Author: Maarten Koning

The Basler Dance of Death

In 1773, 32 years before its destruction in 1805, the topographer Emanuel Büchel (1705-1775) painted and mentioned the Basler Totentanz image by image in an album.

Basel, Museum Kleines Klingental. Der Totentanz.

Johann Rudolf Feyerabend (1779-1814) painted the Totentanz in 1806. He based his paintings on this album.

Basel, Weberstrasse near the Klingentalkloster, wall painting on a house

(Source: F. Egger, Basler Totentanz, Basel 2009).

Emanuel Büchel, ganz oben “Tod mit Kaiser”, aus dem Klingentaler Wandmalereizyklus, Aquarell auf Papier. Kunstmuseum Basel/Martin P. Bühler, Kupferstichkabinett, Skb A 48 H. Foto: TES

Jean Tinguely, Mengele Totentanz, 1987. Tinguely Museum Basel

The City of Avenches

The city of Avenches was founded around 1259 by Jean de Cossonay (c. 1219-1273), bishop of Lausanne.

Avenches was the successor of the Roman city Aventicum, the capital of the Helvetians, founded by emperor Augustus and by emperor Vespanianus in 70 A.D. upgraded to Colonia.

The Alemanni destroyed the town in 270. The town was rebuilt and was the seat of the bishopric for a short time in the sixth century.

The medieval town Avenches was built on the hilll. The city shows the rich Roman heritage, the amphitheatre and the theatre’s remains.

The medieval and baroque centre is still intact, including the castle (14th century), the church (13th century), the old hospital (1720), L’Auberge de la Coronne (1711) and  L’Hotel de Ville (1753).