Baden-Wurttemberg - Lierbachtal
The Lierbachtal valley near Oppenau is at the western border of the Black Forest. Here lithophysae agates occur in many appearances and can be found at nearly 20 outcrops in the forest.
Sources:
west side of the road
- Buchwald (aka. Wendeplatz)
- Hauskopf - above quarry
- Hauskopf - lower levels
- Hauskopf - quarry
- Hauskopf - Quellfassung
- Hutteneck
- Hutteneck - Hochebene
- Hutteneck - Plasmasource
- Hutteneckhof - above
- Niedermättle
- Rinkhalde - near by
east side of the road
- Eckenfelsen
- Eckenfelsen II
- Eckenfelsen - Nasse Wiese
- Eckenfelsen - Nordhang
- Eckenfelsen - Quelle
- Eckenstein - above
- Holzplatz
- Holzplatz - underneath
- inn Blume - above
- inn Blume - near by
- Rothenbach
- Rothenbach - Grabung
- Rotenkopf - quarry
- Rotenkopf - north
- Rotenkopf - south
- Rotenkopf - Quellfassung
The Lierbachtal is located in the middle Black Forest more on the west side of the mountain range. The lithophysae agates are well known since the ending medival ages and collectors from all over the world know this location.
Here are a few different t-egg types to find in the valley. But searching is quite difficult because of private property and natural
reserve. The most sub-locations are 'closed' but there are several smaller outcrops all over the valley. I hope to go there again to find some nice bigger and more complete pieces. And I also
hope to classify those t-eggs from underneath to certain sub-locations.
Unknown location
creamy opal onion shell: 38 x 25 mm
orange opal: 54 x 35 mm
open quartz geode: ---
red quartz: ---
double with rock crystals: ---
snowflakes (crystoabalite?): 115 x 100 mm
cluster: 82 x 56 mm
soup: 82x66 mm
giant: ---
west side of the road
Buchwald (aka. Wendeplatz)
The sources Buchwald/Wendeplatz are located in the southwest of the western Lierbach-complex. Digging is required in most cases but nearly everywhere forbidden.
Both pieces are from the Wendeplatz. Two interesting specimens as different as possible.
red: 41x44 mm
stretch egg: 207x72 mm
Hauskopf
The hilltop Hauskopf is the important area in the western complex. At its' slopes nearly all the locations can be found.
Hauskopf - lower levels
size:
At the lower levels of the Hauskopf you can also find some nice lithophysae agates. But if you search for a longer time. ;)
The filling is mostly rhyolithic with small opal or chalcedony pockets.
Hauskopf - Quarry
size: 174x56 mm
This thunderegg from the quarry Hauskopf at the Lierbachtal near Oppenau is a really special one. It's a vein agate out of many smaller thundereggs. But the real shape of the eggs is not preserved any more.
bright brown matrix: 81x57 mm
Hauskopf - above quarry
The area above the old quarry is rich of finds, like these underneath.
Hauskopf - Quellfassung
size: 68x76 mm
That's a quite rare sub-location with a really interesting lithophysae agate - Hauskopf water reservoir (Quellfassung) also known as water reservoir or elevated tank. I love that red line going down from the waterline core to the small 2nd agate core (see detail picture)
Hutteneck
The Hutteneck is the southern hilltop of the western complex. The famous plasma location is also near by (at the plateau).
size: 65x63 mm
You can see a few really beautiful pseudomorphs in that lithophysae agate from the sub-location of the Hutteneck - not that common for this location.
size:
Small double egg from the Hutteneck with nice blue banding.
Hutteneck - Hochebene
size: 45x65 mm
A small but nice greenish lithophysae with a white rim from the plateau (Hochebene) in the Lierbachtal.
A tripple-egg from the pleateau area. All three eggs have been cut. Amazing three pictures with one rarely seen blueish level banding.
The other one is showing some bladed baryte crystals - typical for the Hutteneck area.
Hutteneck - Plasmasource
At the finding area of the Hochebene (Hutteneck) there is a special source called Plasmafundstelle. Here you can find eggs including that special greenish chalcedony classified as plasma in most of the t-eggs. There are also a few other spots in the Lierbachtal (and also in Baden-Baden) containg plasma in thundereggs but this one is special.
Niedermättle
The area of the Niedermättle is nowadays on private property. The thunderegg coming from that location are usually pastell colored with a good banding.
size:
This Lierbachtal lithophysae is nearly fracture free and shows some really nice creamy purple colors.
It might be coming from the sub-location of the Niedermättle.
Rinkhalde - near by
At the northern slopes of the Hauskopf hill one can find many places for smaller eggs with mostly no filling. Some of them - especially at the Rinkhalde (near Rinkhof) - can get quite large and with nice fillings.
#1: d10mm
#2: ~200x100 mm
Lierbach (pebbles)
Quite new location to me, but not really a new one. The river flowing down the valley is called Lierbach. Here the eggs get there way down to the bigger rivers and the gravel pits there.
This specific egg shows some sphaerolithic patterns and a nice quartz covered cavity. The pattern is typical for the first parts of the genesis of a thunderegg.
size: 135x95 mm
east side of the road
Eckenfelsen
The Eckenfelsen is probably the most and best known location in the Lierbachtal. The eggs can be found at different spots in two different layers - an upper and a lower one. Both are showing differences in the color pattern (upper ones are more b&w, lower ones colorful) but the most thundereggs from that location show the great pseudomorphics of polygonal habit.
size: 57x48 mm
Flower like pseudos with a few crystal caves coming from the famous Eckenfelsen sub-location in the Lierbachtal.
#1: ~60x45 mm (found in Baden-Baden!)
#2: 75x77 mm
#3: 97x45 mm
#4: ---
Eckenfelsen #II
size:
Known as Eckenfelsen II, this seems to be another well kown sub-localy for collectors there.
Most probably the Upper Eckenfelsen area.
Eckenfelsen - Nasse Wiese
size:
"Nasse Wiese" is one of the extinct locations in the Lierbach valley. The area at the Eckenfelsen is overbuild today.
Eckenfelsen - Nordhang
size:
My first trip hunting lithophysae agates has been at the 24th of May 2013. My friend Mario, a friend of his and me went to the Lierbach valley. We made our decision to go there and not to another
location with vein agates early in the morning before driving to the Black Forest. So I just had a few minutes to pack every information I own together and we went on.
Without a proper map of the valley and only with a really well drawn geological map on my SD-Card we went for our first sub-location the 'Holzplatz'. But we completly missed it and came out at
the northern slopes of the Eckenfelsen. That's just a bit more to the northeast, but there should be no eggs there (as my map said). But, we found a couple of specimens as you can see here. Lets
see them after cutting. :)
Holzplatz
size: 42x45 mm
This egg has a nice dark matrix combined with a light blueish core. It's from the sub-location called Holzplatz where you still can find stuff today.
Rothenbach/-bächle
The location of Rothenbach is another great location at the eastern complex. The matrix is more reddish than greenish here.
Also known as Rotenbach, Rotenbächel, Rotenbächle, Rothenbach, Rothenbächel or Rotenbächle.
Ofersbach (aka. Froschbächle)
size: 68x47 mm
The Ofersbach valley is north to the Lierbach east side complex. The source is also known as Lierbachtal "Froschbächle".
The lithophysae agates are a bit similar but have a lighter matrix and agate filling in less colored ways (white, black, blueish).
