Tunnels into the Mountain
There are several tunnel entrances on the edge of a German low mountain range. There is little or no public historical information about them. But various explanations are circulating - and today it is still not entirely clear exactly what purpose the tunnel entrances served. Essentially, two main theories are being discussed:
1. Mining Use:
In many regions of Germany, historical tunnels can be found that were once used to mine raw materials. Some evidence suggests that small-scale mining activities were also once carried out here.
It is assumed that the tunnels - similar to other places where tunnels were created as accesses to underground deposits - were used to extract mineral raw materials (such as saline or calcareous rocks). This may have been local mining, often starting as early as the Middle Ages, which was repeatedly used or expanded over the centuries.
2. Shelters and refuges:
Another explanation sees the tunnels as relics of past times of crisis. In various regions, underground tunnels were also built as shelters or refuges - whether in times of war or in later periods (for example during the Second World War or the Cold War). Even if there is no indisputable evidence for this area, this possibility is occasionally put forward as an explanation.
According to the current state of regional historical and archaeological research, the tunnel entrances are probably the remains of an earlier, albeit rather small-scale, mining operation. At the same time, the possibility that they served as shelters in later times (or even additionally) remains open. Such structures have often been used several times over the centuries, making it difficult to clearly identify them.
Visited: November 16, 2020 and August 9, 2023
Location: Undisclosed, Germany
Status: Abandoned
