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All Germany Siegen Ziegenberg Gasometer

Ziegenberg Gasometer

One of the only spherical 19th century gas containers left today.

Siegen, Germany

Added By
Maya
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The gasometer is one of the oldest in the world.   Maya W / Atlas Obscura User
The gasometer is one of the oldest in the world.   Maya W / Atlas Obscura User
It is now the sun in a scale model installation of planets.   Maya W / Atlas Obscura User
The park is above the gasometer.   Maya W / Atlas Obscura User
The planets are found on the hill to the right.   A secret club / Atlas Obscura User
The Gasometer up close   A secret club / Atlas Obscura User
Repainted Gasomater   RomulusRom / Atlas Obscura User
Siegen Gasometer   A secret club / Atlas Obscura User
Model Earth   chizang / Atlas Obscura User
The planet model hasn’t really been maintained   chizang / Atlas Obscura User
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About

A gas container is an unlikely monument for a city to protect, but the town of Siegen in Germany has done exactly that, and not without just cause. The obsolete infrastructure reminds us of a time when gasometers helped illuminate entire towns and cities through gas lights.

In the mid-19th century, gasometers—gas containers that stored vast volumes of gas at atmospheric pressure—were at their most popular, and urban centers across Europe installed them, allowing increased productivity after sundown. The next century saw them fall into disuse, when pipe technology and underground storage became the preferred method of storage. Some massive gasometers were repurposed as commercial centers of apartment complexes, such as Vienna's Gasometer Town.

Many of these repurposed gasometers were cylindrical, lending themselves to redesign. The spherical pattern was less common, making the one preserved at the foot of the Ziegenberg hillock in Siegen all the more rare. The huge spherical container is one of the last remaining examples in this shape today. It is protected by a riveted shell, another distinctive feature of the structure. It was moved from its original location due to construction and now—perhaps because of its round shape—plays the starring role in an art installation, depicting the Sun in a to-scale model of our solar system. 

Related Tags

Science Planets Spheres Infrastructure Energy Technology

Know Before You Go

The scaled planets are above the hill next to the gasometer.

Community Contributors

Added By

Maya W

Edited By

A secret club, RomulusRom, chizang

  • A secret club
  • RomulusRom
  • chizang

Published

April 19, 2017

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Sources
  • http://www.siegen-guide.de/en/sehenswuerdigkeit/gasometer-at-the-foot-of-the-goat-hill/
  • https://en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/Siegen
  • http://virtualglobetrotting.com/map/gasometer-siegen/view/google/
Ziegenberg Gasometer
3 Friedrich-Friesen-Straße
Siegen
Germany
50.871892, 8.00581
Get Directions

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Photo of Siegen

Siegen

Germany

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Photo of Siegen

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