Fountains in Leipzig, Water fountains in Leipzig, Germany

The Fountains in Leipzig are a collection of historic and modern water features across the city, not a single site. The oldest surviving fountain is the Mendebrunnen on Augustusplatz, built 1883–86 by Adolf Gnauth with figures by Jacob Ungerer, its almost 18 m obelisk topped by a gilded figure. The Mägdebrunnen, inaugurated in 1906, has a six-sided basin of white shell limestone and a life-size bronze woman carrying water, referring to Lieschen in Goethe's Faust I. The Löwenbrunnen on the Naschmarkt, rebuilt in 1918, incorporates an iron lion pump handle designed around 1820 by Johann Gottfried Schadow.

Leipzig's fountains began as part of the city's water supply, with the Golden Fountain on the marketplace first mentioned in 1495 and rebuilt in Renaissance style by council mason Greger Richter in 1581/82. A 1504 pipeline from the Marienborn spring at Thonberg supplied the Pauliner monastery and public troughs, and by 1693 a plan recorded 24 public fountains across the four quarters. The oldest surviving fountain, the Mendebrunnen on Augustusplatz, was built in 1883–86 by Adolf Gnauth with figures by Jacob Ungerer, funded by a bequest from the merchant's widow Pauline Mende.

The Märchenbrunnen on the Dittrichring promenade, made by Josef Mágr in 1906, shows Hansel and Gretel in its central grotto, with a witch and a raven carved above them. Bronze reliefs beside the benches depict scenes from the fairy tale: getting lost in the forest, finding the gingerbread house and returning home. The original bronze figures were melted down for armaments in 1942; Elfriede Ducke and Hanna Studnitzka made the present ones in 1965.

Leipzig's fountains stand on public squares and streets, so they are reached on foot; the Mendebrunnen faces the Gewandhaus on Augustusplatz, the Märchenbrunnen lies on the Dittrichring promenade, and the Löwenbrunnen on the Naschmarkt. The city's green spaces and waterways office had 19 fountains and water features running in 2022. The Mägdebrunnen was moved around 1955 during the redesign of Roßplatz.

The oldest surviving fountain in Leipzig is the Mendebrunnen on Augustusplatz, built 1883–86 by Adolf Gnauth with figures by Jacob Ungerer. It cost 189,000 gold marks, paid from a bequest by the merchant's widow Pauline Mende. Writer Egon Erwin Kisch speculated she ran a brothel and gave the money in atonement, a story later shown to be a mix-up.