Weißenfels (district)

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Weißenfels
District
Country	Germany
State	Saxony-Anhalt
Disbanded	2007-07-01
Capital	Weißenfels
Area
• Total	372.41 km2 (143.79 sq mi)
Population  (2004)
• Total	74,913
• Density	200/km2 (520/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
Vehicle registration	WSF
Website	landkreis-weissenfels.de

Weißenfels was a district (Kreis) in the south of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Neighboring districts were (from south clockwise) Burgenlandkreis, Merseburg-Querfurt and the Saxon district Leipziger Land.

Near the small town Goseck archaeologists, discovered in 1999 was the oldest solar observatory in Europe, beating Stonehenge by more than 2000 years. Around 5000 BC the circular trench with a diameter of 75 meters was surrounded with wood palisades, with three openings which allowed to measure the date of the spring and autumn equinox. Excavations on the site are planned to continue until 2007.

This article needs to be updated. Please help update this article to reflect recent events or newly available information. (July 2019)

The district in today's borders was created in 1994 when the two previous districts Weissenfels and Hohenmölsen were merged.

The main river in the district is the Saale with viticulture along the river valley. In the east of the district is the lignite open pit mining area of Hohenmölsen.

The main feature in the coat of arms is the blue band representing the river Saale. The Prussian eagle in the top-right was added as the area became part of Prussia in 1816, even though it historically belonged to Saxony. The cloverleaf with the mining symbols inside was taken from the coat of arms of the former district Hohenmölsen. The trefoil represented the agriculture in that district, the mining hammers the lignite mining.

• Official website (German)

51°12′N 12°04′E / 51.200°N 12.067°E / 51.200; 12.067