ASCHERSLEBEN

city, Saxony-Anhalt Land (state), Germany. It is situated on the northern edge of the Unter Harz (Lower Harz) Mountains, southwest of Magdeburg. Probably founded in the 11th century, it was chartered in 1266 and was the ancestral seat of the Ascanians, an influential German family who derived their name (Latinized) from the town. It passed to the bishops of Halberstadt in 1315 and Brandenburg in 1648. It has the 15th-century Sankt Stephen Church and a 16th-century town hall. Aschersleben is the centre of an extensive potash-mining region, and there is also a lignite (brown-coal) mine north of the city. Aschersleben became known for its seed raising, and it supplies grain and vegetable seeds throughout eastern Germany. The city also manufactures machine tools, machinery, paper, sugar, and blankets. Pop. (1992 est.) 31,599.