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Leipzig celebrates with an exhibition

May 20, 2015

Leipzig was first mentioned 1,000 years ago. Now a new exhibition at the Museum of Local History shows what historians and archaeologists know about the beginnings of the city.

https://p.dw.com/p/1FT8v
Deutschland ältestes Stadtsiegel von Leipzig
Image: picture-alliance/dpa/P. Endig

The fact that Leipzig celebrates its 1,000 year history this year is thanks to chance. No one could foresee that the bishop of Meissen would die during a trip "in urbe Libzi vocata", as the chronicler Bishop Thietmar of Merseburg noted on December 20, 1015. The mention of what was actually a castle settlement is the starting point for a special exhibition at the city’s Museum of Local History in this anniversary year.

The exhibition "1015: Leipzig from the Very Beginning" spans 500 years and "offers a full appreciation of the ancient history of our city for the first time," says museum director Volker Rodekamp. It points to the early foundation for Leipzig’s later development into a trade and exhibition center, and "a city of European significance."

ak/is/cc (epd)