Störtebeker-Brunnen

The fountain shows the pirate Klaus Störtebeker distributing bread and herrings for the Lätare donation. This goes back to a legacy that Störtebeker is said to have bequeathed to the town of Verden shortly before his execution. Every year on the Monday after the Sunday of Lätare - during Lent, three weeks before Easter - bread and herrings were to be distributed to certain inhabitants of Verden. In his legacy, the quantity of bread and fish is specified, as is the group of recipients: the poor, clergy and city officials.
 
Today, the custom has been relaxed somewhat. Everyone who attends the event during the "Lätare donation" receives bread and herrings while stocks last. It is also said that Klaus Störtebeker donated seven stained glass windows to Verden Cathedral to atone for the seven main sins - pride, avarice, lust, gluttony, envy, anger and sloth of the heart. Unfortunately, none of these windows have survived.
 
Three Verden financial institutions donated the fountain in 1985 for the citizens of the town on the occasion of the 1000th anniversary of the granting of market and minting rights.