German Salt Museum

Lüneburg is an old hanseatic city at the edge of Lüneburg Heath, which is located between Hamburg and Hannover. Local salt extraction has a 1,000-year history here. The fires under the boiling pans were extinguished in 1980, thereby closing a 1,000-year chapter on a salt works whose historical significance is evaluated by scholars as one of the most important European salt works and even as a salt capital of the Middle Ages.

The German Salt Museum/Industriedenkmal Saline Lüneburg [Lüneburg Salt Works Industrial Heritage Site] has commemorated these production facilities since 1989. The main topics are the history of salt in the city of Lüneburg and the general global importance of salt in the past, present and future.

The grounds of the German Salt Museum include several buildings and remnants which were placed under a preservation order in 1982 as an overall ensemble. The boiling house, which dates back to 1924, is the central component of the main building and the industrial heritage site. A third of the building (approximately 1,000m2) is now used for the museum. Thanks to preserved production facility parts, visitors can experience the most important salt production processes using the technology available in 1980. The centrepiece is the salt works’ last surviving boiling pan (160m2). The building also houses an integrated salt-drying facility, conveyor belts and a large, wooden filling funnel.

One of the most outstanding objects in the museum is a wooden brine container situated on the remnants of the old city wall which once surrounded the salt works.

German Salt Museum
Sülfmeisterstrasse 1
21335 Lüneburg
Germany
+49 (0) 413 - 145069
Homepage

Recommended duration of visit:2 Hours
Duration of a guided tour:90 Minutes
Admission:Charge
Access for persons with disabilities:For details see website
Infrastructure for children:
Gift and book shop on site:yes

daily 10am-5pm

  • Guided tours optional
  • Tours in other languages
  • Guided tours for children