Altenburg – The Birthplace of Skat
Mayors reveal their insider tips in the deutschland.de series “My city”. Part 22: Mayor Michael Wolf from Altenburg.
Mayor Wolf, what is special about your city?
Altenburg’s historic centre is unique. It is testimony to the fact that Altenburg was once one of Germany’s richest cities. Of course, Altenburg is also the city in which the game of skat was invented. Germany’s favourite card game was devised in the nineteenth century here in the royal residence city in East Thuringia, and soon became popular well beyond the city’s own boundaries. The German Skat Association has its headquarters here to this day, and decks of cards are “baptized” in the skat well.
What do you see when you look out of your office window?
When I look out from the Town Hall, I have a view across one of Central Germany’s largest market squares. The square with its Italian flair was created in the days of Emperor Frederick Barbarossa in the twelfth century.
Where in your city do you most like to spend your time?
In the beautiful palace gardens, which are impressively framed by the Ducal Palace, the important Lindenau Museum, the Mauritianum natural history museum and the Tea House and Orangerie.
What would you like to show tourists?
The island zoo – it is the only one of its kind in Germany. It is situated in a wonderful setting on an island in the Big Pond on the outskirts of Altenburg’s historic centre.
Where can visitors best get to know the people of your city?
At the big farmers’ markets which are held in spring and autumn. Regional products are sold and farming traditions kept alive there.
And where do you most like to spend your vacations?
Being a dyed-in-the-wool Altenburger with a strong sense of our special history, I like to travel to Italy, to the regions of Veneto, Tuscany and Lombardy.
