Marienplatz

Marienplatz is identified by the towering Mariensäule, a column topped with a golden statue of the Virgin Mary that has presided over the center of the square since sixteen thirty-eight. This square has been the heart of Munich since the city was founded in eleven fifty-eight. For centuries, it functioned as the city's primary grain market, known as Schrannenplatz, until the local government renamed it in eighteen fifty-four. The change was a plea for divine protection during a severe cholera epidemic.