Halle/Saale + Hildesheim, Salinae Saxoniae. Hall in Sachsen / Hildesheim.

HALLE. COMMENTARY BY BRAUN: "Like Hall in Swabia and Hals in the County of Tyrol, Halle in Saxony takes its name from salt [from the Celtic root hall, meaning "salt"], since much salt is extracted there by evaporation.
Halle lies on the Saale, a famous river in Saxony, which has its source in the well-known Fichtelgebirge or Tannengebirge Mountains, from where, along with three other rivers (namely the Eger, Main and Naab, whose waters wondrously flow out to the four corners of the earth), it passes many splendid cities, amongst others the city of Halle, before joining the Elbe."
Halle is presented in a view across the Saale from the west. Particularly prominent on the skyline - hallmarked by the five church towers rising above the marketplace - are the Gothic parish church of Our Lady (Unser lieben Frauen) and the late Gothic "red tower" (Der rote Thurn), originally the bell tower of the church.
Moritzburg castle on the far left of the picture was begun in 1484 and served as the residence of the Magdeburg archbishops. Rising further to the right is Halle cathedral (Der Thurm), consecrated in the 16th century as the collegiate church of the Magdeburg diocese.
In 1531, Albert of Brandenburg commissioned the construction of the New Residence (Das new gebeu) for the university; the building is a masterpiece of the early Renaissance architecture in Germany. On account of its saline springs Halle was settled by Germanic tribes at a very early date.
In AD 735 it was conquered by the Frank Charles Martel. Halle became part of the archbishopric of Magdeburg in 968 and was chartered in 1150. A city of economic importance due to its salt industry. Halle became a member of the Hanseatic League in 1281.

HILDESHEIM. COMMENTARY BY BRAUN: "The see of Hildesheim was the first to be instituted in Saxony by the mighty and most Christian Emperor and King Charlemagne, after he had conquered the Saxon Duke Widukind, in order to spread Christianity across the whole of Saxony and to convert the Saxons from their heathenism and pagan worship to the worship of the true God.
In Elze, a delightful village at the confluence of the Saale and the Leine, he built a cathedral in honour of Peter the Apostle." Hildesheim is seen in a very flat view from the southwest, looking across the city moat.
The see created by Charlemagne around AD 800 in nearby Elze was transferred to Hildesheim by Louis the Pious in 815. In 852, construction began on the first cathedral, which continued to be enlarged and modified right up to the 1400s (Der Turm, centre right).
The early Romanesque structure houses the world-famous bronze works of art installed by Bishop Bernward, namely the Bernward Doors of 1015 and the 380-m-high Pillar of Christ, which illustrates, in a spiralling frieze of bronze reliefs, episodes from the life of Christ, from his Baptism in the River Jordan to his Entry into Jerusalem.
On the far left lies the Ottonian church of St Michael, and on the far right St Gotthard's basilica attached to the Benedictine monastery. (Taschen)

Reference: Van der Krogt 4, 1702; Taschen, Braun and Hogenberg, p.361.