Marienplatz
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Marienplatz (en: Mary's Square, i.e. St. Mary, Our Lady's Square) is a central square in the city center of Munich, Germany since 1158.
In the Middle Ages markets and tournaments were held in this city square. The Glockenspiel in the new city hall was inspired by these tournaments, and draws millions of tourists a year.
Marienplatz was named after the Mariensäule, a Marian column erected in its centre in 1638 to celebrate the end of Swedish occupation. It is home to Munich's Old City Hall (Altes Rathaus) and the New City Hall (Neues Rathaus).
It's a gothic council hall and ballroom and tower, which have been reconstructed. The New City Hall was built 1867 - 1909 in Flanders gothic style; its facade, over 300 feet in length, features strikingly elaborate stone ornamentation. Its 260-foot tower with carillon is, with the nearby St. Peter's Church and the twin towers of the Cathedral, one of the most distinctive features of the city's skyline." explains muenchen.de, which also ranks Marienplatz as one of the top ten sites in Munich.
The pedestrian zone between Karlsplatz and Marienplatz is a crowded area with numerous shops and restaurants.
The Marienplatz S-Bahn and U-Bahn station, an important transportation hub, is located below the square.
[edit] Mary's Column
The Mariensäule is a Marian column located on the Marienplatz in Munich, Germany. It was erected in 1638 to celebrate the end of Swedish occupation during the Thirty Years' War and is topped by a golden statue of the Virgin Mary standing on a crescent moon as the Queen of Heaven, created in 1590. The figure was originally located in the Frauenkirche. Mariensäule in Munich was the first column of this type built north of the Alps and inspired erecting other Marian columns in this part of Europe.
At each corner of the column's pedestal is a statue of a putto, created by Ferdinand Murmann. The four putti are each depicted fighting a different beast, symbolizing the city's overcoming of adversities: war represented by the lion, pestilence by the cockatrice, hunger or famine by the dragon and heresy by the serpent.
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Coordinates: 48°08′14″N 11°34′31″E / 48.13722°N 11.57528°E
