The red Rochlitzer porphyry can be found in abundance in the region, like nowhere else. What this volcanic rock is all about is revealed by the Porphyry nature trail on Rochlitzer Berg – since June 2025 even with an audio time travel experience.
At 353 meters above sea level, crowned by a lookout tower and still relatively richly forested, Rochlitzer Berg in the Tal der Burgen is the highest elevation between the Leipzig Lowlands Basin and the Ore Mountains Foreland. It is a widely visible landmark of the Central Saxon Hill Country from every direction.
The Porphyry nature trail, with a length of about 2.7 kilometers, can be hiked in relatively short time and is therefore ideal for a trip, also with family.
Its stations and an accompanying booklet provide visitors with knowledge about the origin of Rochlitzer Berg with its porphyry tuff, extraction methods, the life and work of stonemasons, significant buildings and interesting historical backgrounds.
Characteristic for Rochlitzer Berg is the red Rochlitzer porphyry, which shapes the entire region. The centuries-old quarries on the mountain are – far beyond the Mulde valley – significant “windows” into 300 million years of earth history. The geological formation and the use of this rock by humans is illustrated by the Porphyry nature trail on Rochlitzer Berg. The Porphyry House at Gleisberg quarry also serves as a geoportal of the National Geopark Porphyrland. Rich in stone in Saxony.
