Volle Rose

Useful Information

Location:	Schortestraße 57, 98693 Ilmenau. Schortetal near Ilmenau. 700 m south of Ilmenau, signposted in Ilmenau. (50.664681, 10.922996)
Open:	APR to OCT daily 10-18. [2026]
Fee:	Mine: Adults EUR 11, Children (3-16) EUR 7. Narrow-gauge railway: Adults EUR 8, Children (3-16) EUR 4. Mine + Mine train: Adults EUR 17, Children (3-16) EUR 10. [2026]
Classification:	Fluorite Mine Manganese Mine
Light:	Electric Light
Dimension:	T=10 °C, L=350 m, A=49ß m NN.
Guided tours:	D=30 min, MinAge=3, Max=16.
Photography:
Accessibility:	no
Bibliography:
Address:	Schaubergwerk "Volle Rose", Schorte-Bergwerk 1, 98693 Ilmenau, Tel: +49-3677-899065, Tel: +49-3677-4667734. E-mail: Tourist-Information Langewiesen, Tel: +49-3677-8077-20.
As far as we know this information was accurate when it was published (see years in brackets), but may have changed since then. Please check rates and details directly with the companies in question if you need more recent info.

History

12th century	copper and silver mining.
1601	first written mention.
17th century	Manganese mining near Oehrenstock, Geraberg and Elgersburg.
1856	150 citizens work in the iron mining.
1881	Reinhard starts fluorite mining at Volle Rose.
~1900	iron mining ends.
1936	mine sale forced.
1945	mine now Volkseigentum (public property).
1950s	beginning of fluorite mining between Ilmenau and Möhrenbach.
1968	mining at Volle Rose ends, tunnel used as emergency exit and for ventilation for Gehren.
1988	tunnel closed with explosives.
31-MAR-1991	fluorite mining closed.
1992	town of Oehrenstock purchases the property, Bergbau- und Feldbahnverein founded.
1995	pumps at Gehren turned off, 2 m²/s Wasser flow out of the adit.
1998	Bergbau- und Feldbahnverein corrupt, city of Langewiesen takes over.
1999	non-profit Bergbauverein Schortetal e.V. founded.
2005	opened as a show mine.
2005	mining reactivated by the Phönix Fluss- und Schwerspat-Bergwerk GmbH.

Geology

Ilmenau lies on the border between the Thuringian Basin to the north and the Thuringian Forest to the south. The geology of these two regions is quite different. North of Ilmenau, there are various porphyry rocks, some of which are covered by Rotliegend and Zechstein strata. There is also copper shale there, which, in addition to the eponymous copper, contains small quantities of lead and silver ores. This was also mined during Goethe’s time. South of the town, on the northern edge of the Thuringian Forest, there are hydrothermal gangue deposits. These are polymetallic, although they were characterised by a relatively high manganese content. Furthermore, fluorspar and barite can be found in the veins.

Description

The Schaubergwerk "Volle Rose" (Show Mine "Full Rose") is located in the Schortetal (Schorte valley) south of Ilmenau. In this place the polymetallic ores were mined for changing reasons since the 12th century. First the copper and silver content was of value, then the manganese and iron became more important. And finally, during the 20th century, only the fluorite and baryte were of commercial interest. At some point of time even the small coal layers were mined, but only because the wood was rare for some time.

The Schorte or Schortenmühle is not a traditional show mine, it is actually more of a "theme park". The main focus of the operating company, Schortemühle GmbH, is the Schortemühle restaurant, which serves traditional Thuringian home-style cooking. It is located in the former mine buildings right next to the car park and has been extensively restored. The cuisine is, however, upmarket, which probably means that the dishes are modest in portion and the prices a little higher than one might like. In addition, there is the Bobhütte mountain restaurant on Ilmenau’s Lindenberg, the Schlittenscheune museum, the narrow-gauge railway ride through the Schortetal valley, and, of course, the show mine. Furthermore, the new operator has extended the opening hours and introduced online booking for the restaurant and the show mine. The show mine was opened in 2005 by the Bergbauverein Schortetal e.V., and the guided tours are still conducted by the association’s knowledgeable members. The tours are rather short, lasting only 30 minutes, and the number of participants is limited to 16 due to the seating capacity on the mine railway. The Schlittenscheune (sledge barn), which houses an exhibition of historic sledges, is looked after by the Traditionsverein Schlitten und Bob Ilmenau e.V. (Ilmenau Sledge and Bobsleigh Heritage Association).

There is a guided tour of the show mine, which includes an introductory film, a ride on the mine railway into the mine, and a tour of the GDR mining facilities. In addition, you can take a self-guided tour of the mine site, including the machine halls and the narrow gauge train station. The guided tour focuses on the final phase of mining: the extraction of fluorspar in the mid-20th century. The show mine takes its name from the ‘Volle Rose’ adit in which it is located. However, this is just one of numerous former extraction tunnels in the Oehrenstöcker mining district. The mining field is named ‘Michael’ after the Archangel Michael.

In the past, there were apparently also exhibition rooms on mining here, described as loans from the Bergbaumuseum Ilmenau (Ilmenau Mining Museum). The Ilmenau Mining Museum was the smallest mining museum in Germany, comprising the private collection of Erwin Moritz, which was housed in the Luthersteufe on the Ilmenau–Oehrenstock road. However, this building was demolished in 2014, and so the exhibition was divided between the Heimatstube in Oehrenstock and the Goethe City Museum in Ilmenau.<\n It is unclear whether the exhibition can still be viewed there or has been put into storage. Nowadays, however, only the Sled Museum is mentioned; the mining exhibition can only be found on websites that are more than 10 years old. If you visit the show mine, we would be grateful for an email regarding the current situation.

Above ground, there is a 30-minute ride on the historic Feldbahn, covering 3.5 km through the Schorte Valley. A Feldbahn is also a narrow-gauge railway, but not a mine railway. The tracks, with a gauge of 600 mm, were laid at the end of the 19th century and were used to transport the ore from the adits to the Grenzhammer, where the ore was crushed. Here, it was also possible to load the ore onto the railway. However, the railway was dismantled after the Second World War and the ore was transported by lorry. The tracks were rebuilt for tourist purposes and connect the Schortenmühle with the Reinhardsmühle, 1.5 km away. The 3.5 km circular journey takes about 30 minutes. In total, the visit therefore takes about 1.5 hours.