Town with a past
Annaberg-Buchholz was founded in 1496 and has been shaped by mining from the very beginning. Considerable silver finds in the 15th century brought wealth and the miners were proud of their work and traditions. Visitors can get a sense of the town’s mining past when exploring one of the three local show mines, or when visiting nearby “Frohnauer Hammer”, a historic hammer mill that has been a UNESCO World Heritage site since 2019.
In the 16th century, Annaberg-Buchholz became the home of the famous German mathematician Adam Ries who published one of the first widely available arithmetic texts. His name is to this day part and parcel of German popular culture and his arithmetic school in Annaberg-Buchholz where he taught mathematics is now a museum where visitors can learn about his methods in a playful way and earn a calculating diploma. Another interesting local character is Barbara Uthmann, an entrepreneurial widow who, in the 16th century, set up a business providing many miners' wives with extra income as lace makers. Today her statue is the landmark of Annaberg's market square.
