The Striezelmarkt in

Dresden Dresden (; ; Upper Saxon German, Upper Saxon: ''Dräsdn''; , ) is the capital city of the States of Germany, German state of Saxony and its second most populous city after Leipzig. It is the List of cities in Germany by population, 12th most p ...

is one of the first genuine

Christmas market A Christmas market is a street market associated with the celebration of Christmas during the four weeks of Advent. These markets originated in Germany, but are now held in many countries. Some in the U.S. have Phono-semantic matching, adapted ...

s in the world. Founded as a one-day market in 1434, it celebrated its 585th anniversary in 2019. Its 240 stands attract about 3 million visitors from all over the world. The annual market lasts throughout the

Advent Advent is a season observed in most Christian denominations as a time of waiting and preparation for both the celebration of Jesus's birth at Christmas and the return of Christ at the Second Coming. It begins on the fourth Sunday before Chri ...

season until

Christmas Eve Christmas Eve is the evening or entire day before Christmas, the festival commemorating nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus. Christmas Day is observance of Christmas by country, observed around the world, and Christma ...

History and naming

This market event was first mentioned in 1434, under Friedrich II, Elector of

Saxony Saxony, officially the Free State of Saxony, is a landlocked state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt, Thuringia, and Bavaria, as well as the countries of Poland and the Czech Republic. Its capital is Dresden, and ...

, when it was held the Monday before Christmas on the Altmarkt square. Originally, it was a one-day market to provide the citizens of Dresden with the sale of meat for the Christmas meal after the traditional Advent period of fasting.H. .: ''Der Dresdner Striezelmarkt. Geschichte und Tradition des ältesten deutschen Weihnachtsmarktes''. Husum Verlag, Husum 2009, pp. 7-10 In the 21st century, the Striezelmarkt has developed into a huge event with 240 stands. It takes up a large part of Dresden city centre and lasts throughout the

period until

. The word ''Striezelmarkt'' comes from ''Strüzel'' or ''Stroczel'', which was the name of a type of cake sold at the market; it is now widely known as ''

Stollen Stollen ( or ) is a fruit bread of nuts, spices, and dried or candied fruit, coated with powdered sugar or icing sugar and often containing marzipan. It is a traditional German Christmas bread. During the Christmas season the cake-like loave ...

'' or ''Christstollen''. ''Stollen'' is a light airy fruitcake that is quite low in sugar, and today is available in many parts of the world. The true Dresden ''Stollen'', however, is produced in the city and distinguished by a special seal depicting Augustus II,

Elector of Saxony The Electorate of Saxony, also known as Electoral Saxony ( or ), was a territory of the Holy Roman Empire from 1356 to 1806 initially centred on Wittenberg that came to include areas around the cities of Dresden, Leipzig and Chemnitz. It was a ...

and

King of Poland Poland was ruled at various times either by dukes and princes (10th to 14th centuries) or by kings (11th to 18th centuries). During the latter period, a tradition of Royal elections in Poland, free election of monarchs made it a uniquely electab ...

. The shape of the cake is meant to be reminiscent of the entrance to a mine tunnel (the literal meaning of ''Stollen''), reflecting the area's silver and

tin mining Tin mining began early in the Bronze Age, as bronze is a copper-tin alloy. Tin is a relatively rare element in the Earth's crust, with approximately 2 ppm (parts per million), compared to iron with 50,000 ppm. History Tin extraction and use ca ...

history.

Features of today's Striezelmarkt

Today the most famous features of Dresden Striezelmarkt are the world's largest usable Christmas arch with a breadth of and a height of more than and the high Erzgebirge Christmas pyramid. Situated on the Dresden Striezelmarkt is a children's adventure world. Here, the prune

chimney sweep A chimney sweep is a person who inspects then clears soot and creosote from chimneys. The chimney uses the pressure difference caused by a hot column of gas to create a draught and draw air over the hot coals or wood enabling continued combust ...

’s cottage and the bakery are open for kneading and arts and crafts. A puppet theatre, merry-go-round, and a children's railway are also operating. On the Dresden Striezelmarkt, a daily stage programme takes place. During Advent weekends, special events such as Dresden Stollen Festival and Pyramid and Christmas Arch Festival take place. At the centre of the Striezelmarkt stands a high

spruce A spruce is a tree of the genus ''Picea'' ( ), a genus of about 40 species of coniferous evergreen trees in the family Pinaceae, found in the northern temperate and boreal ecosystem, boreal (taiga) regions of the Northern hemisphere. ''Picea'' ...

, brought from the nearby

Tharandt Tharandt () is a municipality in Saxony, Germany, situated on the Weißeritz, southwest of Dresden. It has a Protestant Church and the oldest academy of forestry in Germany, founded as the Royal Saxon Academy of Forestry by Heinrich Cotta in 181 ...

woods and decorated with lights. At the back of the market square there is a painted wooden fairy-tale castle, designed to operate as a giant

Advent calendar An Advent calendar, from the German word ''Adventskalender'', is used to count the days of Advent in anticipation of Christmas. Since the date of the Advent Sunday, First Sunday of Advent varies, falling between November 27 and December 3 inclusi ...

. Children's entertainers open a door each day and present a puppet show. On Fridays, Father Christmas himself visits. * Wooden ornaments :Many of the stands at the Striezelmarkt sell carved wooden ornaments of a huge variety of shapes and sizes. This practice dates to the period of the area's mining history. Dresden is the largest city near the ''Erzgebirge'', or

Ore Mountains The Ore Mountains (, or ; ) lie along the Czech–German border, separating the historical regions of Bohemia in the Czech Republic and Saxony in Germany. The highest peaks are the Klínovec in the Czech Republic (German: ''Keilberg'') at ab ...

, where silver and tin were discovered in around 1168. The discovery brought many miners to the area, but they lost their jobs as a result of the

German Peasants' War The German Peasants' War, Great Peasants' War or Great Peasants' Revolt () was a widespread popular revolt in some German-speaking areas in Central Europe from 1524 to 1525. It was Europe's largest and most widespread popular uprising befor ...

and competition from abroad. Needing a new way to earn money, the miners took up woodcarving, incorporating mining symbols and religious elements into their designs. These symbols can still be found in the Christmas ornaments sold at the Striezelmarkt. * Candle pyramids ( Christmas pyramid) :In many parts of Germany, the candle pyramid (lightstock) is brought out every year to light up the room at Christmas. Two to five round wooden tiers, gradually smaller towards the top, are built onto a central rod. The tiers rotate, driven by the heat of

candle A candle is an ignitable candle wick, wick embedded in wax, or another flammable solid substance such as tallow, that provides light, and in some cases, a Aroma compound, fragrance. A candle can also provide heat or a method of keeping time. ...

s rising up into a rotor at the top. On each tier there are figures connected with Christmas. The whole ornament is usually about high. The tallest pyramid in the world dominates the Striezelmarkt, towering a full in the air. Originally, the pyramid was a much simpler affair, simply a frame to hang sprigs of

fir Firs are evergreen coniferous trees belonging to the genus ''Abies'' () in the family Pinaceae. There are approximately 48–65 extant species, found on mountains throughout much of North and Central America, Eurasia, and North Africa. The genu ...

upon. The modern-day pyramid was not developed until the early 19th century. * Schwibbogen :Literally, the word '' Schwibbogen'' means an

arch An arch is a curved vertical structure spanning an open space underneath it. Arches may support the load above them, or they may perform a purely decorative role. As a decorative element, the arch dates back to the 4th millennium BC, but stru ...

"hanging" (''schweben'') above you, between two walls. This candle-holder is arch-shaped, representing the arched entrance to a mine hung with guiding lights; it is another connection to the area's mining past. Today the "candles" are often lit with electricity. The scenes cut from the wooden centre of the arch are not only on mining themes. At night during Advent, nearly every single window in Dresden is lit with these ornaments, traditionally bought at the Striezelmarkt. * Räuchermann (smoking man) :Another ornament always present at Christmas-time in Germany, the smoking man is hollowed out with a hole leading to his mouth, hung with a pipe. An

incense Incense is an aromatic biotic material that releases fragrant smoke when burnt. The term is used for either the material or the aroma. Incense is used for aesthetic reasons, religious worship, aromatherapy, meditation, and ceremonial reasons. It ...

candle is placed inside him so that he appears to smoke as it burns. Variations on the smoking man include old ladies in rocking chairs, Father Christmases, and figures representing nearly every occupation. Smoking men first appeared in the Striezelmarkt in the 19th century. * Nutcrackers :The type of nutcracker traditionally sold at the Striezelmarkt, carved and painted with a red coat like a soldier, probably became popular world-wide thanks to Tchaikovsky's ''

Nutcracker Suite ''The Nutcracker'' (, ), Op. 71, is an 1892 two-act classical ballet (conceived as a '; ) by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, set on Christmas Eve at the foot of a Christmas tree in a child's imagination featuring a Nutcracker doll. The plot is a ...

'' and related ballets. The first wood turner to carve the ornaments in this form, Wilhelm Friedrich Füchtner from the Ore Mountains, is said to have been inspired by the nutcracker in the story book Tchaikovsky drew from for his ballet.

Food and drinks

Apart from the famous ''Stollen'', other specialities originate from Dresden and were originally sold at the Striezelmarkt. * ''Pflaumentoffel'' :Although they are made of

prunes A prune is a dried plum, most commonly from the European plum (''Prunus domestica'') tree. Not all plum species or varieties can be dried into prunes. Use of the term ''prune'' for fresh plums is obsolete except when applied to varieties of ...

, these little figures are really decorations, although they can be eaten after Christmas. ''Pflaumentoffel'' means ''plum devil''; (also called ''Feuerrüpel'' or ''Fiery Santa''), although they are not meant to be devils or Santas, but chimney sweeps, all dressed in black (the prunes) with a

top hat A top hat (also called a high hat, or, informally, a topper) is a tall, flat-crowned hat traditionally associated with formal wear in Western dress codes, meaning white tie, morning dress, or frock coat. Traditionally made of black silk or ...

and a brush. Until the 20th century, ''Pflaumentoffel'' were sold at the Striezelmarkt on trays carried by children trying to earn some Christmas money. The artist

Ludwig Richter Adrian Ludwig Richter (September 28, 1803June 19, 1884) was a German painter and etcher, who was strongly influenced by Erhard and Daniel Chodowiecki, Chodowiecki. He was a representative of both Romanticism and Biedermeier styles. He was th ...

famously portrayed these ''Striezelkinder'' in 1853 in his woodcut "Ausverkauft wegen Geschäftsaufgabe" ("Sold out as giving up business"). In 1910, however, sale by children was banned at the Striezelmarkt. * ''Pulsnitzer

Pfefferkuchen (), or () are honey-sweetened German cakes, moulded cookies or bar cookies that have become part of Germany's Christmas traditions. They are similar to gingerbread. Etymology The etymology of ''Leb-'' in the term is uncertain. Propose ...

'' (Pulsnitz gingerbread) :The Christmas market at

Nuremberg Nuremberg (, ; ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the Franconia#Towns and cities, largest city in Franconia, the List of cities in Bavaria by population, second-largest city in the States of Germany, German state of Bav ...

(

Christkindlmarkt A Christmas market is a street market associated with the celebration of Christmas during the four weeks of Advent. These markets originated in Germany, but are now held in many countries. Some in the U.S. have adapted the German name to quas ...

) is more famous for its

gingerbread Gingerbread refers to a broad category of baked goods, typically flavored with ginger root, ginger, cloves, nutmeg, and cinnamon and sweetened with honey, sugar, or molasses. Gingerbread foods vary, ranging from a moist loaf cake to forms nearly ...

known as

Lebkuchen (), or () are honey-sweetened German cuisine, German cakes, moulded cookies or bar cookies that have become part of Germany's Christmas traditions. They are similar to gingerbread. Etymology The etymology of ''Leb-'' in the term is unc ...

, but the Striezelmarkt's gingerbread has nearly as long a history. ''Pfefferkuchen'' literally means " pepper cake": the word "pepper" was used to mean any new foreign

spice In the culinary arts, a spice is any seed, fruit, root, Bark (botany), bark, or other plant substance in a form primarily used for flavoring or coloring food. Spices are distinguished from herbs, which are the leaves, flowers, or stems of pl ...

. The gingerbread sold at the Striezelmarkt comes from Pulsnitz, a town about 50 km from Dresden; it was first mentioned as a speciality from Pulsnitz in a decree issued in 1558 allowing bakers to produce it there. ''Pfefferkuchen'' are usually filled with

marmalade Marmalade (from the Portuguese ''marmelada'') is a fruit preserves, fruit preserve made from the juice and peel of citrus fruits boiled with sugar and water. The well-known version is made from bitter orange. It also has been made from lemons ...

or jam and covered with

chocolate Chocolate is a food made from roasted and ground cocoa beans that can be a liquid, solid, or paste, either by itself or to flavoring, flavor other foods. Cocoa beans are the processed seeds of the cacao tree (''Theobroma cacao''); unprocesse ...

. Unlike gingerbread from other countries, the dough does not usually contain any fat, or indeed

ginger Ginger (''Zingiber officinale'') is a flowering plant whose rhizome, ginger root or ginger, is widely used as a spice and a folk medicine. It is an herbaceous perennial that grows annual pseudostems (false stems made of the rolled bases of l ...

, but instead nutmeg, cinnamon, ground cloves and allspice, which are added after the dough has been left up to 6 months to mature. In 1780 eight master bakers came personally from Pulsnitz to sell their wares at the Striezelmarkt; today there are many more Pfefferkuchen stands, but the gingerbread is usually sold by hired staff. * '' Glühwein'' (mulled wine) :One very well-loved tradition on a cold December night in Dresden is drinking steaming mugs of

mulled wine Mulled wine, also known as spiced wine, is an alcoholic drink usually made with red wine, along with various mulling spices and sometimes raisins, served hot or warm. It is a traditional drink during winter, especially around Christmas. It is ...

at the Striezelmarkt. The hot red wine spiced with cloves and cinnamon is served in specially decorated mugs.

References

External links

Official Website

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Retrieved 27 April 2013
Dresden Things to do on Yahoo Travel
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Retrieved 27 April 2013 {{authority control Tourist attractions in Dresden Dresden, Striezelmarkt 1430s establishments in the Holy Roman Empire 1434 establishments in Europe Recurring events established in the 15th century

History and naming

Features of today's Striezelmarkt

Food and drinks

See also

References

Further reading

External links