The Schildergasse ( [ˈʃɪldɐˌɡasə], Colognian: Schelderjaß [ˌʃeɫˑdɐˈjasˑ]) is a shopping street in central Cologne, Germany, and with 13,000 people passing through every hour, it is the busiest shopping street in Europe, according to a 2008 survey by GfK. The Schildergasse is a designated pedestrian zone and spans about 500 meters from Hohe Straße on the Eastern end to Neumarkt on the Western end.
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Map of Schildergasse, 50667 K%C3%B6ln, Germany
The street dates back to Roman times, where it was the city's Decumanus Maximus. During the Middle Ages it was home to artists who painted coats of arms where the street got its name from (Schild meaning Shield). Among today's landmarks on Schildergasse are St. Antoniter church, the oldest Protestant church in Cologne, and Peek & Cloppenburg's Weltstadthaus, designed by Renzo Piano.