Westerwald Ceramics Museum

One of the largest clay deposits in Europe is in the Westerwald. Clay has been used here for centuries to make the typical grey-blue Westerwald stoneware. The region between the Rhine, Lahn and Sieg rivers is also known as 'Kannenbäckerland' (pottery country), after the local term 'Kannenbäcker' for pottery makers. Since the 1600s, a unique ceramic culture has developed here: from pottery, recognised by Unesco as an intangible cultural heritage, to industrial production, from the art scene to high-tech ceramic research.

At the Westerwald Ceramics Museum, visitors can learn all about the history and production of Westerwald stoneware, which was one of the first products to be marketed worldwide and made the region world-famous. Visitors are taken on a journey through the centuries, starting with the extraction of the clay. Historic workshop equipment, a model kiln and entertaining videos illustrate the production of a grey-blue vessel. It shows how this unique product became an object of desire in the Baroque period and how the region developed into an important industrial centre with a wide range of applications for modern high-tech ceramics. On the upper floor, a variety of displays illustrate the importance of ceramics in contemporary art. Visitors can get creative themselves in the museum's workshop.