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The Striezelmarkt in Dresden is Germany's oldest documented Christmas market. It was first mentioned in 1434, under Friedrich II, an Elector of Saxony, when it was held the Monday before Christmas on the Altmarkt square. Over the centuries it has developed into a huge event with 250 stands, taking up a large part of Dresden city centre and lasting throughout the Advent period. Today the Striezelmarkt attracts 2 million visitors a year from all over the world, and Dresden's twin town Columbus, Ohio has adopted the tradition, too. Brühls Terrace and the Frauenkirche Dresden [ˈdreːsdn̩] (Sorbian/Lusatian Drježdźany), the capital city of the German federal state of Saxony, is situated in a valley on the river Elbe. ...
Christmas (literally, the Mass of Christ) is a holiday in the Christian calendar, usually observed on December 25, which celebrates the birth of Jesus. ...
Events May 30, Battle of Lipany in the Hussite Wars Jan van Eyck painted the wedding of Giovanni Arnoflini The Honorable Passing of Arms at the bridge of Obrigo The Portuguese reach Cape Bojador in Western Sahara. ...
This article is about Frederick II of Brandenburg. ...
Adventure (also known as ADVENT or Colossal Cave) was the first computer game to appear in the genre of interactive fiction (before it was even called that). ...
The word Striezelmarkt comes from Strüzel or Stroczel, which was the name of a type of cake sold at the market, now famous as Stollen or Christstollen. Stollen is a light airy fruitcake which is quite low in sugar, today available in many parts of the world. The true Dresden Stollen, however, is produced in the city and distinguished by a special seal depicting the city's famous king, August the Strong. 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 history. Stollen is a bread-like cake traditionally made in Germany, usually eaten during the Christmas season as Weihnachtsstollen or Christstollen. ...
Reign From 1697, until 1706 and from 1709, until February 1, 1733 Elected In 1697 in Wola, today suburb of Warsaw, Poland Coronation On September 15, 1697 in the Wawel Cathedral, Kraków, Poland Royal House Wettin Parents John George III Wettin Anne Sophie Consorts ? Children August III Sas Maurice de...
The El Chino Mine located near Silver City, New Mexico is an open-pit copper mine Mining is the extraction of valuable minerals or other geological materials from the earth, usually (but not always) from an ore body, vein, or (coal) seam. ...
At the centre of the Striezelmarkt stands a 20m high spruce, brought from the nearby Tharandt woods and decorated with lights. At the back of the market square there is a painted wooden fairy-tale castle which is also a giant Advent calendar. A door is opened every day by children's entertainers, with a puppet show, and on Fridays there is a visit by Father Christmas himself. Species About 35; see text. ...
This article is in need of attention. ...
For places in the United States with this name, please see Santa Claus (disambiguation). ...
Features of today's Striezelmarkt
Wooden Ornaments Many of the stands at the Striezelmarkt sell wooden ornaments of a huge variety of shapes and sizes. This comes from the area's mining history. Dresden is the largest city near the Erzgebirge, or Ore Mountains, where silver and tin were discovered in around 1168. The discovery brought many miners to the area, who then lost their jobs as the German Peasants' War and competition from abroad took their toll. Needing a new way of earning 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. In the 19th century the Erzgebirge mountains were a centre for lace making. ...
expanding insurgences The Peasants War (in German, der Deutsche Bauernkrieg) was a popular revolt in Europe, specifically in the Holy Roman Empire between 1524- 1526 and consisted, like the preceding Bundschuh movement and the Hussite Wars, of a mass of economic as well as religious revolts by peasants, townsfolk and...
- 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 which rotates, driven by the heat of candles rising up into a rotor at the top. On each tier there are figures connected with Christmas. The whole ornament is usually about 50 cm high, but the tallest pyramid in the world takes pride of place at the Striezelmarkt, towering a full 14m in the air. Originally, the pyramid was a much simpler affair, simply a frame to hang sprigs of fir upon; the modern-day pyrmid did not evolve until the early 19th century.
- Literally, the word Schwibbogen means an arch "hanging" (schweben) above you, between two walls. This candle-holder is indeed arch-shaped, representing the arched entrance to a mine hung with guiding lights; another connection to the area's mining past. Today the "candles" are often lit with electricity, and the scenes cut out of 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, traditonally 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 candle is placed inside him so that he appears to smoke as it burns. There is a wide variety of variations on the smoking man, including old ladies in rocking chairs, Father Christmases, and figures representing nearly every occupation. Smoking men first appeared on the Striezelmarkt in the 19th century.
- 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 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's ballet came from.
A lit candle. ...
Species See text. ...
Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ...
Simple arch bridge Close-up of a semi-circular arch in Barcelona, Spain. ...
Incense is a preparation of aromatic plant matter, often with the addition of essential oils extracted from plant or animal sources, intended to release fragrant smoke for religious, therapeutic, or simply aesthetic purposes as it smolders. ...
Alternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical) (18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801-1900 in the sense of the Gregorian calendar. ...
Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (Russian Пётр Ильи́ч Чайко́вский, sometimes transliterated as Piotr, Anglicised as Peter Ilich), (May 7, 1840 – November 6, 1893 (N.S.); April 25, 1840 – October 25, 1893 (O.S.)) was a Russian composer of the Romantic era. ...
A performance of The Nutcracker The story of The Nutcracker and the Mouse King was written by E. T. A. Hoffmann. ...
In the 19th century the Erzgebirge mountains were a centre for lace making. ...
Food and drink Apart from the famous Stollen, other specialities originate from Dresden and were originally sold at the Striezelmarkt. - Although they are made of prunes, these little figures are really decorations, although they can be eaten after Christmas. Pflaumentoffel means plum devil; they were 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 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 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 (Pulsnitz gingerbread)
- The Christmas market at Nuremberg (Christkindlmarkt) is more famous for its gingerbread known as Lebkuchen, 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. 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 or jam and covered with chocolate. Unlike gingerbread from other countries, the dough does not usually contain any fat, or indeed ginger, 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.
- One very well-loved tradition on a cold December night in Dresden is drinking steaming mugs of mulled wine at the Striezelmarkt. The hot red wine spiced with cloves and cinnamon is served in specially decorated mugs.
Genera Several, including: Prunus domestica Prunus insititia Prunus maritima Prunus salicina A plum is a stone-fruit tree in the genus Prunus. ...
Vaudeville character actor Charles E. Grapewin wearing a top hat For the movie starring Fred Astaire see Top Hat A top-hat or top hat is a kind of tall, flat-crowned, broad-brimmed hat worn by men and was especially common in the 19th century. ...
Nuremberg coat of arms Location of Nuremberg Nuremberg (German: Nürnberg) is a city in the German state of Bavaria, in the administrative region of Middle Franconia. ...
In many towns in southern Germany, Advent is usually ushered in with the opening of the town Christmas Markets, often also called Christkindlmarkt or Christkindlesmarkt (Ger. ...
A gingerbread house Gingerbread is a sweet that can take the form of a cake or a cookie in which the predominate flavor is ginger. ...
Freshly baked Lebkuchen Lebkuchen are traditional German Christmas cookies similar to gingerbread, which were probably invented by Medieval monks in Franconia, Germany in the 13th century. ...
Compact orange pepper plants in the genus Capsicum. ...
Screen shot of Spice OPUS, a fork of Berkeley SPICE SPICE (Simulation Program with Integrated Circuits Emphasis) is a general purpose analog circuit simulator. ...
Marmalade is a sweet conserve made from fruit, sugar, and (usually) a gelling agent. ...
For other meanings of the word jam, see Jam (disambiguation) Jam from berries Jam is a type of fruit preserve. ...
Chocolate comes in dark, light, and white varieties with cocoa contributing the brown coloration. ...
Binomial name Zingiber officinale Roscoe Ginger root is used extensively as a spice in many if not most cuisines of the world. ...
Mulled wine Mulled wine is wine, usually red wine, combined with spices and usually served hot. ...
Related links at Wikipedia
German Cuisine varies greatly from region to region. ...
External links - Christmas pyramids at knocktwice.com (http://www.knocktwice.com/pyramid.htm)
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