Vanished village Vorderzinnwald

Disappeared village with a virtual chapel and many traces in the landscape

The village of Vorderzinnwald was probably founded in the 15th century by miners from Graupen (Krupka) who were looking for new tin deposits here. They didn't find anything in the immediate vicinity, but near Hinterzinnwald (today's Zinnwald or Cínovec). Most went there to work, others were lumberjacks or craftsmen, and some farmers wrested agricultural land from the forest, mainly for animal husbandry. The inhabitants must have led a very meager existence in the harsh climate. In the 20th century, Vorderzinnwald became a popular winter sports resort, and people in search of relaxation also came in summer. There were soon three inns with overnight stays. Because of the good Bohemian beer, these were often visited by people from Fürstenau, which was only two kilometers away. After World War II, the residents of Vorderzinnwald were expelled and the village was razed to the ground.

Virtual Chapel

In 1887 a chapel was built for the Madonna altar, which originally stood in the church in Fürstenau and which they wanted to get rid of there. We explain this longer and complicated story elsewhere.

In 2022, the Euroregion Elbe/Labe virtually resurrected the chapel and the altar inside. A QR code on the information board takes you to a website where you can see the chapel and the altar in the landscape on the screen of a smartphone or tablet (so-called augmented reality). You can walk around it and see all the details up close.

tracks in the landscape

(This is an automatic translation by Google Translator.)

You can find more detailed information about the history of Vorderzinnwald at www.zinnwald.de .

Address

wo die Straße zwischen Cínovec und Fojtovice am nächsten an der Grenze ist - tam, kde je silnice mezi Cínovcem a Fojtovicemi nejblíže hranici.
Dubí

Contact

Website

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Arrival

A convenient hike from the Cínovec, clo directions_railway directions_bus / directions_railway directions_bus bus stop is around three kilometers long. This stop is served by bus line 398 between Dresden and Teplice every two hours. The path leads along the road, but is still easy to hike. The turning point in the neighboring Zinnwald directions_railway directions_bus is served somewhat more frequently on weekdays.

A similar footpath leads from the bus stop in Fojtovice directions_railway directions_bus to Vorderzinnwald. From the bus stop below the mosquito tower directions_railway directions_bus it is around 4.5 km of easy hiking through the forest.

The hike from Fürstenau to Vorderzinnwald, around Pfarrhöhe and Traugotthöhe (small detour for the view) and across the green border is particularly beautiful. But please don't take the shortest route across the meadow, as this will disturb the ground-nesting birds. A convenient crossing point is where the hiking trail is closest to the border on the German side, around 500 m below the chapel.

To map and list of "Interesting places in Euroregion Elbe/Labe"