Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters

Take your next trip with Atlas Obscura!

Our small-group adventures are inspired by our Atlas of the world's most fascinating places, the stories behind them, and the people who bring them to life.

Visit Adventures
Trips Highlight
Borneo orangutan
Malaysia • 12 days, 11 nights
Wild Borneo: Secrets of an Ancient Rainforest
from
Pastel de nata
Portugal • 8 days, 7 nights
Portugal: A Culinary Adventure from Porto to Lisbon
from
View all trips
Top Destinations
Latest Places
Most Popular Places Random Place Lists Itineraries
Add a Place
Download the App
Top Destinations
View All Destinations »

Countries

  • Australia
  • Canada
  • China
  • France
  • Germany
  • India
  • Italy
  • Japan

Cities

  • Amsterdam
  • Barcelona
  • Beijing
  • Berlin
  • Boston
  • Budapest
  • Chicago
  • London
  • Los Angeles
  • Mexico City
  • Montreal
  • Moscow
  • New Orleans
  • New York City
  • Paris
  • Philadelphia
  • Rome
  • San Francisco
  • Seattle
  • Stockholm
  • Tokyo
  • Toronto
  • Vienna
  • Washington, D.C.
Latest Places
View All Places »
Ana de Mendoza y de la Cerda, Princess of Éboli, was imprisoned for six months in the tower.
Torreón de Pinto (Tower of Pinto)
Rococo staircase to the musicians’s gallery.
Biscari Palace
Statues of Qin Hui and Lady Wang.
Qin Hui Statue at Yue Fei Temple
The Salt Canyon.
Salt Canyon
Latest Places to Eat & Drink
View All Places to Eat »
The sign declares this the number-one gumbo shop in town.
Gumbo Hut Shioya
The pavlova comes crowned with jewel-like fruit.
Central Park Boathouse
The Village Tavern of Long Grove - exterior.
The Village Tavern
Hunter House Hamburgers
L’Escamoteur
Recent Stories
All Stories Video Podcast
Most Recent Stories
View All Stories »
 Fenway Park at night
How Was Your First Trip With Your Significant Other?
about 9 hours ago
Ivan the Terra Bus
The Bus, the Myth, the Legend: Ivan the Terra Bus
1 day ago
Pigeons were included in a series of 1891 illustrations entitled “Household Pets.”
What Makes a Pest a Pest?
2 days ago
Burros Alfa and Beto, seen here with Luis Soriano in 2008, have been helping the teacher deliver books for more than 20 years.
How One Man and His ‘Biblioburro’ Spreads Literacy in Rural Colombia
4 days ago

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All Germany Augsburg Steinerner Mann (Stone Man)
AO Edited

Steinerner Mann (Stone Man)

Legend says this sculpture commemorates a brave baker who rescued the city in the Thirty Years' War.

Augsburg, Germany

Added By
Michael
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
Stoinerne Ma   Rikiwiki2/CC BY-SA 4.0
Stoinerne Ma   Rikiwiki2/CC BY-SA 4.0
Stoinerne Ma   Rikiwiki2/CC BY-SA 4.0
Stoinerne Ma   Peter Meßler/Public Domain
Stoinerne Ma   Auxburg / Atlas Obscura User
June 2023   DMStephenson / Atlas Obscura User
Stoinerne Ma   Auxburg / Atlas Obscura User
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

Hidden in a wall recess in Augsburg, Germany stands in a statue known as Steinerner Mann or Stoinerne Ma (Stone Man). Local legend says the statue represents a baker whose bold scheme helped save the city during the Thirty Years' War—but history doesn't quite match up with that tale.

In the 16th and 17th centuries, both Catholics and Protestants lived in the city of Augsburg. But conflict between the groups intensified with the beginning of the Thirty Years' War. In 1629 the Catholics first tried to gain dominance, then in 1632, Augsburg was conquered by Swedish Protestant troops, who occupied the city. Imperial Catholic opponents then besieged the city and prevented it from being supplied for half a year and people suffered from a terrible famine. 

According to a local story, on March 22, 1635, the baker Konrad Hacker scraped together his last flour, bulked it up with some sawdust, and baked a large loaf of bread. He climbed the city wall and showed his loaf to the besiegers as a sign of allegedly abundant supplies. Konrad was shot, and lost his right arm. He ultimately died as a result of complications from the injury, and didn’t get to see that his tactics were successful. The imperial troops lost faith in being able to starve the Augsburgers and withdrew.  As a reminder of the courageous rescuer, the grateful residents collected money to build a sculpture showing the one-armed man in baker's clothes with a bread in his left hand.

However, it is now proved that this is only a legend. Records show that there has been a baker with this name but he died under different circumstances and the siege ended with a capitulation of the city.

The real statue itself is formed by different parts which, according to examinations, dated earlier than 1550. You can also see that the proportions are not fully correct, e.g the arm with the "bread". The upper parts may origin from a former cemetery and the lower parts are most likely Roman. It might be that the city’s construction manager put the parts together in the 18th century. In these times his place was the location where all excavated parts of sculptures have been collected. As the statue was damaged several times the nose was replaced with a copy from metal.

The statue was brought to its current location in 1950. Although the legend is widely known, not many know its location at Augsburg’s fortification.

Related Tags

Bread Baker War Local History Statues Military

Know Before You Go

The statue is on the outside wall of the town's fortification. You can leave the inner city through one of the gates and walk through the narrow park between the fortification and the city moat called "Schwedenstiege".

Community Contributors

Added By

Auxburg

Edited By

Michelle Cassidy, DMStephenson

  • Michelle Cassidy
  • DMStephenson

Published

May 29, 2020

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • https://www.dw.com/de/wie-dstoinerne-ma-augsburg-rettete/a-17276398
  • https://www.augsburg-city.de/listings/2575-d-stoinerne-ma
  • http://www.annett-klingner.de/news.php?news=26
Steinerner Mann (Stone Man)
7 Schwedenweg
Augsburg, 86152
Germany
48.37525, 10.90079
Get Directions

Nearby Places

Fuggerei

Augsburg, Germany

miles away

The Vogeltor

Augsburg, Germany

miles away

Augsburger Puppenkiste

Augsburg, Germany

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Augsburg

Augsburg

Germany

Places 9
Stories 1

Nearby Places

Fuggerei

Augsburg, Germany

miles away

The Vogeltor

Augsburg, Germany

miles away

Augsburger Puppenkiste

Augsburg, Germany

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Augsburg

Augsburg

Germany

Places 9
Stories 1

Related Places

  • Pierre Bayle Statue & History

    Tourreilles, France

    Le Petit Tambour

    A modest statue dedicated to Pierre Bayle, a young military drummer who willingly fought and died for his beloved France.

  • Leuven, Belgium

    'De Koeieschieter' ('Cow Shooter')

    A small statue commemorates a centuries-old event that still hangs over the people of Leuven.

  • Taipei, Taiwan

    Chiang Statues in Beitou

    An otherwise typical Beitou alley is home to statues of Chiang Kai-shek and his son.

  • AA Gun at Lauttasaari

    Helsinki, Finland

    Aerial Defence Memorial

    An old anti-aircraft cannon.

  • The Lacrosse Players, by Elmer P. Petersen, was dedicated in 1981.

    La Crosse, Wisconsin

    'The Lacrosse Players'

    This downtown statue pays tribute to the Native American game that gave the city of La Crosse its name.

  • A statue of famed numismatist Chet Krause in his hometown of Iola, Wisconsin.

    Iola, Wisconsin

    Chester L. Krause Legacy Park

    This rural park in central Wisconsin honors one of the world’s most prominent numismatists.

  • Green Man sculpture at NW 6th and Davis.

    Portland, Oregon

    The Green Man of Portland

    A Portland legend tells of small green archers shooting random passersby with visionary arrows.

  • Chuck and Snoopy

    Saint Paul, Minnesota

    Peanuts Gang Bronzes

    A tribute to Charles M. Schulz, who created the iconic cartoon that features Charlie Brown, Snoopy, and more.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.