STEPPING BACK INTO THE MIDDLE AGES AT THE DRESDEN MEDIEVAL CHRISTMAS MARKET:
Atmospheric Dresden Medieval Christmas Market
The Dresden Striezelmarkt is the largest and most famous of the Dresden Christmas markets, but a Christmas market with a difference and one which we like a lot is the Dresden Medieval Christmas Market, also known as the Stallhof Advent Festival.
The Dresden Medieval Christmas Market is set up in the Stallhof, once the Royal Mews of the Dresden Royal Palace. Although it is quite small in size, it is nevertheless atmospheric and jam-packed with stalls.
Christmas Angel watches over the Dresden Medieval Christmas Market
Atmospheric Christmas Market
The Dresden Medieval Market takes you on a journey back in time. The ambience of this market is set to be like in medieval times. The stallholders, dressed in medieval clothing which reflect their particular trade, add to the atmosphere.
Guild craftsmen and craftswomen make their goods using tools and materials from medieval times. There are some 40 stalls covering crafts like woodwork, an ironmonger, a rope maker, a leather craftsman, a sign writer and artist, etc.
The market is quite dimly lit and there are no bright sparkling Christmas lights here. But of course, there were no sparkling or bright neon lights during medieval times!
Medieval Crafts
The crafts that they sell at this market are also very different to those that are common in the other German Christmas markets. For example, you can buy felt shoes and hats, made the way people wore them in medieval times or belts and tailor-made leather pouches, wooden kitchen utensils, ceramics, wrought-iron lamps, etc. Or maybe you fancy a new set of knight’s armour? What you won’t find here are mass-produced products, tinsels or Käthe Wohlfahrt-type Christmas decorations.
An artist at the Dresden Medieval Christmas Market
Entertainment
Although brass bands didn’t exist in the past, the Neva Brass Band from St. Petersburg used to provide musical entertainment. Unfortunately with the pandemic and now the war in Ukraine, they’re not able to come to Germany. Let’s hope that they will be able to return next year as they are very good.
During the weekends, entertainment takes the form of jugglers, minstrel music and archery.
Grilled meat at this stall
Food at the Medieval Market
There are plenty of food stalls here and at the oxen stall, a whole oxen is being barbequed in a wood oven. The emphasis here is fresh and local produce.
After checking out the various food stalls, we decide on the knobibrot, a fried bread with a garlic sauce. The bread is quickly fried in a giant pan and then a garlic cream spread over it. The knobibrot costs €6.00 (2023 cost), but for an extra €1.00 you can help yourself to a range of toppings such as tomato sauce, fried onions, olives, jalapeno peppers, and a hot chilli sauce. The knobibrot is large enough for the two of us. They provide a pizza slicer so that you can split your knobibrot. It’s delicious, but beware of dripping the garlic cream. Tony manages to drip some on his dark blue coat. He only realizes it when he notices large white spots glowing in the dark.
Knobibrot stall at the Dresden Medieval Christmas Market
In addition to the knobibrot, we have some nice roasted potatoes, topped up with melted cheese. This goes down very well with glühwein in the cold weather.
A Public Bathhouse
If you enjoy hot baths, the public bathhouse here is very popular. On a raised platform are two gigantic wooden bathtubs which accommodate eight persons in each. The sight of this usually attracts a bit of giggle from passers-by.
The Dresden Medieval Christmas Market closes quite early and by 9 pm, most stalls are already sold out or are in the process of packing up. By this time, most of the glühwein are also sold out.
As there is no dessert to be found and an espresso is out of the question in medieval Dresden, we retreat to the Maritim Hotel Dresden where we are staying. What an experience, to step back in time into the middle ages for our little medieval Christmas market treat.
See more photos of the Dresden Medieval Christmas Market Here.
Address:
Dresden Medieval Christmas Market
Stallhoff, Dresden Royal Palace
Dresden
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