Bremer Stadtmusikanten Sculpture

In the Brothers Grimm fairy tale, the Bremer Stadtmusikanten never actually make to it Bremen, but when you do arrive in the city, you might enjoy a quick reminder of what the fuss is about. Starting with a donkey, four overworked and ageing animals, fearing the knacker's yard or the Sunday roasting pan, run away from their owners. They head for Bremen intending, like many young dreamers, to make their fortune as musicians.

On their first night on the road, they decide to shelter in a house. It turns out to be occupied by robbers, as our heroes discover when they climb on the donkey to peer through the window. The sight of a rooster atop a cat, perched on a dog, which is sitting on a donkey - and the 'musical' accompaniment of braying, barking, meowing and crowing - startles the robbers so much, they flee. The animals remain and make their home 'where you'll probably still find them today'.

On Sundays from May to early October, this story is charmingly re-enacted (at noon and 13:30) in Bremen's Markt. Their statue (1951) is tucked away on the Rathaus' western side, in front of the Kirche Unser Lieben Frauen (Church of our Beloved Lady). Sculptor Gerhard Marcks has cast the Town Musicians of Bremen in their famous pose - one on top of the other, on the shoulders of the donkey. The donkey's nose and front legs are incredibly shiny after being touched by visitors for good luck.