City Centre

Bremen's old town is bounded on the east and northeast by the town moat and the line of the old town walls (now laid out in gardens). Nearby can be seen a windmill, the Mühle am Wall.

In the picturesque Markt in Bremen is the Town Hall (with its Ratskeller), in front of which stands a famous 5.4 m/18ft high statue of Roland (1404), the symbol of the city's freedom and independent jurisdiction.

The Town Hall in Bremen is a brick-built Gothic structure (1405-10), with a sumptuous Renaissance facade added in 1609-12. On its east side is the New Town Hall (1912). The Old Town Hall has one of the most elegant banqueting and reception halls in Germany (40 m/130ft long, 13 m/43ft wide, 8 m/26ft high), with a large mural painting of the "Judgment of Solomon" (1537). This is the scene of the annual Schaffermahlzeit, a traditional meal for ship-owners and seamen. On the side facing the market is a richly carved spiral staircase.Under the northwest tower can be seen a bronze group (by Gerhard Marcks, 1953) of the "Bremen Town Musicians" (a donkey, a dog, a cat and a cock who feature in an old folk tale).

The Cathedral of St Peter (Protestant) in Bremen dates from the 11th, 13th and 16th centuries. The exterior, with its twin towers (98 m/322ft high), was restored between 1888 and 1898. The richly decorated Baroque pulpit (1638) was a gift from Queen Christina of Sweden. In the Bleikeller ("Lead Cellar") are a number of mummified bodies.Opposite the Cathedral is the modern Haus ber Bürgerschaft (Citizens' House; 1966). To the west is the Schütting (1537-38), the old merchant guild-house, occupied since 1849 by the Chamber of Commerce.

The modern Haus der Bürgerschaft in Bremen was built in 1966.

The Schütting (1537-38) in Bremen is the old merchant guild-house, occupied since 1849 by the Chamber of Commerce.

The 13th C. Liebfrauenkirche in Bremen has medieval wall paintings and modern stained glass (by A. Manessier, 1966-73).

The Gewerbehaus (1618-19, restored) in Bremen is now occupied by the Chamber of Crafts.

Bremen's narrow Böttcherstrasse, was in 1926-30 transformed from a street of mean dwellings into a "museum street" at the expense of a wealthy Bremen coffee dealer, Dr. L. Roselius.