The story
Turku Medieval Market in Turku
Turku Medieval Market, reviving the historic Old Great Square's commercial role since 1996, draws costumed traders, craftspeople, and musicians to a summer reenactment of medieval trade across the square, Turku Castle, Turku Cathedral, and nearby museums. Attendance has grown to around 180,000, rivaling Finland's largest summer music festivals for total visitor numbers.
Turku's Old Great Square served as the city's administrative and commercial heart from its thirteenth-century founding until the Great Fire of Turku destroyed much of the historic center, and since 1996 the Medieval Market has revived that lost commercial identity for a few days each summer, turning the square and surrounding streets back into a historical reenactment of medieval trade and craft.