Handwerkerbrunnen (Fountain of Craftsmen) Trier

Incredibly many details of the various crafts are distributed here on eight oak trunks. It is almost a challenge to see all 36 representations correctly.

Klaus Apel, Handwerkerbrunnen, 1984, H 420 cm, Ø 160 cm, brass, corner of Fahrstrasse / Nagelstrasse, Trier
The craftsman's fountain, or fountain of the craft, was made of brass in 1984 by the art blacksmith Klaus Apel (1927-2013) from Kernscheider. It consists of individual stylized trunks that are arranged in a circle around the water-giving center of the fountain and end in a crown of leaves. Between the individual trunks and the barren branches and leaves of the tree, a total of 36 figures are arranged that represent various trades. From the butcher to the shoemaker and baker to the photographer, a wide variety of professions can be seen that also play an important role in Trier. The coats of arms of the individual guilds help to identify the professional groups. Emerging from the crown of leaves, the water trickles down over the branches, the foliage and the groups of figures. The column-like fountain is surrounded by a saying in the lower area: "Everybody is an apprentice / who is a journeyman / who can do what / master is whoever invented"

The Handwerkerbrunnen, or fountain of craftsmanship, was made in 1984 by the Kernscheider art smith Klaus Apel made of brass.