It rises above the village of Cotta at its northern foot as well as the local area by at least 70 metres and forms a clear landmark in the countryside.

Only a remnant of the summit remains, because a triangulation column of the central European meridian arc and Saxon State Survey Office had been erected on it in 1865.

The Cottaer Spitzberg is also a significant area for botany, although the quarry has reduced the variety of local plants.

At the beginning of the 1960s in the heyday of the Cold War a small bunker system was built on the eastern side of the hill.

The Cottaer Spitzberg has long been a popular destination because, on the top of the treeless basalt summit, there is a panoramic all-round view, only restricted closer in.