Mam Tor, or the Shivering Mountain, is made of these shales.
The most interesting buildings are the old fortified château of the 16th century, with its Gothic chapel restored in 1880; the church of St Bartholomew, dating in its present form from 1538; the new town hall (1894); the Griines Tor, also built in 1538; and the handsome new synagogue.
There are some remains of Tor or Torre Abbey, founded for Praemonstratensians by William, Lord Brewer, in 1196.
The manor was granted by William the Conqueror to Richard de Bruvere or de Brewere, and was subsequently known as Tor Brewer.
The opera-house, erected near the Bockenheimer Tor in 1873-1880, is a magnificent edifice in the style of the Italian Renaissance and ranks among the finest theatres in Europe.