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town in the District of Helmstedt, Germany
Europe > Central Europe > Germany > Lower Saxony > Brunswick Land > Schöningen

Schöningen is a town of about 11,000 inhabitants (2019) in the district of Helmstedt in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is near the border with Saxony-Anhalt, on the southeastern rim of the Elm hill range.

Understand

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Paläon - Research and experience centre Schöningen spears

In archaeology, Schöningen is famous for four ancient wooden spears found in an opencast mine near the town. The spears are about 400,000 years old, making them the world's oldest human-made wooden artifacts, as well as the oldest weapons, ever found. Three of them were probably manufactured as projectile weapons, because the weight and tapered point is at the front of the spear making it fly straight in flight, similar to the design of a modern javelin. The fourth spear is shorter with points at both ends and is thought to be a thrusting spear or a throwing stick (Bamford & Henderson 2003). They were found in combination with the remains of about 20 wild horses, whose bones contain numerous butchery marks, including one pelvis that still had a spear sticking out of it. This is considered proof that early humans were active hunters with specialized tool kits.

The first historical mentioning of the Saxon settlement in the Royal Frankish Annals dates back to 747, when the Carolingian Pepin the Short stayed here during the conflict with his half-brother Grifo. Schöningen was the site of a Königspfalz of Pepin's son Charlemagne and later of the Ottonian dynasty. Saint Willigis, Archbishop of Mainz from 975, was probably born at Schöningen about 940.

From the 14th century it was held by the Welf dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg, who granted Schöningen town privileges in 1332. About 1350 Duke Magnus the Pious had a castle built here to secure the nearby border with the Bishopric of Halberstadt. In its current form, it was created in 1974 by joining the municipalities of Esbeck, Hoiersdorf, and Schöningen. Schöningen is a stop on the German Framework Road.

Get in

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By plane

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By train

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Inter City to Helmstedt. KVG Coach to Schöningen.

By bus

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By car

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A2 to Helmstedt. Exit 63-Helmstedt-Ost . Right on to B1 (Traffic sign: Braunschweig/Königslutter/Helmstedt/Schöningen). Left on to B244. Distance to Schöningen 9.7 km.

Get around

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Car Rental

Bicycle Rental

  • 1 Paläon (Research and experience center Schöningen spears), Paläon 1. 
  • 2 Schloss Schöningen, Burgpl. 1. 14th-century hall. 
  • 3 St. Lorenz Church, Klosterfreiheit 9c. 14th century. 
  • Local History Museum (Heimatmuseum), Schulstraße. build 1593 
  • St. Vincent church, Niedernstraße 47. 
  • City Hall overlooks the town square, the place of Schöningen’s weekly market (Wednesdays and Saturdays 08:00-12:00). Here’s a great opportunity to buy some delicious fruits & veggies, colourful flowers, and wonderful souvenirs for your journey home.
  • So much of Schöningen is best explored outside. Right on the edge of the forest is a wonderful golf course. Though, if you’re not so inclined to play the links, there’s always the pool & sauna to relax in. Though, that might be a better idea to do after you’ve gone out and done the hiking & biking thing through the Lower Saxon countryside.
  • St. Lawrence - a different golf club. Well above the visible church of St. Lawrence on the edge of the Elms extend the fairways of the Golf and Country Club St. Lawrence, one of which has beautiful views in the Magdeburg region up to the resin. The difference from other golf clubs is' That certain something of St. Lawrence, "a blend of the unique location of the place, nestled in the beautiful countryside, near its namesake, the ancient monastery of good St. Lawrence, whose cobblestone manor and the underlying park-like Gutsgarten. For this purpose, the listed, hundreds of years ago from Elmkalkstein built farm buildings, where there is now also the cozy clubhouse. In this particular setting puts it, what is rarely found today: sports, culture, history and landscape that are close together.
  • Elm Lappwald Nature Park bicycle tours.
  • Reit- und Fahrverein Schöningen, Augustastr. 16, ☏ +49 5352 59094. Horseback riding - Riding arena (50x20m), large equestrian center site at the quarry near the youth hostel 
  • ... wie in Oma´s Küche, Wellmannstraße 1, ☏ +49 5352 50241. German cooking. Insider's diner # 1, very friendly service, consistently good food. 
  • Akropolis, Salzstraße 14, ☏ +49 5352 1879. The food tastes almost better than in Greece. Tasteful interior, very friendly service, fast turnaround. 
  • Schloss-Restaurant, Burgplatz 1, ☏ +49 5352 907590. German & Italian cuisine, friendly service, good special occasion restaurant. Groups, seminars & weddings. 
  • Cherrywine Ranch, Zum Waldfrieden (at the edge of the Elm Park), ☏ +49 5352 3178. 
  • Kanzlerkeller, Burgplatz 3, ☏ +49 5352 8252. German cooking in a nice place. Service is medium grade, so is the cooking. 
  • Deutsches Haus, Hötensleber Straße 3, ☏ +49 5352 2589. German cooking at its best. Very friendly service, nice place, very rich menu to choose from, excellent for larger groups. 
  • Irodion, Markt 26, ☏ +49 5352 2201. Greek restaurant, the place is clean but needs an upgrade. Very friendly service, some of the ingredients overwhelming, all in all a fair share for the inexpensive meal. 
  • Kurhaus, Bahnhofstraße 13, ☏ +49 5352 3181. in a nice neighbourhood. Very popular for weddings, birthday celebrations but also for society. The guests are mostly from the region. Cozy atmosphere. 
  • Ratskeller, Markt 1, ☏ +49 5352 969789. German upscale cooking in City Hall's basement. A warm, sophisticated atmosphere is a pleasant backdrop for an evening or an elegant dinner. And there are sophisticated menus and dishes, excellent beers and excellent wines on the cards. 
  • [dead link] Orient-Imbiß, Niedernstraße 19 (in the center of town), ☏ +49 5352 8795. the Orient has an entire variety of food. Gyros, döner, pizza, chicken, fish and a kids menu. Catering. Clean and friendly service. 
  • Sportschänke, Alte Kirchstraße 1 a (on the main road in suburb of Esbeck.), ☏ +49 5352 3080. German cuisine: schnitzel, fish and salad. Friendly service. 
  • Bistro Antalya, Markt 25, ☏ +49 5352 9062816. German, Italian and oriental food. Moderately priced and in the center of town. 
  • Elmhaus, Singplatzweg (Elmrand) (Schöningen), ☏ +49 5352 4860. M-W F Sa 11:00 - 21:00, Su 15:00-21:00. 
  • Waldfrieden, Zum Waldfrieden 1, Schöningen-Esbeck, ☏ +49 5352 3178. Daily from 12:00, in summer Monday from 15:00, in winter Monday closed. 

Drink

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Sleep

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Hotels

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Pensions

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Youth hostels (YMCA)

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Rental

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Go next

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This city travel guide to Schöningen is a usable article. It has information on how to get there and on restaurants and hotels. An adventurous person could use this article, but please feel free to improve it by editing the page.
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