In the spotlight
Solothurn, the bishop and the Embassador
Solothurn has been a member of the Confederation (Eidgenossenschaft) since 1481. The canton is named after the city of Solothurn. This ancient Roman city (Salodorum) was originally a Celtic settlement. After the Romans’ retreat, the area was, for a long time, a transition area between the French and German languages of the Alemanni. After the … Read more » “Solothurn, the bishop and the Embassador”
In the spotlight
The Basler Fasnacht, its lanterns and sujets
On Monday, March 10, at 04:00, the Martinskirche will herald the Basler Fasnacht with the Morgenstreich (Morgenstraich). This UNESCO Cultural Heritage (since 2017) has undergone many changes over the centuries and continues to evolve. Collection: Museum der Kulturen Basel The Museum der Kulturen in Basel, the Fasnachtcomité (and its annual publication Rädäbäng), and various other publications … Read more » “The Basler Fasnacht, its lanterns and sujets”
Events
Tandem in the Museum and the Musée imaginaire Suisse
Around 125 museums throughout Switzerland and some neighbouring regions facilitate unconventional encounters through ” TiM—Tandem in the Museum” (TaM, Tandem au Musée en français). TiM facilitates encounters and opens the museums to new target groups in Graubünden. More than 400 so-called TiM guides are active and accompany other people to museums. In pairs, they tell … Read more » “Tandem in the Museum and the Musée imaginaire Suisse”
Commemorations
The Swiss Bridgebond is 75 years old and celebrates this anniversary on 19 March
The card game Jass originates from another Republic: the Republic of the Seven United Provinces. Mercenaries from the Eidgenossenschaft who served the Republic introduced the game to Switzerland in the late 17th century. In the Netherlands, the game is called ‘klaverjassen’. Bridge did not develop until centuries later, in the 1920s. It is called bridge … Read more » “The Swiss Bridgebond is 75 years old and celebrates this anniversary on 19 March”
Monuments
The first Carthusian Monastery in Switzerland
Switzerland is not only the land of the reformers Johannes Calvin, Ulrich Zwingli, Guillaume Farel, and Johannes Oekolampad. This region had many monasteries of the various monastic orders until the Reformation. Although most monasteries were abolished just after the Reformation (first half of the 16th century) or in the following centuries and sometimes disappeared completely, … Read more » “The first Carthusian Monastery in Switzerland”
Latest news
Christiaan Huygens, the balance-spring, Clocks and Watches
21 February 2025
On 20 February a momentous event took place at the Musée International d’Horlogerie (MIH) in La Chaux-de-Fonds (Neuchâtel canton). Joost Albers, chairman of the Haegsche Tijd Stichting (Foundation), during the opening speech On 25 February 1675, the French journal Journal des Sçavans published an article on a pioneering discovery and application for clockworks: the balance-spring … Read more » “Christiaan Huygens, the balance-spring, Clocks and Watches”
Agenda
Surrealist Masterworks from the Collection Hersaint
7 March 2025
In a world premiere, the Fondation Beyeler shows a representative selection of surrealist masterpieces from the Hersaint Collection. The exhibition (The Key to Dreams. Surrealist Masterworks from the Collection Hersaint) includes around 50 key works by artists such as Salvador Dalí, Max Ernst, René Magritte, Joan Miró, Pablo Picasso, Man Ray, Dorothea Tanning, Toyen as … Read more » “Surrealist Masterworks from the Collection Hersaint”
Constitution, Democracy, cantons
The True European Union of 26 cantons
11 December 2024
The Celts and Romans Celtic and Rhaetian tribes populated the territory of present-day Switzerland centuries before the arrival of the Romans. They were in close (trade) contact with Germanic tribes, the Mediterranean region and northern countries. After Rome’s occupation (15-13 BC, Geneva (Genava 122 BC), the construction of towns and roads and transport over mountain … Read more » “The True European Union of 26 cantons”
Local history
The Bishop of Basel in Istein and Schliengen
25 February 2025
The prince-bishopric (Furstbistum) of Basel (not to be confused with the diocese (religious power) of the bishopric stretched over areas in present-day France, Switzerland and Germany from the year 1,000 until the French invasion in 1792. It was one of the largest and most powerful bishoprics north of the Alps. Not only the grandeur of … Read more » “The Bishop of Basel in Istein and Schliengen”
Nature and Tourism
The Rhine is a hiking trail and a trading, border, energy and boundary river
10 March 2025
Helvetia gazes westward from the Mittlere Brücke in Basel, downstream along the Rhine. What is she thinking about? In the good old days, when the Rhine was still called Renos (Celtic) or Rhenus (Roman), was it meandering and flowing wherever and as high as it wanted? About the river landscape on both banks of the … Read more » “The Rhine is a hiking trail and a trading, border, energy and boundary river”