Das Saarpolygon

An industrial monument to the hard coal mining on the Saar

Would you like to see the Saar from above? No problem! Climb the 132 steps through the two pylons, which are reminiscent of winding towers, and reach the 40-meter-long viewing platform at a height of 25 meters. The impressive Saar lies at your feet.

As a walkable landmark, the Saarpolygon not only combines industry with modern art and culture, but rather stands for the structural change of the once efficient mining industry on the Saar, whose beginnings go back to the 18th century. 250 years of mining combined in 250 tons of steel: A reminder of the era of hard coal mining in Saarland that ended in 2012.

Architecturally, the Saarpolygon is unique and a masterpiece through and through: depending on which perspective you look at the polygon from, it takes on a different shape. An upside-down triangle, a sideways T, or a rectangular archway. Derived from the Greek term polygon for "polygon", it enables the viewer to recognize abstractly drawn motifs from mining. Past and future: mallets and iron, two winding towers, or the gate of the future and change.

In 2011, RAG is holding a Europe-wide ideas competition for a landmark that commemorates the end of mining. The Duhamel dump near the Saar mine in Ensdorf is chosen as the location. From a total of 147 competition designs, the design by the two Berlin architects Katja Pfeiffer and Oiliver Sachse was awarded first prize. The builder and future operator of the landmark is the newly founded support association BergBauErbeSaar e.V. The Saarpolygon was opened on September 16, 2016, financed by the support association as well as RAG AG, the RAG Foundation, the Saarland state government and individual donors.

Saarpolygon als Tor

Saarpolygon als Dreieckstor

Saarpolygon

Bergehalde Duhamel in Ensdorf

Over a period of 100 years, the Duhamel dump, the highest dump in Saarland, has grown to a height of 150 meters. The tailings consist of 32 million cubic meters of slate, sandy slate and sandstone from the Upper Carboniferous.

As early as the first time the shaft was sunk in 1913, mountains arose as rock that accompanied the coal. Using inclined elevators and tipping wagons, the mountains were initially piled up into a conical heap. In the 1980s the dump developed into a table mountain. Of the 44 hectares of the heap's total area, 33 are covered in vegetation. It is a very special place. Here you can find peace and relaxation and enjoy the vast landscape. With the Saarpolygon, the Duhamel dump has now also become a place of remembrance, identification and encounter.

Daily opening hours: 8:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m.

Admission: Free

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