Pforzheim, famed as a center of the goldsmithing and jewelry industry, lies on the northern fringe of the Black Forest in a basin at the confluence of the rivers Enz, Nagold and Würm. As a base from which to explore the beautiful valleys of these rivers and the starting point of three Black Forest ridgeway trails, Pforzheim (Porta Hercyniae) is the gateway to the northern Black Forest.
In the south of Pforzheim is the Stadtgarten (Municipal Park), with the Reuchlinhaus (named after the humanist Johannes Reuchlin, 1455-1525, a native of Pforzheim). In the Reuchlinhaus is the Jewelry Museum (Schmuckmuseum), devoted to the local jewelry and clock-making industries, with periodic special exhibitions of art and applied art.
Opposite the Reuchlinhaus can be seen the Schütt exhibition of precious stones.
The museum has over 2,000 pieces on display representing over 5,000 years of jewelry history.
To the west of the Stadtgarten in Pforzheim, at Bleichstrasse 81, is the Museum of Technology, run by the Federation of the Clock-Making and Jewelry Industry (manufacturing processes, old machinery and workshops).
In the Eutingen district near Pforzheim, down the Enz valley, is the Country Museum (opened 1983), in an old half-timbered house (arable farming, harvesting, stock-rearing, transport, etc.).
At Westliche Karl-Friedrich-Strasse 243 in Pforzheim can be found the Heimatmuseum (history of the town, domestic interiors, crafts). An interesting item is the first Oechsle scales, a device invented by a local goldsmith, Ferdinand Oechsle.
In the Marktplatz, in the south of Pforzheim, stands the Town Hall (1968-73; carillon). Close by is the Stadthalle. Farther south, in the angle between the Enz and the Nagold, is the Town Church (1964-68); from the detached tower, 76m/249ft high (lift), there are extensive views.
Of the old palace of the Margraves of Baden-Durlach in Pforzheim, there remain only the Archives Tower and the palace church (11th C., rebuilt). In the choir of the church are the Renaissance tombs of Landgraves of Baden.
In the east of Pforzheim stands the Romanesque church of St Martin (12th C.). In the choir are fine frescoes, long forgotten and then rediscovered during restoration work after the Second World War.
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