Museum Margarethenhütte Großdubrau

About the museum

Around 1850, systematic lignite mining began in the area around Großdubrau, along with clay and kaolin deposits. In 1854 a stock company was founded that made simple clay wares and bricks; in 1857 the works was named Margarethenhütte in honor of the Saxon princess Margarethe. Berlin manufacturer Hermann Schomburg bought it in 1872 and turned it into a maker of porcelain insulators. Schomburg insulators were used in telegraph lines and in 1891 in the first three-phase power transmission from Lauffen to Frankfurt. In 1913 an overhead line test field was built, and after a cooperation agreement with the Kahla porcelain factory in 1922 the works became a main supplier of high-voltage insulators.

After the Second World War the factory was first dismantled, but it was rebuilt from 1945 onward; in 1948 it became the state-owned VEB Elektroporzellanwerk Margarethenhütte Großdubrau. As of June 30, 1991, all employees were given notice, and the same year the Förderverein Margarethenhütte Großdubrau e. V. (friends' association) was founded.

The museum is located in the oldest part of the works, a round-kiln building from 1885, which later served as a research building with a high-voltage test field. It displays machines, work equipment, devices and products, as well as a crude oil engine with generator built in 1938. The museum is run on a volunteer basis by the friends' association.

Highlights

• Former electrical porcelain works with a round-kiln building from 1885
• Machine park, machine hall and Technikum (technical workshop)
• High-voltage test field
• Demonstration of the 1938 crude oil engine generating electricity
• Pottery and ceramic techniques to try out

Permanent exhibitions

• Dauerausstellung Elektroporzellan – Machines, work equipment, devices and products show the development of porcelain insulator manufacturing; also the machine hall, the Technikum and the insulator street.
• Rohölmotor von 1938 – A 4-ton engine, restored to working order, drives a generator and makes the generation of electricity visible.

Operated by

Förderverein Margarethenhütte Großdubrau e. V.

Admission & discounts

Accessibility

• Partially wheelchair accessible
• Elevator: no information
• Accessible restroom: no information
• Accessible parking: no information
• Service dogs welcome: no information
• Tactile models & exhibits: no information
• Sign language tours: no information
• Easy-to-read materials: no information
• Audio description: no information

The outdoor exhibition areas, the high-voltage test field, the entrance area and the lower exhibition rooms are barrier-free; the ceramics studio and the upper exhibition rooms can only be reached by stairs.

Kids & families

Great for kids & families

• Family tours & workshops
• Hands-on stations

At events, visitors can try ceramic techniques such as throwing, casting or pressing themselves; during school holidays there is pottery, gold panning and a mineral quiz.

Getting there & parking

By car: A4 to the Bautzen-Ost exit, B 156 toward Weißwasser as far as Niedergurig, then via Quatitz to Großdubrau. The entrance is on the street "Zur Kohlengrube".

Amenities & dining

Snacks are offered at events.

Events & venue rental

The museum hasn’t published any information on this.

Plan your visit