This section contains an overview of the most relevant monuments in Switzerland.
21 March 2023
The abbey of Cluny managed hundreds of monasteries in Europe around the year 1000. The abbey was a significant centre of religious, artistic, economic, and political power until the 13th century. The European network transcended political and linguistic boundaries. Cluny left an immense heritage, also in the Romandie. The French-speaking Kingdom of Burgundy (888-1032) covered … Read more » “The Heritage of Cluny”
20 March 2023
At this special place in Ottmarsheim in Alsace, 20 kilometres from Basel, the abbey of St. Peter and St. Paul was founded by the direct ancestors of the Habsburg dynasty. Ottmarsheim Abbey was founded in 1030 by Rudolf of Altenburg. His brother Radbot of Altenburg founded the monastery of Muri (in today’s Canton of Aargau) in … Read more » “Octophonia and the Habsburg Dynasty”
24 February 2023
The name Serrières (today a district of the city of Neuchâtel) derives from the Latin word serra, saw, which in ancient times denoted a place with many sawmills. The town lies on the shores of Lake Neuchâtel. This region was already inhabited in prehistoric times and the centuries before the Roman occupation (15-13 BC). The … Read more » “The Monuments of Serrières”
5 February 2023
Available in French, German and Dutch. (Source and further information: Musée romain de Vallon (museevallon.ch); Mosaïques | pro-urba).
20 January 2023
The first mention of the church of San Gian (St. John) in Celerina (Schlarigna in Romansh, Canton Graubünden) dates back to 1320. In 1478, the extension of the nave to the west and the vaulting of the choir took place. Although these churches are small, their location on a hill gives them a monumental appearance. … Read more » “San Gian (St. John) in Celerina”
4 January 2023
In the village of Werthenstein (canton of Lucerne) near the river Emme, the bishop of Constance consecrated the first pilgrimage chapel in 1520. The church building was marked by the transition from late Gothic to Renaissance. Niklaus Ratzenhofer (1600-1649) described the origins of the pilgrimage site in his book “Kurtze Erzehlung dess Ursprungs und Wunderzeichen … Read more » “The Werthenstein Monastery”
5 December 2022
The Romanesque church of the Benedictine monastery of All Saints (Allerheiligen) in Schaffhausen was consecrated in 1103/1104, replacing the church consecrated in 1064 of the first complex of the monastery founded by Count Eberhard III of Nellenburg (1015-1078). The church is a three-nave basilica with a transept in the style of the Hirsau building school. … Read more » “Allerheiligen Monastery Schaffhausen”
3 December 2022
Available in Dutch and German
2 December 2022
The open-air museum (Freilichtmuseum Ballenberg) features a collection of over 110 rural houses and farm buildings relocated from all over Switzerland. To furnish the buildings, the museum collects objects from rural life and farming before the advent of agriculture. These items and related secondary information relate to earlier ways of living, social structures, and economic … Read more » “Open Air Museum Ballenberg”
11 November 2022
The Counts of Rheinfelden owned a castle in Burgdorf, which passed into the possession of the Dukes of Zähringen in 1090. The castle was renovated and given its present form with a residential tower (palace), a defence tower (donjon) and a hall. The castle is reminiscent of royal residences. The large town church also suggests … Read more » “Burgdorf Castle and City”
