- Mayen
Experience charming landscapes, impressive buildings and interesting destinations around the Mosel slate.
The Moselschiefer-Strasse (Mosel Slate Route) traverses a varied and charming landscape: through vineyards along the lovely Mosel river, across the volcanic landscape with the attached volcano park, to the heights of the Eifel mountains.
The link between these landscapes is the local slate mining and processing and the silky shining slate roofs to the left and right of the trail. This part of the Eifel region is a hub for Europe's slate industry. Slate has been mined here since Roman times and the term "Moselschiefer®" (Mosel slate) is one of the first brand names ever, with a documentary mention in 1588.
The term "Moselschiefer®" does not originate from mining of this resource on the Mosel. Slate was mined in the Eifel mountains and then shipped via ports on the Mosel river, such as Klotten, to neighbouring countries and was thus known as "slate from the Mosel" - hence the name. The history of slate mining can be seen in Mayen in the Deutsches Schieferbergwerk (German Slate Mine) under the Genovevaburg (castle). Today, slate is still mined in the Eifel by the Mayen-based company Rathscheck Schiefer.
