You can scale the 126 steps through this colossal dame’s bronze body to the tiny viewing room inside her head. It’s a good 30m above the Theresienwiese, the asphalt field where the Oktoberfest is held. There are terrific views across Munich from inside Bavaria's head, but you may want to think twice about the climb on very hot days, when it feels like a sauna. The views are particularly stunning when Oktoberfest is in full swing. Bavaria dons a bear’s fur, robe and sword and a lion, another state symbol, sits nearby.
Metalworks chief Ferdinand von Miller had the Bavaria Statue finished in 1850. At the time it was the biggest bronze statue made since antiquity. Von Miller made several copies of her little finger to give away as gifts. They were said to be able to hold "three good Bavarian Maß" of beer. One of these digits is on display at the Munich City Museum (Münchener Stadtmuseum) across town.
Location: Theresienwiese, Theresienhöhe 16 Cost: €3, concession €2 Open: April to mid-October, daily 9am to 7pm und to 8pm during Oktoberfest. Directions: Take U-Bahn No. 4 or 5 to Theresienwiese. It’s a few hundred metres’ walk south-west across the field to the statue.
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