Bolzano’s Fruit Market

Fruit Market (Obstmarkt, in German) is the name given to the alley and square in Bolzano's old town, where market stalls are set up to the left and right offering fresh bread, spices, flowers, fruit and vegetables. In Italian, however, it is called Piazza delle Erbe, Herb Square. It is open all year round, except on Sundays: In spring there are colourful flowers, in summer crisp salads and fresh fruits, in autumn delicious chestnuts are roasted and in winter it is the appropriate place to stop for a moment and enjoy a hot mulled wine. The Bolzano Fruit Market can look back on a long history: Already Goethe told about this market during his trip to Italy in 1786.

It was first mentioned in the 14th century as "Oberer Platz" (superior platea / upper square), and in 1487 the designation "Obzplatz" was noted: It is therefore an evolved designation that does not come directly from the fresh fruits. According to Bolzano's town law of 1437, poultry, fruits and eggs could only be sold in the town at the Fruit Market. Also worth seeing among the stalls are the Neptune Fountain, a classicist bronze figure by Joachim Reiss from 1749, the historic Torgglhaus and the two Stolpersteine (tripping stones) in the upper section, which since 2015 have reminded visitors of the two Holocaust victims Auguste Freund and Wilhelm Alexander Loew-Cadonna.