Rachel, the Pig who Lives at the Pike Place Market

One of the most popular “residents” of Seattle’s Pike Place Market is Rachel, a bronze pig weighing in at 550 pounds.  This unofficial mascot of the Market lives at the corner of Pike Place beneath the Public Market Center sign.

Rachel first arrived at the market in 1986.  She was designed by Georgia Gerber, a local artist, and was modeled after a real life prize-winning pig of the same name.  She was an immediate hit with the kids who are free to climb all over her.  And she’s quite the photogenic babe, appearing in travel photos taken by visitors from around the world.  With her central, and easily found, location, Rachel also serves as a popular meeting spot for Market visitors.  If I’m meeting someone at the Market, you’ll here me say “I’ll meet you at Rachel.”

Perhaps best of all, Rachel is also a working piggybank with annual donations going to support the Market Foundation’s social services programs.

If you enjoy your visits to the Market, if you take a photo of Rachel, or if you just appreciate the vitality that the working Market brings to the downtown Seattle city core, I hope you’ll consider dropping a few coins (or bills) into Rachel.  It’s a really good cause.  And by the way, after dropping in a donation, it’s considered good luck to rub her snout.

Photo credit: Loren Javier @flickr