Sgraffiti in Engadine

Engadine ((canton Grisons) houses are often decorated with geometric motifs, drawings, animals or sayings. Italian artists introduced the technique in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries after the Bündner expansion in the Italian territories. The artists wanted to earn money, and the fresco technique was well-known in Italy. It was a successful export product. The technology is … Read more » “Sgraffiti in Engadine”

Bilingual Biel/Bienne

After the Celtic and Roman times, Seeland was situated at the edge of the (fisrt) Burgundian Kingdom (443-534). The Three Lakes region (the lakes of Biel/ Bienne, Morat/Murten and Neuenburg/ Neuchâtel) was still populated by Gallo-Roman people. The German-speaking Alemanni immigrated to this region in the fifth and sixth centuries.  It was, however, not until … Read more » “Bilingual Biel/Bienne”

Multilingual Switzerland

“Les langues ne sont pas neutres. Elles incarnent des cultures, elles imprègnent les mentalités, elles engendrent des affinités, elles aiguillonnent des susceptibilités, elles expriment des sensibilités, elles traduisent des manières de raisonner, de penser, de vivre et elles influencent et déterminent même la conception que les citoyens ont du rôle de l’État par rapport aux … Read more » “Multilingual Switzerland”