Historic Tour I
1000 footsteps through the old part of the town
The historic tour I leads to 12 significant points of interest and provides information not only about the historical buildings but also about special themes such as the rehabilitation of the old town, worth seeing fountains and the tradition of brewery in Mosbach.
1. Brewery tradition 
2. House Kickelhain
3. Old Hospital
4. Palm'sches Haus
5. Town Hall
6. Salzhaus ("Salt house")
7. Synagogue
8. Pfalzgrafenstift
9. Mosbacher Schloss (Mosbach castle)
10. Kandelschuss ("Kandelschuss"-fountain)
11. Kiwwelschisser ("Kiwwelschisser"-fountain)
12. Stiftskirche
Station 1: Brewery tradition
The grounds of the former Hübner brewery where once the city wall was, marks a branch of industry booming in Mosbach in the 19th century: 13 breweries were producing beer.
When the Hübner brewery closed in 1980, this tradition ended, a tradition to which the building of the Alte Mälzerei (Old Malthouse) testifies.
It was converted into a centre of cultural life and conference venue.
Station 2: House Kickelhain
The curious "House Kickelhain" conveys cramped living conditions typical of the 18th and 19th century. With a living area of 52m spread over three floors, it is one of the smallest half-timbered houses in Germany.
Named after the last tenants, today it is part of the town museum.
Station 3: Old Hospital
The Alte Hospital (Old Hospital) is a masterpiece of carpentry and at the same time one of the oldest buildings of the town. It dates from the second half of the 15th century and served to a lesser extent as accommodation for the sick than as an institution for the needy, the poor and the old. The artistic timberwork construction was largely preserved when it was restored in 1978/79.
In the hospital complex one can find the town museum with its excellent faďence collection.
Station 4: Palm'sches Haus
The gem among the many other magnificent half-timbered houses in Mosbach is the Palmsches Haus. The Schrägmüller family, a respected and wealthy family of civil servants in the Palatine government of Mosbach had it constructed. It was completed in 1610.
One can see the full display of splendour of the late renaissance in the decorated facade with its carved and painted wood trusses. Three half-timbered upper storeys and, likewise, a three-storey bay rest on and extend beyond a stone console.
Station 5: Town Hall
The town hall, built between 1554 and 1558 on the remains of the parish Church of Cecilia characterizes the Mosbach market place.
The building in the renaissance style has four storeys. On the ground floor - a kind of covered market - bakers and butchers offered their goods for sale. On top of that there was the citizen hall where the town council held their meetings (and still does) and where people took their cases to court. On the next floor the citizens made a stop for dance and drink, and on the top floor grain was stored for emergencies. The tower of the town hall is 34 metres high.
The lower third is the former church tower with a gothic cross vault. From the tower one has a wonderful view over the roofs of Mosbach. Of the three bells one comes from the old Church of Cecilia and was cast in 1458. The people of Mosbach call it "Lumpenglöckle".
Station 6: Salzhaus
One can see the oldest example of timber construction at the Salzhaus (building used for the storage and distribution of salt). On the rear one can also find the continuous wooden support columns.
A large part of the house was constructed floor by floor, a special style of construction. It was probably built around 1450 or even earlier, i.e. at a time when Mosbach was booming under the regency of Count Palatine Otto I.
Station 7: Synagogue
A memorial was erected where once the Jewish synagogue was. It was built in 1860 and burnt down in the "Reichskristallnacht" in 1938.
Since the beginning of the 13th century there had been Jewish life in Mosbach. Around 1880 the number of Jews in the town was the highest; after 1945 there were no Jews in Mosbach.
Station 8: Pfalzgrafenstift
The biggest project of renovation of the old part of the town from 1975 to 1998 has been the old people's and nursing home Pfalzgrafenstift. A whole district was rearranged, but the medieval character and two historic houses in the Schlossgasse (Castle Lane) were preserved.
The renovation of the old Mosbach town needed to solve two elementary problems: the medieval structure of the buildings needed to meet the requirements of the occupants and shop owners, and the rising traffic needed to be dealt with. The slogan "preserving renovation" describes it perfectly.
More than 100 public and private measures were taken and an estimated 150 million Euros were invested into the whole project.
Station 9: Mosbacher Schloss
The beginnings of the Mosbacher Schloss (Mosbach castle) can probably be traced back to the fortification of the town in the 14th century. Count Palatine Otto I., who was born in the Mosbach castle in 1390 and moved back into it in 1410, as well as his son Otto II., had the residence expanded considerably, though not with splendour, after 1430.
The castle owes its present romantic impression with bays, timberwork and gables to a historical renovation in 1898.
The Kandelbach brook fed from two springs shot with considerable speed into a trough which led to the expression Kandelschuss.
Already at the end of the 19th century sewers were largely installed in Mosbach, and the water had almost completely disappeared from the sight of its occupants. Through the renovation of the old part of the town, the Kandel was again given its course above ground through the lanes, even though without a function this time. The Kandelschuss fountain symbolizes the importance of water in Mosbach.
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Station 11: Kiwwelschisser
Further down the Kandel another well is being fed, the Kiwwelschisserbrunnen. It is also being fed from the canal system and flows through the Heißenstein- (Hot Stone Lane) and the Badgasse (Bath Lane) until the Alter Schulplatz (Old School Place), following the original Kandel stream.
It reminds us of those times when the people of Mosbach relieved themselves (=schiss) into a bucket or pail (=Kiwwel) and later on took it to the fields or emptied it into barrels.
The history of Mosbach is largely the history of the Stiftskirche (Collegiate Church). The Benedictines living together in a monastery began with the construction of a collegiate church in the second half of the 14th century and named it after St. Juliana. Its simple arrangement is typical example of the late Gothic in rural areas. The furnishings of the interior, the high and side altars, the side portals as well as the pulpit date from the epoch of the late baroque.
In 1708 a wall was erected straight through the place of worship, as, due to the schism, Catholics and Reformed (Protestants) were unable to reach an agreement on the common use of St. Juliana.
In the Protestant part of the town church one can see several medieval memorial slabs which date to the time of the collegiate church. The most important work of art in the Catholic choir is the monument, a bronze relief, of the Palatine Countess Johanna who died in 1444.
