'Katzenbalgen' ('Cat Brawl')

Created in 1981 by students at the University of Art in Brunswick, Germany, under the guidance of sculptor and then professor Siegfried Neuenhausen, Katzenbalgen (“Cat Brawl”) stands as a purr-fectly whimsical cat monument in the city’s feline-named Kattreppeln street. The bronze sculpture realistically portrays a dozen stray cats engaged in activities such as brawling, playing, and eating, all atop of a limestone stele.

Inscriptions on the monolith, translated from German to English, convey two messages: “Cats loved this once quiet street,” emphasizing the historical presence of felines in the area. Another engraving states, “Kattreppeln means Katzbalgen,” highlighting a linguistic connection between the street name and the cat monument. Furthermore, the stele chronicles the street’s names since 1500, offering a record of its naming changes over the centuries.

Not only does Katzenbalgen warmly pay tribute to the local street cats, embracing both past and present, but it also serves as a reminder of how the population of these strays has decreased in numbers in Germany over time.