[bzi_categorynavigation category=”turm”]
“We live in a time when many things are perishing, but for this very reason others have to come into being anew.”
Arnold Janssen
Alter Wasserturm replaces church tower
Where once the church tower of the Franciscan monastery adorned the silhouette of our town, since 1877 the Old Water Tower Bautzen rises. During the Industrial Revolution, the population increased dramatically and water supply became a problem. So the councillors of Bautzen decided to have the Alter Wasserturm built. This tower was built in 1877 in the centre of the historic old town of Bautzen and went into operation in August 1878. In the western part of the Mönchskirch ruin, visible far into the Upper Lusatian countryside, this water tower forms the silhouette of Bautzen.
Alter Wasserturm is embellished with wood panelling
The Alter Wasserturm had the task of supplying the old town of Bautzen with drinking water. The two water tanks in the upper tower area have a capacity of 1000 m³ and were fed by the Old Water Art Bautzen until 1967. Until it was shut down, the water supply was provided by the Strehla waterworks. Since 1936, the Alter Wasserturm in Bautzen has had the visually more attractive wooden cladding in the upper third of the tower. For more than 100 years the Old Water Tower Bautzen fulfilled its task until it was shut down due to the newly built waterworks.
Events and towering experiences in the shadow of the Old Water Tower
Over 64 steps you reach a platform below the two water tanks. Between the outer wall and the water tank there is a 41 rung ladder, over which a rusty water supply leads. Another ladder more than 6 metres long leads into the roof of the Old Water Tower. The Old Water Tower was not open to the public for a long time, and since December 1, 2017 it has been accessible again for special events in connection with the Mönchskirch ruin.
