Anyone strolling through Augsburg will see it everywhere: on facades, fountains, gables, and towers. The pine cone is much more than a simple decorative detail: it is the city's iconic heraldic symbol and a cultural motif that has endured for centuries. The predominance of this motif is particularly striking in the historical architecture of Augsburg. On Baroque facades, especially on the buildings of Maximilianstrasse or around the Fugger buildings, the pine cone frequently

Some stories are written at a desk. Others in real life. The Daughters of the Pine Tree belongs to the latter category. It all began in 2018. Not with an idea, but with a memory. Sandra Noel's memory of her grandmother. A woman from Augsburg. A woman who lived through that time. Her story was there. Always. And yet it remained hidden for a long time. Like so many stories of this generation. Until that one moment in 2018. My simple question to to her, almost casually — and yet

© Stadtarchiv Augsburg | Alex Schönfelder The Daughters of the Pinecone is set in Augsburg during the Second World War. However, the focus is less on the historical event itself and more on the devastating impact the war had on families. The novel follows Karla, a woman from Augsburg, who seeks her own path in a time characterized by fear, control, and ideological constraints. Torn between a sense of duty, conformity, and the desire for self-determination, she tries to make t