Saigerhütte Olbernhau-Grünthal bears unique testimony to a tradition of non-ferrous metallurgy dating back to 1537. It owes its name to the German technical term ‘Saigern’ (liquation), a smelting process that was revolutionary at that time for the desilvering of coarse copper. This self-contained

The Saigerhütte Museum Complex is one of the most remarkable historic smelting work sites in Europe and is inextricably linked to the history of silver mining in the Erzgebirge region. To mark the 500th anniversary of the birth of Georgius Agricola and at the behest of Dr Hanns-Heinz Kasper, an

Der Saigerhüttenverein Olbernhau-Grünthal e.V. hat das 1994 erschienene Buch „Von der Saigerhütte zum Kupferhammer Grünthal 1537 – 1873“ neu aufgelegt. Der Autor Dr. Hanns-Heinz Kaspar (* 6. Mai 1925; † 7. Mai 1999) hat von Anfang der 1970-er Jahre im Staatsarchiv Dresden, dem Bergarchiv Freiberg

At certain times, the Saigerhütte Museum and the Spiel- und Erlebniswelt Stockhausen indoor play centre offer special interactive tours of the Saigerhütte museum complex for groups of children and families with children. The interactive children’s tours (Dem Geheimnis der Saigerhütte auf der Spur:

Einladung in den UNESCO-Welterbe-Bestandteil Saigerhütte Olbernhau-Grünthal 360° Panorama oberhalb der Langen Hütte im Saigerhütten-Areal Imagefilm: Montane Kulturlandschaft Erzgebirge/Krušnohoří auf dem Weg zum UNESCO-Welterbe Kurzfilm: Erzgebirgisch - Ein Lebensgefühl wird Weltkulturerbe Eine

The Treibehaus is a multi-purpose building which was reopened following extensive renovation in October 2012 and is available for municipal, private and commercial functions.

Seiferthäusl, a former worker’s cottage, is now part of the visitors’ tour. One of the rooms is furnished in a style typical of a late 19th-century working class household and gives a valuable insight into the way that smelting workers and their families lived in that period. Another room has been

The Erzgebirgischer Verein für Arbeitsförderung e.V. was responsible for setting up the coin mint, the foundry pottery and the foundry shop with pottery demonstrations in the historic smelting works school/carpentry building. The coin mint brought new life to an old tradition. During its three

In the fully functioning hammer shed, the hammersmith explains the history of this early capitalist production site and sets the Broad Hammer, which weighs six hundredweight or 300 kilograms, into motion. He explains clearly and in detail about the origins of the process for separating copper and

First constructed in 1562, the Lange Hütte was the technological and architectural hub of the Saigerhütte complex. The single-storey building was 36 metres in length and 21 metres in width. A ground plan dated 1696 provides information about the location of the individual items of technical

Theater im Kupferhammer Ein besonderes Erlebnis im altehrwürdigen Kupferhammer der Saigerhütte ist eine Theateraufführung der Sage vom Hüttenmatths. Als Ein-Personen-Stück gestalten hier Schauspieler der Region diese alte Sage aus der Saigerhütte zu Grünthal in der Kulisse des ältesten Hammerwerkes

A tall rolling mill in front of the New Hammer is the last physical evidence of the iron processing which began in 1947 and was the trademark of the VEB sheet rolling mill until 1991. Rolling technology was first used in Germany in 1773. It was more cost-effective and produced better-quality

The Flöhahammer was built in 1604 on the other side of the Flöha river opposite the Neuhammer. Its dimensions considerably exceeded those of the two older hammer mills (Althammer and Neuhammer). The Flöhahammer shed was damaged by fires in 1630 and 1645, both caused by operator negligence. In 1779

There are still remains of the old perimeter wall along An der Natzschung and Rothenthaler Strasse. It was built between 1656 and 1694, at around 1,031 metres in length and approximately 2.83 metres in height, with loopholes and gates, after the Saigerhütte complex was seriously damaged in the

There was one large and one small coalhouse to the east of the Lange Hütte. These buildings were used to store and keep dry the large quantities of charcoal required for the different foundry processes. The workers received some of their wages in kind as firewood. The eastern walls of the

From the Upper Gate, the road leads on to the border crossing which has only existed since the Saigerhütte was founded. It was required for transporting mainly grain but also copper from Bohemia. In 1553, a stone bridge was built over the river Natzschung, which had been defined as the border

The Grosshammer (Great Hammer) was the last of the hammer mills to be built. It was constructed in 1732, approximately 400 metres downstream on the banks of the Flöha. Business was booming and greater capacity was required. A house was built for the mill master and an area set aside specifically

As well as the hammer sheds, the Saigerhütte complex also included a blacksmith’s forge. It adjoins the perimeter wall behind the workers’ cottages. It was used to produce iron fittings for the foundry and hammer shed and to sharpen tools. The forge is thought to have been leased since 1567/68. The