On May 12th, between 11 AM and 5 PM, housekeepers will demonstrate the variety of local herbs found in a rural garden and how the herbs that are partly no longer known today were used in the kitchen. They not only served to enhance dishes but were also the basis for the preparation of sauces. The fresh herbs thus added flavor and vitamins to simple home-cooked meals. And they also bring variety to the always exciting and interesting tour...
The post mill from the municipality of Titz is the landmark of the LVR Open-Air Museum Kommern: The "wonder of engineering" built in 1782 was dismantled in 1958 at its original location in the district of Spiel and rebuilt in the Eifel. The wooden grinding giant reliably secured the supply of people in the Jülich area. Its four large sails turned in the wind for over 170 years. The millstones carefully ground the grain into flour. The gears of the mill worked in harmony.
Today, the mill is a vibrant display object that exemplifies 78 other building exhibits in the museum that are in their original condition. Visitors' hands glide gently over the slanted rudder beam before entering the historical landmark. "Mill workers turned the entire structure using a lever with the so-called steert in the direction from which the wind came," explains a museum expert who answers questions from interested visitors here. He points to the large wood at the end of the entrance stairs, which is connected to a powerful crossbeam under the housing. The guests learn that the crossbeam rests on the so-called house tree, a thick post that is vertically secured in the wooden post.
What else is there to discover on the approximately 110-hectare site? The exhibition takes time travelers through five construction groups back up to 500 years into the past of the Rhineland. On three circular paths, visitors approach former living and working habits that were common in the Westerwald/Mittelrhein, in the Eifel, along the Lower Rhine, and in the Bergisches Land. Those choosing the 3.6-kilometer-long red route can expect the full history and culture program: from regionally different forms of farms to distinctive architectural styles to typical interior designs in specific eras.
Noteworthy during an exploration tour are, for example, the school and bakery from Löhndorf from the Westerwald construction group, where bread is still baked today according to traditional methods in the tuff stone oven from 1826. When visitors enter the cellar rooms, it already smells wonderfully of dough and various spices. On the first floor, the school benches, an old blackboard, and a school stove are still on display. Here, explorers learn that children used to bring firewood to school to heat the stove.
Passing by half-timbered houses with mighty wooden beams and thatched roofs, one also goes to the Eifel building complex. Here, the 48-meter long and 13-meter wide tithe barn from Sechtem and the courtyard complex from Wallenthal are genuine eye-catchers. A house from Elsig has been integrated into the courtyard complex, from whose windows today distinctive red-white cushions hang. An inscription above the entrance reveals: The accommodation dates back to 1719. The panorama is worth a photo for many passersby. Click!
Speaking of photos: The famous Mannesmann house from Bliedingshausen (Bergisches Land building complex) with the green shutters, the slate-covered walls, and pronounced carved decorations is also a wonderful motif for photos. In the 18th century, it belonged to the founding family of the company "A. & P. Mannesmann," which used it as both a residence and a workshop. It illustrates the financial circumstances of many wealthy builders in the region, who had been encouraged by the "Committee for the Promotion of Bergische Construction" established in 1903 to renew the appearance of their houses in the style of "Bergisch Historicism."
Finally, day-trippers should still visit the Marktplatz Rheinland and the Museumsplatz. The open-air museum on the first one presents cultural history up to the present day, from 1945 to the early 21st century.
The post-war and economic miracle period represents about two Nissen huts from the Lower Rhineland-Dutch border area, an emergency church from Overrath, a prefabricated house from the Quelle catalog, and a milk bar from Brühl. The permanent exhibition "WirRheinländer" in the museum square clarifies turning points and significant events between 1794 and 1955. When walking through the narrow streets of the fictional teaching town of Rhenania, guests touch on topics such as the French occupation and the German Empire. Three more exhibition pavilions and a cabinet are reserved for special exhibitions that deal, for example, with the history of technology and design or garden culture in the Rhineland.
