Discover Bubenreuth: Violin-Making History and Trails

Bubenreuth tells a story of violin making, remembrance and surprising features in the townscape. You can encounter the history of instrument makers at the violin makers’ monument; two sculptures on Geigerstraße explore a very different subject. There are also three churches and the floodwater trail, which is particularly appealing at certain times of year.

Violin-Making History and Unusual Sculptures

The violin makers’ monument was ceremonially unveiled on 6 July 1969. The occasion was the 650th anniversary of Schönbach becoming a town; today, Schönbach is Luby in the CSR. Many of the violin makers who were expelled after the Second World War came from Schönbach. The monument thus connects Bubenreuth’s instrument-making history with the memory of the origins of many craftspeople.

Two sculptures on Geigerstraße create an unexpected contrast with the history of music: the standing figure depicts a professor developing the Geiger counter, while the seated figure holds a modern-day Geiger counter. Two different depictions of the same device thus stand side by side here—its development and a modern-day Geiger counter.

The churches are also easy to distinguish: Bubenreuth’s three churches are the Protestant St. Luke’s Church, the old Catholic St. Joseph’s Church and the new Catholic parish church of the Visitation of Mary. The floodwater trail offers a different experience. It is especially beautiful in early summer; caution is advised when it is slippery in winter. This seasonal note can help you decide whether the trail suits the time of your trip.

More perspectives in the Erlangen-Höchstadt destination

Across the wider Erlangen-Höchstadt destination, the history of instrument making extends beyond the monument. After the Second World War, more than 2,000 musical instrument makers from the Saxon-Bohemian music region found a new home in Bubenreuth. Bubenreuth subsequently developed into a European centre for string instrument making. The Bubenreutheum in Bubenreuth Town Hall is devoted to this subject, with a permanent 80-square-metre exhibition on music and integration.

In Kalchreuth, art history meets a circular trail through cherry orchards. St. Andrew’s Church houses a famous Passion altarpiece: a shrine altarpiece with hinged wings by Albrecht Dürer’s teacher, Michael Wolgemut. A three-kilometre circular trail also leads through Kalchreuth’s cherry orchards. Information boards cover cherries, the landscape and Kalchreuth; hands-on stations focus on nature.

The Spix Museum in Höchstadt offers a different museum experience. It is located in the birthplace of naturalist Johann Baptist Ritter von Spix and uses interactive exhibits to present his life and the history of the house. The computer-controlled, light-operated rainforest diorama shows animals and plays their sounds; it is particularly recommended for children.

The nature destinations across Erlangen-Höchstadt also vary considerably. The “Vogelfreistätte Weihergebiet bei Mohrhof” nature reserve is an Important Bird Area and is among the early Natura 2000 Fauna-Flora-Habitat and bird protection areas. Its features include rare bird species, wetlands and orchid-rich wet meadows.

Near Höchstadt, three trail descriptions offer nature enthusiasts different ways to find their bearings. The marked, level Eisvogelweg (Kingfisher Trail) is about 2.6 kilometres long and leads through the Franconian pond region. The approximately 2.2-kilometre-long Orchideenweg (Orchid Trail) is designed as a route for vehicles and pedestrians through a cultural landscape with reed-fringed ponds, wet meadows, waterfowl and orchids such as the marsh helleborine. The Seerosenweg (Water Lily Trail) is a mostly level walking trail of about 2.4 kilometres through the historic Gretelmark forest, with woodland ponds, water lilies and bulrushes, as well as kingfishers.

Regional cuisine has its own speciality, too: in Höchstadt an der Aisch, Aischgründer mirror carp from the surrounding Himmelsteiche ponds and its various preparations are local specialities. The season runs during the months with an “R” in their name, from September to April; the carp has a protected geographical indication.

Use these topics to guide your search and decide what you would like to focus on during your trip.

Discover more destinations

Discover more destinations: Weisendorf, Röttenbach, Herzogenaurach, Höchstadt An Der Aisch, Baiersdorf, Hemhofen, Heßdorf, Wachenroth.

Back to the wider travel overview: Erlangen-Höchstadt.