Headframe
The turquoise-grey headframe is known and visible well beyond the city boundary of Bochum. It was only brought here in 1973. Since then it's stamped its mark on the city's skyline, functioning as a beacon of our institution, visible far off in the distance.
Our largest exhibit was once located somewhere completely different - namely over the main shaft of the Germania mine complex in Dortmund-Marten. Designed by renowned industrial architects, Fritz Schupp and Martin Kremmer, this solid-walled double headframe was constructed in 1943-44.
Weighing 650 t, 71.4 m high and with pulleys that are 8 m in diameter, it was reckoned to be the largest headframe in the world. One of the most modern and high-performing hoisting systems in the Germania coal mining industry, it was still in operation up until 1971.
Under the intense glare of media interest, the frame was dismantled into individual parts following the decommissioning of the Germania mine complex. These parts, some weighing up to 30 t, were brought by special trucks to Bochum. The ensuing reassembly operation took several weeks.
Today, visitors can take the lift down into the visitor's mine, before ascending to the loft heights of the viewing platform. From there the view extends far across the Ruhr Area and a Ruhr Metropolitan Region stamped by coal mines. For safety reasons, the ascent to the viewing platform of the headframe is only possible when accompanied by an adult.
In 2020, we decided to incorporate the colours of our famous landmark into the logo of the Deutsches Bergbau-Museum Bochum. Since that time the headframe and its pulleys have been integral figurative elements of our corporate design.
It has only been in Bochum since 1973 and yet it is part of the cityscape like hardly any other object: the headframe of the former Germania mine-complex in Dortmund-Marten. Our fourth and last film takes you to lofty heights and offers views and vistas of the largest collection object of the Deutsches Bergbau-Museum Bochum.
Click here to watch our video on YouTube:
- Construction of headframe at the Germania mine complex at Dortmund-Marten: 1944
- Reassembly at the Deutsches Bergbau-Museum Bochum: 1973
- Elevation of the pithead: ± 0.00 m (+ 84.00 m above sea level)
- Total height (above the pithead): 71.40 m (+ 155.40 m above sea level)
- Height of the top head pulley platform: >62.00 m (+ 146.00 m above sea level)
- Height of the lower pulley platform: 50.00 m (+ 134.00 m above sea level)
- Total weight of the headframe unit (including aboveground lift guide structure): approx. 650 t
- Pulley diameter: 8.00 m