Der Bräunl

The carnival Bräunl dates back to the time just after the Thirty Years' War. Something was needed to encourage the people to leave their houses again, but certainly also something to give them the confidence and courage to live again after many years full of hardship and bad luck. The carnival Bräunl takes its name from the typical brown horse from the ancient and famous Rottaler horse breed. The rider carries a "Saubladern", a pig's bladder, which is tied to a stick. Something created a few centuries ago has stood the test of time. Even today, the Bräunl always rides during the carnival season for oats money and cheers the people up with a cheerful float. The tradition of tanning was consciously perpetuated on the Neuer Marktplatz. Here the Birnbach, which has evolved over time, meets modern developments. The market square is the urban link between the venerable Hofmark and the spa area, which has gradually been created since the opening of the Rott Valley Terme. The market square with its arcades, modelled on the "great" Piazza del Campo in Siena (Tuscany), combines southern flair with Rott Valley tradition and an old Bavarian way of life. The sculptor Josef Neustifter first gave the fountain a large vessel with lots of water. On a crown sits a column which carries the foolish horseman with his Bräunl. As is so often the case, he has incorporated further subtleties. So there is an analogy with the "bathers" which one discovers when one looks into the fountain vessel. And as with every Neustifter fountain, there are many small rings which are ideal for decorating the fountain. And not only at carnival time, incidentally, because the water, which flows strongly through the column and the crown. The Neustifter catalogue of works can be borrowed from our Mamertus library.
(Josef Neustifter 1983, catalogue of works II/19, illustrated book "Neustifter" page 155)