Rottenburg am Neckar

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For other meanings, see Rottenburg.

Rottenburg am Neckar


Country	Germany
State	Baden-Württemberg
Administrative region	Tübingen
District	Tübingen
Population	42,899 (2005)
Area	142.26 km²
Population density	302 /km²
Elevation	349 m
Coordinates	48°29′ N 8°56′ E
Postal code	72101-72108
Area code	07472, 07478, 07457, 07073
Licence plate code	TÜ
Mayor	Klaus Tappeser (CDU)
Website	rottenburg.de

The Four Evangelists (15th-c.) on the choir ceiling of Stiftskirche St. Moritz

Rottenburg is a town in Germany on the river Neckar, near Tübingen. Since June 10, 1964, the official name has been Rottenburg am Neckar.

As of June 2005, Rottenburg had a population of 42,899.

1 Geography
2 History
3 Buildings and structures
4 Gallery
5 External links

[edit] Geography

Rottenburg is divided into a city core and seventeen districts.

[edit] History

Rottenburg was originally founded as a Roman town, Sumelocenna, around the year 98.

[edit] Buildings and structures

Dom St. Martin has been the city's cathedral since 1821. Its tower, dating from 1486, is its most prominent feature.

Spanning various architectural periods, the Stiftskirche St. Moritz incorporates a Gothic core with elements from an earlier church and a later Baroque hall church. The Gothic feel is what persists, from 14th- and 15th-c. frescoes on the pillars to the 15th-c. painting of the Four Evangelists on the ceiling in the choir. In the north aisle stands an ornamented column depicting various princes, donated in 1470 by Archduchess Mechthild, the wife of Ludwig I and mother of Eberhard the Bearded. A copy also stands in the city's Marktplatz.

There are two museums in town, the Sülchgau Museum, specializing in pre- and early history and Roman influences on the area, and the dioceasan museum, focusing on ecclesiastical art, painting, and sculpture.

In nearby Weggental is the pilgrimage church of Wallfahrtskirche St. Maria, rebuilt in 1682-1695 in Baroque style, but containing an medieval pietà and very fine rendition of the Virgin swooning during the deposition of Christ from the cross.

A more modern landmark is the Eckenweiler Water Tower. Built of reinforced concrete in the 1970s, its unusual design is notable.