Fishfoot Yard

Fishfoot Yard is the central square of White Harbor, named for the great stone merman fountain that rises from its midst. The fountain, called Old Fishfoot by the locals, stands twenty feet tall from tail to crown, his curly beard green and white with lichen, and one prong of his trident broken off since before Davos Seaworth was born. Despite the damage, the figure still manages to impress. The square itself is officially named for some dead lord, but no one ever calls it anything but Fishfoot Yard.

Commerce and Daily Life

The Yard teems with activity at all hours. Beneath the arches of the peddler's colonnade, scribes and money changers set up for business alongside a hedge wizard, an herb woman, and a very bad juggler. A man sells apples from a barrow, and a woman offers herring with chopped onions. Chickens and children are everywhere underfoot. The huge oak-and-iron doors of the Old Mint, always closed when Davos had been in Fishfoot Yard before, now stand open, revealing hundreds of women, children, and old men huddled on the floor on piles of furs, with little cookfires going. These are smallfolk from up the White Knife and Hornwood's people who have come seeking refuge within the city walls from the Bastard of Bolton's depredations.

Narrative Significance

Davos Seaworth passes through Fishfoot Yard upon his arrival in White Harbor, using the square as a vantage point to gauge the city's mood and gather intelligence. He stops beneath the colonnade to trade a halfpenny for an apple and questions the apple seller about Lord Wyman Manderly's intentions, learning that the lord is raising men and that his granddaughter is to wed a Frey. The Yard's lively, crowded character contrasts sharply with the grim tidings Davos carries, and its familiar landmarks help orient him as he navigates the city in his quest to win White Harbor for Stannis Baratheon.