Gommern rock garden
The Gommern Rock Garden is a rock collection laid out in the form of a garden in Gommern . The collection is the largest open-air rock collection in Germany.
occasion
The rock garden is intended to commemorate the centuries-old mining of natural stone ( quartzite ) in Gommern, which was once an important economic pillar of the region. Since solid rock is rarely found in northern Germany, the quarries of Gommern, which were also conveniently located near the Elbe, were of great importance. Gommern quartzite was already used in important church buildings in the Middle Ages (for example Magdeburg Cathedral and Havelberg Cathedral ).
location
The stone garden of over 2000 m² is located in the south of the city of Gommern in the district of Jerichower Land (approx. 15 km southeast of Magdeburg ) on the B 246a in the direction of Schönebeck (Elbe) and is freely accessible all year round. The garden stretches along the banks of the small lake Kulk . The Fuchsberg sand dune and an observation tower are in the immediate vicinity . Several restaurants ensure the catering.
Exhibits
It shows over 240 rock blocks from over 200 sites with an average size of 1–3 t (max. 11.5 t). A special exhibit is the glacier pot discovered by geologist Felix Wahnschaffe in 1902 in the quartzite quarries near Gommern .
The rock garden is likely to represent the largest and most comprehensive collection of natural stones from Germany and Europe . From Germany (all federal states except Schleswig-Holstein and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania) almost all solid rocks are represented that are near the surface and are still extracted in quarries today: from the Ruhr area and Eifel in the northwest, Weser Uplands , Flechtinger Scholle and Harz in the north, Rüdersdorf near Berlin and Lausitz in the east, Saar and Hunsrück in the west, to Allgäu , the Alps and the Bavarian Forest in the south. Further exhibits come from Hungary (12), Austria (8), France , Spain , Bulgaria , Slovakia and Poland (1 each). Scandinavia is represented by ice-age boulders from the lignite overburden (16). “Exotics” are a fuchsite quartzite from northern Norway , lava samples from Iceland and a serpentinite from Cuba .
Almost all types of rock are present in terms of geological origin: deep rock ( granite , granodiorite , syenite , diorite , gabbro ), volcanic rocks ( rhyolites , diabase , basalts , phonolite , tuff , ...), sedimentary rocks of all groups (highlights are: lithographs limestone , Tuber quartzite, travertine , a silicified tree trunk from brown coal). Metamorphic rocks are both from contact metamorphism ( Horn Felse , fruchtschiefer and others), from regional metamorphism ( shale , gneiss , granulites , amphibolites , marbles ), as well as from the transformation (serpentinite, migmatite , Turmalinfels and others) and Impaktmetamorphose (a Suevite represented).
The typical vein mineral quartz , calcite , barite and fluorspar allow references to corresponding vein ore deposits . Other ores are represented with copper shale , bauxite and various iron ores , including those from the Erzberg in Styria .
The development of quarry technology can be seen in the numerous traces of processing on the blocks (drilling, carving, cutting, grinding, polishing). Popular gemstones for representative buildings and sculptures can be seen (marbles, serpentines, travertine, talc slate , limestone and others).
In addition, a visit to the exhibition "Contemporary witnesses" of the quarry and oil industry in Gommern is recommended, but registration is required.
History of the rock garden
The rock garden was opened in April 1995 on the initiative of a group of geoscientists (Rock Garden Gommern eV). It was created with the help of job creation measures and with the support of the city of Gommern, Erdöl-Erdgas GmbH and other companies, as well as the “Robinienhof” hotel. The blocks were sponsored by the quarry industry. Donations from institutions, companies, associations and private individuals made the transport possible.
Gommern was chosen as the location because of its long mining and geological tradition. The mining of quartzite in Gommern goes back to the 12th century.
Originally only a few typical rocks from each large rock family were to be shown. The collection, which is continuously being expanded, is now the largest rock collection in Germany.
Coordinates: 52 ° 4 ′ 3.2 ″ N , 11 ° 49 ′ 10.9 ″ E