
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World Heritage candidate: Montanregion Erzgebirge
Tiefen-Bünau Stollen, Altenberg
The Tiefen-Bünau-Stollen near Altenberg is a true European. He leads into the interior of the earth both on the German and on the Czech side. The region around the Saxon Altenberg stands for 600 years of mining. Here was one of the most important tin deposits in Europe. Today, the visitor mine "United Zwitterfeld zu Zinnwald" provides insights into the working world underground.
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World Heritage candidate: Montanregion Erzgebirge
Bünau Epitaph, town church Lauenstein
For some families, mining brought untold wealth. In the case of the Bünau family, this lucrative relationship is even set in stone. As a four-storey altar in pyramid shape. Paid out of the earnings from ore mining. The family members are shown in life size, the jewelry elements are made of precious alabaster and jasper.
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World Heritage candidate: Montanregion Erzgebirge
Röhrgraben, Ehrenfriedersdorf
The Röhrgraben is an artificial waterway, which over a length of 5.5 kilometers, a height difference of 23.5 meters overcomes. He supplied with his water, the energy that was needed in the ore mining to operate the machinery. The ditch was already created in the Middle Ages and decommissioned in 1990. Finally, he supplied the textile industry with energy.
Author / Author: Evan Woodnorth
The long way to the World Heritage
In the Silbermannstraße, not far from the town hall, Helmuth Albrecht, professor at the Freiberger Mining University, works. He leads the Institute of History of Technology and Industrial Archeology and is one of the driving forces behind the World Heritage application. He is from the beginning. Since the first deliberations in the Saxon Ministry of Science in March 2000. His first study disappeared in the drawer. And when the Saxon capital of Dresden lost its World Heritage title in 2009 because of a new bridge over the Elbe, there was hardly any political support left.
"So a UNESCO application had to be developed cross-border, together." The historian Helmuth Albrecht in his Freiberg office
Helmuth Albrecht was not discouraged. "I knew we could do it only by leaving the whole region behind us." It followed a tedious tour to mayors, clubs and sponsors on the German and Czech side of the Erzgebirge. For this purpose, 20,000 registered monuments were evaluated to select the most typical and important of the region. For him, this includes the dark sides of the mining history in the Erzgebirge, the uranium mining, the destruction of life and landscapes. "This was an important epoch of world historical significance, where uranium was extracted for the first Russian atomic bomb."
The first application to UNESCO was found to be too extensive in 2016. But even Helmuth Albrecht and his colleagues have not been deterred. Although the waiver of objects such as the 30 kilometers from Freiberg distant castle Augustusburg was painful for him. "The hunting lodge with the beautiful well the miners dug in. We originally had it because it was built with money from the Erzgebirge."
Thirty years ago 92 Din-A submitted 4 pages for the application, the application of the Erzgebirge includes four heavy volumes
Helmuth Albrecht is optimistic that everything fits in now. The application, which will be put to the vote at the beginning of July 2019, weighs heavily on four thick volumes. He will be in Baku at the UNESCO gathering if there are any questions. "It has been a very, very long process, and I'm happy when it's over."
Cultural treasures from Freiberg
On the edge of the old town of Freiberg, directly in front of the last preserved gate of the city fortification, the tower of the Jakobikirche points to another treasure, which is connected with the cultural landscape around Freiberg. The church is home to one of four silver man organs in the city. Gottfried Silbermann is considered one of the most important organ builders of the Baroque era. Of about 50 instruments from his Freiberg workshop, 31 have survived to date, most of them in Saxony.
The organ built in 1717/18 by Gottfried Silbermann in the Jacobikirche
As such an organ sounds, visitors to the Jakobikirche can hear every Friday at noon music in the summer. On this day, the organist plays works by Silbermann's contemporaries, from Johann Sebastian Bach to Francois Couperin. You do not even notice your age of the big organ. It has always been well looked after over the centuries, emphasizes Clemens Lucke of the Silbermann Society.
Gottfried Silbermann only used high-quality materials 300 years ago and was an artist in his field, says Clemens Lucke. Even small villages in Saxony wanted to adorn themselves with his organs. "If you drive through the Erzgebirge, you can find Silbermann organs in many places, which has shaped the area." Each organ has its own character and yet, as an organist, he feels at home right away.
This cultural landscape can grow even stronger through the UNESCO World Heritage title and strengthen its identity, emphasizes Lord Mayor Sven Krüger. "Then we can be much more successful than a region, and we can generate worldwide attention and get excited about one or the other tourist."
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Ten reasons for the Erzgebirge
Fichtelbergbahn
At the beginning of the 20th century, the Saxon narrow-gauge railway provided for the economic development of the region. Even though most of the connections have been shut down for a long time, there are still some nostalgic excursion trains on a few routes. The Fichtelbergbahn, for example, goes to the well-known winter sports resort of Oberwiesenthal.
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Ten reasons for the Erzgebirge
Oberwiesenthal
At the foot of the Fichtelberg, with its highest elevation of 1215 meters, lies Oberwiesenthal. Right on the doorstep begins the ski area, in which you can have at least 300 meters difference in altitude 17 km of snow fun.
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Ten reasons for the Erzgebirge
Johanngeorgenstadt
In the Ore Mountains especially the cross-country skiers come in driving on the groomed trails through romantic snowy forests. The Kammloipe runs from Johanngeorgenstadt to Schöneck im Vogtland. At 36 kilometers, it is considered one of the longest and most snow-sure in Germany.
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Ten reasons for the Erzgebirge
Annaberg-Buchholz
When silver was discovered here at the end of the 15th century, the heyday of Annaberg-Buchholz began. The late-Gothic St. Anne's Church and the market square with town hall and magnificent town houses still testify to this. Guided tours through the 500-year-old silver mine provide a vivid insight into past times.
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Ten reasons for the Erzgebirge
Frohnauer hammer
In Frohnau, a district of Annaberg-Buchholz, visitors learn about the means used in the pre-industrial era to forge iron. The hydropower-operated "Frohnauer Hammer" is a technical monument from the 15th century.
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Ten reasons for the Erzgebirge
Freiberg
Also the mountain parades in the Erzgebirge refer to a medieval tradition. Miners and artisans associated with mining gathered for this purpose. Today, the parades, like here in Freiberg, serve tradition and are a tourist attraction.
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Ten reasons for the Erzgebirge
Seiffen
The origins of Seiffen lie in tin mining. After its decline in the 18th century, the miners began to work with wood. Their turned and carved wooden toys became an export hit. Even today, the typical Christmas Nutcrackers, pyramids and smokers are made. In the picture an anniversary copy for the year of Luther.
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Ten reasons for the Erzgebirge
Castle Kriebstein
About the 1384 first mentioned Knight's Castle, there is a beautiful story. Once the women in the beleaguered castle requested from their counterpart Margrave Frederick the Disputable safe-conduct for themselves and all the treasures they could carry. When they then piggybacked their men instead of jewelry, the Margrave was so impressed that he let draw his adversaries.
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Ten reasons for the Erzgebirge
zschopau
Located on a medieval trade route, Zschopau is one of the better known towns in the Ore Mountains. As early as 1929, the DKW plant was the world's largest production site for motorcycles. Also later in times of the GDR fast two-wheelers were manufactured. The meanwhile legendary MZ stands for Motorradwerk Zschopau.
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Ten reasons for the Erzgebirge
Castle Augustusburg
Biker in front of a Renaissance backdrop. Since 1971 motorcyclists have been gathering for the traditional winter meeting at the hunting lodge of Elector August of the 16th century. For two-wheeler friends, the visit is worth the whole year. The castle is home to one of the most important motorcycle collections in Europe.
Author / Author: Andreas Kirchhoff
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