Deutsche Manufakturenstraße, a route through Germany
Deutsche Manufakturenstraße is the cultural-historical infrastructure project of the Master Council. The manufactory route was established in 2017 as a living archive of German manufactories and has been expanded since then. At the same time, it is also a tourist holiday route project on the level of the federal states, combining towns, manufactories and craftsmen with cultural tourism offers.
In the regions
Manufakturenstraße is an almost 2500 km long adventure road, which leads along four routes to the most important manufactories in Germany. The routes stretch from the Baltic Sea to Lake Constance and touch all 16 federal states.
A “connecting bond” of the manufactories through Germany has not existed until now. Manufactories in Germany, their activities and their role in the region have so far received too little attention. The things that surround us are important. Today we suffer not from a lack, but from too much. In this respect, the choice of what surrounds us is constitutive.
As a counter-model to the uniform, above all efficient production method of industrial mass production, manufactories do not produce for the throwaway society, but for the “small batch”. Special products of exceptional quality. Careful craftsmanship that is difficult to copy and can hardly be produced in large series at a comparable level. These high-quality products are not luxury in the sense of wasteful opulence. Rather, their value and beauty should be understood as a natural alternative to mass production. They enrich our lives in which their use goes beyond their immediate function.
Deutsche Manufakturenstraße is both a definite tourist offer for visitors and a network for the manufactories themselves. As a touristic sight, there is the possibility to discover selected manufactories in Germany either in guided groups or independently with the help of apps, maps and brochures or via the online portal. This makes German manufactories, their work and their significance in the region visible. The aim is to open up to society. Deutsche Manufakturenstraße organises various exhibitions, markets and other events to bring producers, dealers and consumers into contact with each other.
The Deutsche Manufakturenstraße is an archival initiative that works to ensure that manufactories in Germany are recognised, protected and promoted as important immaterial cultural assets. The products of manufactories are the result of human knowledge and skill, are an expression of inventiveness and traditional craftsmanship. They are often regionally rooted and shaped. They convey identity.
The knowledge of manufactory production is passed on from generation to generation and continually redesigned. This type of regionally rooted tradition lines, which have been cultivated and further developed for a long time, can be found throughout Germany in the most diverse areas.
Deutsche Manufakturenstraße was founded in order to preserve the cultural expressions of the manufactory system existing in Germany. It connects all the important manufactories along an adventure route to form a lively network.
