The Graben has served as a marketplace from the very beginning. Already in 1295, shortly after the Graben was first named in documents, a fruit dealer was mentioned. The selling of cabbage began around 1320, and other vegetables were introduced around a hundred years later. Beginning in the 14th century, flour and bread sellers are also mentioned and in 1442 the bakers were granted permission to sell their own wares. Beginning in 1424, butchers are also mentioned in treasury documents but according to a decree issued in 1564, the butchers were to be moved on account of their offensive smell. However, the law was never fully followed. In the 18th century the commercial activity was pushed increasingly into the outlying buildings. During the course of the 18th century, the use of the Graben as a market was suppressed. In 1753, the last remaining market (a vegetable market) was shut down and in 1772 even the Christmas market was relocated. The Graben became the most fashionable promenade – chiefly for the self-display of the urban elite.