Hovermenü - EN

Bamberg’s World Heritage is multi-faceted and complex. In order to raise awareness for World Heritage, the Bamberg World Heritage Office engages in professional exchange, publications and events in collaboration with numerous stakeholders.

The Visitor Centre

Located at the heart of the city, Bamberg's new World Heritage Visitor Centre displays Bamberg's outstanding universal value and serves as an interpretation aid for the World Heritage site.

Projects

In 1993, Bamberg was inscribed in the UNESCO World Heritage list. But what does this title mean for the city and its residents? How is the World Heritage status relevant in everyday life? How does one achieve balance between conservation and community needs? Mastering this challenge is the aim of the Bamberg World Heritage Office.

Management

The Bamberg World Heritage Office serves as the central coordination body for all issues concerning the World Heritage site. It oversees the implementation of the UNESCO World Heritage Convention in Bamberg. It represents the site nationally and internationally.

Place of Learning

The transmission of the World Heritage to future generations is one of the main tasks of a World Heritage site. For this purpose, the World Heritage Office has developed several educational resources.

    Visitor Centre

    reading lens for the old town

    Visitor Centre

    Located at the heart of the city, Bamberg's new World Heritage Visitor Centre displays Bamberg's outstanding universal value and serves as an interpretation aid for the World Heritage site.

    Embedded in the international UNESCO context the special features of the World Heritage site “Town of Bamberg” are conveyed on about 220 square meters of exhibition space.
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    Exhibition

    The World Heritage Visitor Centre provides an overview of the World Heritage site, including information about what it means to be a World Heritage site, what contributes to Bamberg’s significance as a UNESCO site. The Visitor Centre will not replicate a typical museum with an in-depth collection, but aims at raising interest in the cultural facets of the City of Bamberg and its historical and geographical parameters. It is intended to sensitize locals and visitors to the peculiarities of the place.

    The exhibition consists – like the old town of Bamberg – of three parts; one for each historic settlement centre. In a lively way, the exhibition provides information about the City on the Hills with its Domburg (former fortress of the Babenberg dukes), the Island District with its mills and private mansions and the Market Gardeners‘ District with its urban horticulture.

    Building models illustrate medieval and baroque architecture. Audio stations, films and digital applications, a seed-wheel and an interactive model of the old town of Bamberg invite visitors to familiarize themselves with the site. Special places in the urban surroundings, which represent the outstanding universal value of Bamberg, are referenced in the exhibition to encourage exploring the site.

    • Developing and growth

      Developing and growth

    • Movers and shakers

      Movers and shakers

    • Old town, new splendour

      Old town, new splendour

    • Plans and visions

      Plans and visions
    Videoinstallation: Studio Kuskus

    Plan Your Visit

    Opening hours

    Opening hours: daily from 10 AM to 5 PM.

    The Visitor Centre is closed on: New Year's Day, Good Friday, Easter Sunday, Christmas (24 -26 December), inventory day (30 December), New Year's Eve (31 December).


    Admission
    Admission is free of charge. In accordance with the values of UNESCO and the city of Bamberg, the World Heritage Visitor Center is a place of respectful, non-discriminatory interaction. Our exhibition is barrier-free.

    Guided tours through the exhibition can be booked at besuchszentrum@welterbe.bamberg.de at a price of EUR 70,- (school classes EUR English).


    Getting there
    The World Heritage Visitor Centre can be reached by public transport via bus station Schranne (bus lines 901, 910, 912, 918, and 989). If you come by car the following parking facilities are available nearby.

    Contact us
    World Heritage Visitor Centre Bamberg
    Untere Muehlbruecke 5
    96047 Bamberg
    Germany

    Fon: +49 951 87-1816
    E-Mail: besuchszentrum@welterbe.bamberg.de
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    Learn more

    Chronicle

    There have already been mills at the Lower Mills District (Untere Mühlen) as early as the lifetime of Emperor Henry II. Today's property Untere Mühlbrücke 5 was once a building complex consisting of three mills: Leibelsmühle, Kaufmannsmühle (merchant's mill) and Sterzermühle. From the 13th to the 19th century, they were part of an association of local millers called Brudermühlverband.

    • around 1639: construction of the Sterzermühle
    • 1839: a major fire destroys almost all mills in this area
    • 1840: reconstruction of the Sterzermühle
    • 1945: damage of the Sterzermühle in a bombing raid during World War II (22 April 1945)
    • 1950: demolition of the Sterzermühle with the exception of the ground floor
    • 2000: within the framework of the international “Architecture and Water” competition the redevelopment area of Untere Mühlen is given an explicit praise by The International Union of Architects (UIA)
    • 2005/2006: design competition for Untere Mühlbrücke 5 (plans are not implemented)
    • 2015: City Council adopted the establishment of a World Heritage Visitor Centre in the new building on the site
    • 2016: start of construction work
    • 2018: topping-out ceremony and inauguration of the turbine (19 July 2018)
    • 2019: opening of the World Heritage Visitor Centre (29 April 2019)

    History

    The use of hydropower in the Lower Mills District (Untere Mühlen) dates back to the Middle Ages. Some buildings belonging to this mill complex have already been shown on the Zweidler Plan – a city map of Bamberg dated 1602. Only two of five former mills still remain these days: the Vogtherrnmühle and the Huthsmühle. After the western wall of the Leibelsmühle had collapsed in 1882, it was demolished in 1904. The Kaufmannsmühle (merchant's mill) was completely destroyed during the war in 1945. The neighbouring Sterzermühle was seriously damaged at the same time. The new building integrates the remains of the facade of the old Sterzermühle.
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    Construction of the new building

    On 16 December 2015, the Bamberg City Council resolved the establishment of a World Heritage Visitor Centre. Construction work began the following year. Circumstances in the Lower Mills District (Untere Mühlen) were difficult: divers and motorboats had to be employed. In the course of archaeological excavations various millstones and about 900 oak posts from the 11th to the 18th century were found at the building site. On 20 June 2018, an erroneous “bomb scare” caused a sensation and stopped construction work for one day. The supposed bomb finally turned out to be the metal tip of some wooden foundation pile. One month later, Bamberg celebrated the topping-out ceremony and put the turbine into operation. After three years of construction the World Heritage Visitor Centre was opened on 29 April 2019.

    The following film shows a time lapse of the construction progress.

    Building

    The owner of the building, Johannes Kraus, decided to maintain the facade of the old Sterzermühle, even though it was not a listed monument. The architect Heinz Rosenberg integrated it into the new building.

    The openly designed staircase conveys the international UNESCO context and leads visitors to the exhibition on the upper floor. The Bamberg World Heritage Office is located in the attic. On the ground floor, visitor can enjoy a culinary break at the restaurant HENRII.

    In the basement of the building, a hydropower turbine produces energy for up to 300 households. It continuous the traditional use of renewable energies in the Mills District.
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    World Heritage Shop

    Visitors searching for Bamberg souvenirs may find what they are looking for at the World Heritage Shop adjacent to the exhibition of the Visitor Centre. A range of regional products and local specialities as well as information material and books related to World Heritage are offered there.

    Pop-Up Centre

    In 2017, World Heritage Day was celebrated for an entire week focussing on the new World Heritage Visitor Centre. For this purpose, the team of the Bamberg World Heritage Office temporarily occupied a vacant shop in a historical building at Obere Brücke. The pop-up centre presented sketches of the exhibition design, hosted a series of lectures and events, and offered an opportunity for personal discussions.

    Picture of the pop-up centre can be found here.
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    Zentrum Welterbe Bamberg
    Stadt Bamberg
    Untere Mühlbrücke 5
    96047 Bamberg

    +49 (0) 951 87 1811
    info@welterbe.bamberg.de

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