Overview
- Erfurt researchers uncovered a 1269 lease document for the Krämerbrücke mentioning a hütte and a bräter, which they interpret as the earliest evidence of a Bratwurst vendor.
- The find would predate Regensburg’s 1378 record of the Wurstkuchl by over a century, challenging its claim as the world’s oldest Bratwurststube.
- Philologists and historians, including Thomas Mäuer of the Deutsches Bratwurstmuseum, argue that the term bräter does not explicitly indicate Bratwurst and call the conclusion speculative.
- Investigators have launched further archival and site-based studies to locate the precise vendor site and clarify the medieval terminology.
- Regensburg’s Wurstkuchl has responded with equanimity, stressing that customer loyalty depends on sausage quality rather than historical titles.