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Walking around downtown Kaiserslautern, you’ve probably noted a number of fountains. Some rather simple, others more elegant, but all offering sprinkling water for a cool refreshment during sunny summer temperatures. Did you know that there are 41 fountains within the whole city? Sixteen of them are in the city center and the remaining 25 in different city sections.
The most prominent and well-known is the Kaisersbrunnen located at Mainzer Tor at the end of Steinstrasse. It was designed by Gernot Rumpf and opened in 1987. The bronze figures depict significant characteristics of the city, such as Emperor Barbarossa, the Opel works, emigrants on their way to the New World and a soccer ball signed by legendary Fritz Walter.
A further fountain designed in a more romantic style with swans is the centerpiece of entertainment at Martinsplatz (pictured right). Built in 1893 it was first named Fontäne Brunnen, then changed to Serenade Fountain and has been called Martinsbrunnen since 1976.
A smaller sandstone structure is to be found in front of Stiftskirche and the picturesque nostalgic Apotheke. The fountain was first mentioned as “Schöner Brunnen” (beautiful fountain) in 1571. Just around the corner at Schillerplatz you’ll find a more modern structure, with metal pipes and recently reburbished, it is one of kids’ favorite places to splash on hot summer days.
A drinking fountain, run by the city works in Kaiserslautern, is located at the end of Kerstrasse and marks the western end of Kaiserslautern’s city limits during the Middle Ages.
The Fackelwoog-Brunnen was relocated from about where the K-in-Lautern mall is today and transported to the park in front of the former castle and city hall. The Albrechtbrunnen close to Waldschlösschen (today’s Philipp-Mees-Platz) didn’t have a name until 1895. It was later named after King Albrecht who gave Kaiserslautern its city forest in 1303. In 1911 the fountain was equipped with the figure of a boy with a pig and received the nickname “Pig’s fountain.”
Another bubbling spring that is not so well known is the Kennedy fountain, located at the square with the same name. It was installed in 1954, formerly known as the Altenwoog-Brunnen, whose copper basin was melted down during World War II.
The last of the inner-city fountains that does not have a name is situated at Davenport Platz close to the university. The square was named after Kaiserslautern’s sister city Davenport, Iowa, and was installed in 1993. Other fountains are located in the city’s seven sections and ready for you to discover on your own and maybe inspire you to a fountain scavenger hunt. But in any case, it’s time to get out and enjoy some “Wasser marsch!” (water march) as Germans say when turning on a hose.
