THE ABANDONED FACTORY IN GERMANY
‘VEB Halbmond-Teppiche’ is an abandoned carpet factory in Oelsnitz, a small town in the heart of Vogtland. It made carpets in the orient style.
In 1880 industrialists Karl W. Koch and Fritz te Kock founded the ‘Koch & te Kock’ carpet weaving mill. Oelsnitz, hometown of the company, quickly becomes the largest carpet producer in Germany. From here, the rugs go around the world. By 1900 the factory counted 1600 employees. In 1930 the number of employees had increased to 2500. Even Adolf Hitler’s ‘Reichskanzelerei’ was entirely furnished with Halbmond carpets. In 1953 the companies Koch & te Kock, Adoros and Tefzet were merged into the ‘VEB Halbmond-Teppiche’.
The company is included in the DEKO Plauen enterprise during the 1970s. As a result the brand retains its worldwide reputation, and exports do not decrease during the economic crisis.
Halbmond Teppichwerke
After the reunification of Germany, the business was continued in 1990 under the name ‘Halbmond Teppichwerke GmbH’. Not much later the buildings were abandoned because the factory moved to another part of town.
The company is still active today. In the Carpet Museum Schloss Voigtberg some of the old Halbmond rugs are on display. I visited the old factory buildings in 2019.
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