Barbara Uthmann

Barbara Uthmann (born around 1514 in Annaberg in the Erzgebirge, Germany; died January 14, 1575, also in Annaberg) was considered to be one of the greatest supporters of bobbin lace making (probably incorrectly, as explained by Reinhart Unger in his work, [http://www.nitsche-unger.de/uthmann "Barbara Uthmann und ihre Zeit"] (German)) and was a successful businesswoman in the Erzgebirge. Her last name hassometimes been spelled "Uttmann", but the spelling "Uthmann" is generallyconsidered to be correct today.

Life

She was the daughter of Heinrich von Elterlein and successfully continued the business of her deceased husband, Christoph Uthmann, but failed as a result of intrigue by her competition. She was thus forced to look for another field of activity. It cannot be historically proven that she actually had bobbin lace made as a cottage industry (commonly referred to as "manufacturing" at that time), but it can be proven that she was active as a manufacturer of braids. At times, she employed 900 braid makers. After her death, she left behind a considerable life's work and is still counted today as one of the extraordinary personalities of the Erzgebirge.

Two Monuments for Barbara Uthmann

* 1885, bronze figure for Annaberg by the Dresden sculptor, Professor Eduard Robert Henze. It served as an acknowledgement to Barbara Uthmann, who was considered to be the creator of the second upswing (after silver mining) of industry in the Erzgebirge at that time.

* In the second half of the 1930s, a child died while playing at the edge of the Barbara Uthmann fountain and the water was removed from the pool, it was filled with earth and planted afterwards.

* In the Second World War, the bronze figure was then melted down for the production of armaments (July 30, 1942).

* On November 12, 1998, after two polls, it was decided that the Barbara Uthmann monument should be erected again. After collecting donations for ten years, a reproduction of the Henze monument was again completed on the market of Annaberg-Buchholz on October 2, 2002. On this occasion, the Uthmann family celebrated a family reunion in Annaberg-Buchholz. Over 60 descendants witnessed the official opening of the fountain and signed the golden book of the city.

* The Barbara-Uthmann monument on the market of Elterlein.

Honors

In 2003, Planetoid 1998 CA, discovered on February 1, 1998, by the Observatory Drebach in the Erzgebirge, was named for Barbara Uthmann. It now bears the official name (312231) of Uthmann and orbits the sun between the planets of Mars and Jupiter.

References

External References

* Regina Hastedt: "Barbara Uthmann": historical novel. Greifenverlag Rudolstadt, 1987 (German)
* Reinhart Unger, Hermann Lange, Wolfgang Lorenz: "Barbara Uthmann und ihre Familie": a collection of essays on the works of Barbara Uthmann. Adam-Ries-Bund Annaberg-Buchholz, 2002. ISBN 3-930430-56-8 (German)
* Joachim Mehnert: "Barbara Uthmann - Eine ungewöhnliche Frau": entertaining information. Tauchaer Verlag, September 2005. ISBN 3-89772-104-X (German)

External links

* [http://www.tu-chemnitz.de/advent/2003/16/ Barbara Uthmann und das Klöppeln] (German)
* [http://www.nitzsche-unger.de/uthmann Reinhart Unger: Barbara Uthmann und ihre Zeit] (German)
* [http://joachim-mehnert.homepage.t-online.de/42498.html Joachim Mehnert: Barbara Uthmann,Bergherrin und Besitzerin der Kupferhütte Grünthal/Olbernhau] (German)