About this place
The Graben is Vienna's most famous pedestrian street, acting as the elegant living room of the city center. Originally a defensive Roman moat (Graben literally means 'ditch'), it evolved into a bustling marketplace and eventually a luxury shopping boulevard. At its heart rises the Wiener Pestsäule, or Plague Column, a 21-meter-tall Baroque masterpiece erected after the devastating plague of 1679. Commissioned by Emperor Leopold I, the column's innovative, cloud-like design revolutionized European monumental art, turning the city's darkest tragedy into a towering symbol of survival and faith.
Key facts
- 1679 year — The year the devastating Great Plague struck Vienna
- 76000 people — The estimated number of Viennese who died during the outbreak
- 21 meters — The height of the swirling marble and gold Plague Column
📍 Graben, 1010, Wien