The mysterious historical gem

The "Alte Schmiede" lies at the foot of the Milchberg in the lower old town and was mentioned in 1184 (probably for the first time) in a Swabian chronicle. The Augsburg monument in the Ulrichsviertel originally belonged to the St. Ulrich and Afra monastery and was used at that time as a farrier for shoeing animal hooves. Due to the long vacancy, you can still discover and admire many wonderful relics from different eras in the building. So on the upper floor there are beautiful wall paintings with floral patterns, a historical wall construction with wooden beams and hazel rods (these served as a substrate for the plaster at the time), or an original blacksmith's mess, which was used by various generations in everyday working life.

Laboratory for interdisciplinary teaching and research

In cooperation with the owner and under professional instruction from the field of building research as well as restoration and conservation technology, the cultural heritage could be revitalized in the coming years in accordance with monument protection and with the greatest care. The history of the building should remain perceptible and be made visible to every visitor. The motto is: as little as possible, as much as necessary.

The 10-year concept
The building is to be documented and designed in the concept of experimental building research. As a creative forge, the old forge should offer plenty of space for student workplaces, events of all kinds, exhibitions, training courses and seminars. In short: a platform for interdisciplinary exchange.

Are you interested and keen on culture?
Then we invite you to get to know this very special project better and to join us on a journey of discovery through history.

The building has just woken up and there are so many projects

A lot of interdisciplinary project work takes place in the forge:
The Faculty of Mechanical and Process Engineering will work together with the Augsburg municipal utility on a concept for heating the building with synthetic fuels and for generating electricity.

Since the winter semester 2o16, courses in the fields of architecture, civil engineering and energy-efficiency design in the field of renovation techniques, monument preservation, building technology and documentation have been carried out continuously at the Faculty of Architecture and Building.

In the Social Work program of the Faculty of Humanities and Natural Sciences, research is being carried out into the possibilities of using the forge as an inclusive place for seminars and discussions in the future, while the Faculty of Electrical Engineering is interested in using the centrally located building in the future to demonstrate technologies in the Use robotics area.

The association "PROJEKTschmiede e.V.", a non-profit support association for student projects at the Augsburg University of Applied Sciences, has been gradually refurbishing the building since the beginning of 2o19 so that it can later be used for work rooms, exhibitions and information events.

The University of Augsburg researches the history of the old smithy.

Project participants

Augsburg University of Applied Sciences
Faculty of Architecture and Construction:
B.Eng. Max Kling, B.Eng. Sebastian Steinbock, B.Sc. Louisa Hanke, B.Eng. Annika Volpert, Sven Hartlaub, Andreas Heinzler, M.Eng. Nadine Maier, B.Eng. Vevi Kröner, M.Eng. Ralf Lösch, B.Eng. Dominik Baumann, B.Eng. Marcus Stevenson, B. Eng. Michael Bauhof, M.Eng. Michael Sedlmeier, B.Eng. Elek Fogarassy, ​​M.Eng. Lukas Dankesreiter, B.Eng. Sabrina Sommer, B.Eng. Stefan Schröder, B.Eng. Tim Thiede, M.Eng. Angi Fendt, M.Eng. Carmen Herrmann.
Prof. Dr. Christian Bauriedel, Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Nowak, Prof. Dr. Jens Gattermann, Prof. Dr. Gerhard Zirwas, Prof. Dr. Bernhard Irmler, Prof. Dr. Marcus Rommel, Prof. Dr. Michael Schmidt, Prof. Dr. Tobias Schmidt, Dipl. Ing.Markus Brand

Faculty of Mechanical and Process Engineering:
Prof. Dr. Rainer Wieler, laboratory supervisor Michael Ziegler

Faculty of Humanities and Natural Sciences:
Prof. Dr. Martin Stummbaum

Faculty of Electrical Engineering:
Prof. Dr. Florian Kerber

University of Augsburg
Chair of Medieval History
PD Dr. Mathias Kluge, Serafin Baur