Neubürg

The Neubürg is a flat-topped hill near Mistelgau in Upper Franconia. It stands on the eastern edge of the Franconian Jura, part of a chain of limestone hills known as Franconian Switzerland. A small village called Wohnsgehaig clings to its western slopes. The hill rises above farmland and patches of woodland that mark the edge of the Jura plateau. Its flat summit is clearly visible from the surrounding valleys. Geologists date the rock layers to the Jurassic period, with hard limestone capping softer clays and iron-rich sandstones beneath.

Archaeologists recognise the hilltop as one of the oldest continuously settled places in the region. Excavations show hunter-gatherers camped there around 12,000 BCE. Later, during the Neolithic and Iron Age, a fortified village occupied the plateau. In the Middle Ages a castle guarded the Via imperialis, the road linking Bamberg to Bayreuth. After the castle was abandoned, villagers cut down the summit woodland in 1806, opening wide views across the countryside. In 1999 local councils formed an association to promote tourism around the hill. Since 2003 the NaturKunstRaum Neubürg has displayed sculptures by artists from Germany, France and Switzerland.

Visitors climb the broad slopes to the summit plateau. From the highest point the eye follows the line of the Fichtel Mountains to the north-east and the Bamberg area to the west. The wind-swept summit offers clear views of Bayreuth and the surrounding valleys. Among the trees on the lower slopes are information boards about the hill’s long history. The NaturKunstRaum shows works in wood, metal and stone set among the limestone outcrops. Paths wind through the woods and across the open plateau, linking viewpoints and sculpture sites.