The Most Terrifying Fountain In Switzerland

(MENAFN- Swissinfo) If you visit Bern with children, best stay away from Kornhausplatz, where a fountain could well give them nightmares. This content was published on January 10, 2026 - 11:00 4 minutes

I am responsible for the Italian-language editorial staff of SWI swissinfo and tvsvizzera. I am particularly interested in everything to do with Italian-ness in Switzerland and relations between Switzerland and Italy. After finishing a degree in literature, I took my first steps in journalism over 20 years ago at Teletext. I have been working for SWI swissinfo since 2004. During this time I have held various journalistic and management roles.

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• Italiano it La fontana più terrificante della Svizzera Original Read more: La fontana più terrificante della Svi
• Português pt A fonte mais aterrorizante da Suíça Read more: A fonte mais aterrorizante da Su

Fountains generally instil a sense of peace and tranquillity. It is no coincidence that they are an important element of living principles inspired by the Taoist doctrine of feng shui (literally“wind and water”).

However, passing in front of the Kindlifresserbrunnen (baby-eater fountain) in Bern, this sense of peace and tranquillity is in short supply.

In fact, the fountain in the centre of the Swiss capital depicts a kind of ogre devouring a baby and holding others crying in a bag, ready to be gobbled in turn.

Created in 1545/46 by the sculptor Hans Gieng, the Kindlifresserbrunnen is one of the most visited monuments in Bern and is located a stone's throw from the Zytglogge, the Clock Tower, one of the city's most famous landmarks.

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But what exactly is this fountain meant to depict? According to the websiteExternal link of the tourist office of the city of Bern,“the most plausible [theory] is that the fountain represents an educational measure and the frightening figure is intended to instil fear in children in order to teach them good behaviour”.

A suspicious hat

No doubt, but the reality is a bit more complex. Some have seen in the character depicted on the fountain a humorous figure linked to carnival. This explanation is doubtful, however, given that carnival was banned in Bern after the Reformation in 1529.

A slightly more plausible interpretation is that the ogre represents the Greek god Kronos (Saturn in the Roman equivalent). In order to prevent the fulfilment of the prophecy of an oracle, which had announced that one day a son would oust him, Kronos swallowed his newborn children, as he could not simply kill them, as they were immortal.

Leading to this hypothesis is the figure's hat, similar to that of the Saturn painted around 1530 by German artist Georg Pencz or depicted on a Nuremberg woodcut of 1492.

However, the hat has another peculiarity: it is the cone-shaped (and often yellow) headgear that Jews were forced to wear for centuries well after the Middle Ages in various European regions.

Is the Kindlifresserbrunnen therefore nothing more than yet another depiction of Christian anti-Semitism? The hypothesis seems highly probable.

The accusation of blood

The Bernese fountain would be a perfect illustration of one of the most infamous prejudices, especially in the Middle Ages but also in more recent times, against the Jewish community: the accusation of blood.

Appearing around the 12th century, this hoax, as we would call it today, was based on the belief that for their obscure rites, particularly the Passover rites, Jews would kill a Christian child and use its blood to make unleavened bread.

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