20 January 2026
The village of Ftan is located on the south side of a mountain ridge in the middle of Unterengadin, between Ardez and Scuol. There are two Ftans: Ftan Pitschen (the small Ftan) and Ftan Grond (the big Ftan). The area extends north into the Silvretta region, with the border of Paznaun (Austria), the Futschöl Pass, … Read more » “Ftan, the Contredanse française and the Hochalpines Institut”
16 December 2025
Mario Botta (1943), an architect from Tessin, worked on this project for 15 years. The bathing complex Fortyseven along the banks of the Limmat River is 160 metres long and has eleven saunas and eight water pools. Fourteen springs bubbling from the earth provide the water. The complex is not a water theme park. The … Read more » “Fortyseven in Baden, Bathing in Aquae Helveticae”
15 December 2025
Switzerland is known for its excellent research institutes, scientific research and universities. The topics and themes range from climate change, glaciers, medicine and pharma, and CO2 reduction to technologies and other fields. The country is one of the world’s champions of innovation and patents. They have one thing in common: they occur at or above … Read more » “The Mont Terri Rock Laboratory near Saint-Ursanne”
29 November 2025
How is it that a small mountainous country, without cocoa trees and far from the sea, has been a leading producer of chocolate for two centuries? The primary raw material of chocolate is, in fact, cocoa. Is there a link with the “Zuckerbäcker” from Grisons? In this region, pastry and confectionery were completely unknown in … Read more » “Swiss Chocolate has Conquered the World and John Bowring”
27 November 2025
Under preparation. Available in French, German and Dutch
10 November 2025
In many major European cities, from the 18th century to the early 19th century, reading societies were prevalent. Remarkably, Switzerland remains the only country to host this type of organisation in its four principal cities: Basel, Geneva, Lausanne, and Zurich. For over two centuries, members have been able to read or borrow a large number … Read more » “The Four Centuries-Old Reading Societies of Switzerland”
9 November 2025
St. Blasien Abbey (Baden-Württemberg) in the Naturpark Südschwarzwald and the Albsteig was founded in the 11th century. A document of the Rheinau Abbey near Schaffhausen mentioned around 800 monks in a community at this site in the Alb Valley (Albtal). The Benedictine abbey was dedicated to Saint Blaise (4th century), an Armenian martyr. The Abbey … Read more » “St. Blasien Abbey, its Dom and the Abbey Trail”
27 October 2025
In the centuries between the (slow) dissolution of the Roman Empire (5th century) and the rise of the great Monarchies (from the 10th-13th centuries), the Church, abbeys and dioceses were the most important social, economic and political institutions with great secular power on the territory of what is called Switzerland today. The bishopric was a … Read more » “Swiss Bishopics and Cultural and Linguistic Plurality”
19 October 2025
In September 2023, an important discovery was made in Lake Neuchâtel. Near Grandson (Canton Vaud), a canoe made of oak trunks was found in the lake. It is about 2,500 years old and dates back to the Iron Age (850-100 BC). Celtic tribes lived in this region at that time. The praam was made between … Read more » “The Laténium and the Celtic Culture”
1 October 2025
After the Celtic and Roman times, Seeland was situated at the edge of the (first) 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 migrated to this region in the 5th and 6th centuries. However, it was not until … Read more » “Bilingual Biel/Bienne”
