The Powder Tower was built around 1455 as a round watchtower made of irregular stones. The exact date of construction is not known. However, it is clearly older than the town wall.

In the copperplate engraving of the town view by Matthäus Merian the Elder (1593-1650), the powder tower is depicted as a round tower with a conical roof. Based on the recognizable door and window openings on the copperplate engraving, it can be assumed to be a three to four-storey building. A postcard from the 20th century still shows the remains of a battlements. The elevated entrance and the interior fittings suggest that the tower was part of the town's defenses as a watchtower. According to tradition, the tower was used as a storehouse for gunpowder in the Middle Ages. From the powder tower, the town wall ran westwards to the front fortress.

Files from the former Tennstedt district office show that the tower was converted into a prison tower between 1734 and 1736. The door attached to the base with a stone door frame indicates this. At the beginning of the 1990s, the tower was renovated and used as a toy museum for several years. During the renovation, a staircase was added to provide access to the upper floors.

The tower is approx. 13.00 m high and has a total diameter of 6.50 m at the base. The diameter of the tower crown is approx. 6.00 m. The Powder Tower has two inner storeys and a viewing platform. From here, the view extends far to the north, east and south. The view to the west is currently severely restricted by treetops.

After a thorough renovation (2020-2021), the tower was reopened to the public and houses a small exhibition on the Peasants' War and the Thirty Years' War.