Zellertal (region)

Zellertal
View of Albisheim in the Zellertal
Floor elevation	185DE-NHN
Length	12
Geography
Location	Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany
Coordinates	49°38′44″N 8°7′25″E / ���49.64556°N 8.12361°E / 49.64556; 8.12361Coordinates: 49°38′44″N 8°7′25″E / 49.64556°N 8.12361°E / 49.64556; 8.12361
Mountain range	North Palatine Uplands
Rivers	Pfrimm with (left) and ()

The Zellertal is a valley region in the east of the North Palatine Uplands in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. Its western part belongs to Palatine Donnersbergkreis, its eastern part to Rhenish Hessian Alzey-Worms. The valley is named after the old municipality of , which became part of the new Zellertal municipality in 1976.

Geography[]

The Zellertal is a trough-shaped valley with relatively gently sides and is bounded in the north and south by two chains of low hills that are under 300 m.^[1] The distance between the two hill ridges is 2 to 3 kilometres. In between, the valley stretches from west to east, sheltered from north winds. Flowing through the valley in this direction is the Pfrimm, a left ban tributary of the Rhine which is just under 43 kilometres long.

The exit to the valley in the east lies at a height of about 135 m in Rhenish Hesse in the collective municipality of Monsheim, to which belong the first 3 valley parishes of Monsheim, Wachenheim and Mölsheim as we travel upriver. To the west, on the Palatine side, follow the next three parishes of Zellertal (, Zell and ) and the parishes of Einselthum, Albisheim and Marnheim. The Zellertal ends here after 12 km at 185 m.

Sights[]

The symbol of the valley is the 15-metre-high Zellertal Memorial which can be seen from a long way off. The Expressionist New Gothic monument was built in 1928 as a war memorial in honour of the fallen of the First World War. It is located on an exposed viewing point near the K 64 which runs along the hillside between Zell and Mölsheim.^[2] The Baroque pilgrimage church of Zell is dedicated to , who was elevated to the sainthood in the Bishopric of Speyer. Other sights are described in the individual village articles.

• 

  Zellertal Memorial

• 

  Pilgrimage church of Zell - exterior

• 

  Pilgrimage church of Zell - interior

• 

  Vineyards in the Zellertal

Economy and infrastructure[]

Viticulture[]

The Zellertal is the northern end of the Palatine wine region; while the Rhenish Hesse wine area begins at the eastern end of the valley. The Zellertal wine region covers a larger area that the valley itself, has 15 vineyards with a lagen with a vine area of 550 hectares.^[3] The wine region includes other wine-growing municipalities such as Bischheim, Rittersheim and Gauersheim, which are in the side valley of the , a left bank tributary of the Pfrimm.^[4]

Transport[]

The Zellertal is accessed by the (Worms–Marnheim), which runs between the A 63 (Kaiserslautern–Mainz) in the west and the (Neustadt an der Weinstraße–Alzey) in the east. On the western edge of Wachenheim, the B 47 has been extended to the west as a ring road.

On Sundays and holidays from the beginning of May to the end of October the Zeller Valley Railway runs from Monsheim via to Kaiserslautern.

External links[]

• Location of the Zellertal at: Map service of the Landscape Information System of the Rhineland-Palatinate Nature Conservation Office (Naturschutzverwaltung Rheinland-Pfalz)

References[]