Wool cloth making

An up-close look at an old handicraft tradition – the Tuchmacher Museum Bramsche (the Bramsche Wool Clothmakers’ Museum)

In the Tuchmacher Museum Bramsche (Bramsche Wool Clothmakers’ Museum) you can admire a very old craft of our region – the traditional production of fine fulled and roughened woolen cloth. The beginnings of the clothmakers' guild in Bramsche go back to the 16th century. The industrial operation of the Bramsche production facility shaped the region for a long time until it was finally discontinued in 1972.

Today this is the site of the Wool Clothmakers’ Museum, which is dedicated to maintaining tradition and preserving the old craft. The exhibition goes beyond that of an ordinary museum; here, visitors can experience first-hand all of the steps of the process from carding the wool to weaving the woolen blankets. The ongoing production takes place on historical machines that are over 100 years old. The skills and knowledge that are necessary for the use of these conventional handcraft methods have been passed on here for generations.

Typical for the region was the dyeing of textiles with the so-called Bramscher Rot (Bramsche red) – a color that was originally obtained from the root of the madder plant. The exact recipe for dyeing cloth Bramsche red is still being researched today. Wool blankets in various historical colors and patterns can be purchased in the museum shop; certainly, only one of the reasons that makes a visit to the Bramsch Wool Clothmakers' Museum worthwhile.

Photos: Tuchmacher Museum Bramsche, Oliver Pracht, Martin Rupik