Hi friends, today another architectonic highlight in Dresden: The YENIDZE. What looks as an oriental mosquee is nothing else than a tobacco manufactory. Between 1880 and 1930 Dresden was the greatest producer of cigarettes and cigars (60% of Germany) and the YENIDZE was the biggest tobacco manufactory of Germany. The YENIDZE was built by HUGO ZIETZ in 1907 - 1909 and was constructed by architect MARTIN HAMMITZSCH. In the baroque city of Dresden it was not allowed to place an ugly manufacory building near to the baroque jewels, so Zietz and Hammitzsch planned something very special: A manufactory building in oriental style with a dome at the roof and the chimneys of the steam engines masked as minaretts. 1500 female workers got jobs here and produced cigarettes with such fine names as "Salem", "Mogul", "Murad", "Fatima". All cigarettes were hand made from oriental tobaccos. The YENIDZE is named after the origin of their tobaccos, a region in North Greece, in these days part of the Osman empire, where Germany had very close relationships before WW I. Hugo Zietz, a big player in the tobacco business, grew up to the biggest of all tobacco barons in Germany. Martin Hammitzsch, the architect, was not such a lucky guy: The YENIDZE was a little bit too progressive, and his collegues retired him from the architecture chamber of the German Reich..... The YENIDZE of these early days was famous for its safety and for its social components: The production halls were very bright and clean, there were lots of showers for the female workers, and on top of the roof was a fine cantina with good food and low prices and a large sun deck with sun chairs where they could have their breaks..... The dome is more then 20 meters in high and is decorated with colored glasses in more then 600 windows, the electric illumination at mnight was powered by 2 separate steam engines. An electric writing sent its message through the night: "SALEM ALEIKUM - PEACE WITH YOU!" The dome is modeled after the egyption calif grave of Mameluk emir Khair Bak in Cairo. In 1924 Hugo Zietz retired and sold his tobacco mosquee to the tobacco - empire REEMTSMA in Hamburg, recent the greatest tobacco empire in Germany and the leading tobacco house in Europe. In 1945 bombs smashed the dome away and 30% of the whole building. In 1947 the tobacco production started again and in 1953 the manufactory grew to a "peoples-owned manufactory", the VEB Tabakkontor of the communistic Germany. They reconstructed the dome in 1966 and replaced the fine colored glasses in the early 80ies. After the fall of the Berlin wall the manufactory was sold to investors from western Germany, the building was restored and changed to a bureau- and officebuilding. In the cellars were a discothek for some years, and the terrace of the roof has now a fine restaurant with a magnificent view over Dresden. The finest place is under the glass dome: It is a space for events: Readings, experimental theatre, stuff like this. Most famous is the "Fairytale Company" with its reading and actions for children at day and greater children at night.... What are thes doing now? Maybe they train a magic carpet ride or they watch Sheherazade`s bellydance..... And now: Have fun with this pic and thanks for your nice comments for my older pics and the favs. Have a fine weekend, whereever you live billcody