Culture of Zurich. Places to visit - old town, temples, theaters, museums and palaces

» The Swiss National Museum was built in 1898. Architect Gustav Gull combined architectural elements of different eras in his project, and the building turned into a fairytale castle with numerous turrets and courtyards.
»  The museum has exhibits from ancient times to the present day in its collection. Some exhibits date from the 6th millennium BC.
»  Visitors are told about how this unique country was formed, about the country’s most famous historical figures, about the creation of the Swiss watch industry and the famous Swiss chocolate, about the creation of ski resorts and famous people – immigrants who lived in Switzerland over the years.
»  In 2009, an additional wing was erected from the side of the park near the main museum building. The new grounds (2,200 square metres) have been used for various projects of the national museum. There are seven branches of the museum in the country.
»  Several hundred thousand tourists visit the museum exhibitions annually.

» The Fraumünster is an oldest cathedral founded by King Louis the German in 853. He granted the convent and the surrounding area to his eldest daughter Hildelgard.
»  In the following centuries, the influence of the convent increased every year. In 1045, King Henry III allowed to mint coins on the territory of the cloister.
»  During the Reformation (1524), the convent was dissolved. The Fraumünster church began to decline. Only in 1960 was it decided to restore the church.
»  Artist Marc Chagall was invited for that. He was 83 years old then, but he personally worked on each stained glass window.
»  He created magnificent stained glass windows, which became famous all over the world. Chagall did not take money for his work, and when he was 90 years old, he presented the Fraumünster with a rose window. This stained glass window consists of seven petals symbolizing the seven-day creation of the world. The church has become the main attraction in Zurich.

» The Grossmünster is the largest and most important church in Zurich. The construction of the cathedral began in 1090, but it was built very slowly. It was fully completed only in the 15th century.
»  There’s a legend about the Grossmünster that says the construction of the church on this site was commissioned by Charles the Great, when his horse suddenly knelt at the burial place of holy martyrs Felix and Regula. But official historians do not support this legend.
»  Nevertheless, the main facade of the church has a stone sculpture of Charles the Great made by ancient masters. In 1935, the sculpture of the king was transferred to the crypt, where it has been stored since, and its place on the facade was taken by a copy.
»  The church windows are decorated with wonderful stained-glass windows made by Swiss artist Augusto Giacometti.
»  The church towers have steep spiral staircases consisting of 187 steps, using which anyone can climb to a height of 62 metres and view the panorama of the city.
»  On Wednesdays, the church organizes organ concerts for music aficionados.

» The Kunsthaus Zürich is a famous art museum located in Zurich. The collection had been assembled by enthusiastic artists since 1787. Some time later, they bought premises for the museum. The collection was constantly updated with paintings by local artists.
»  In 1910, a new building of the museum was opened. The halls of the museum contain paintings from the 15th century to the present day.
»  The exposition of local Swiss artists includes works by Henry Fuseli, Ferdinand Hodler, Giovanni Segantini. The museum owns the largest collection of works by Norwegian artist Edvard Munch and Swiss sculptor Alberto Giacometti.
»  The museum exhibits paintings by European artists: Vincent van Gogh, Salvador Dali, Marc Chagall, Claude Monet, Picasso, and others.
»  The museum has a shop selling reproductions, postcards, and other accessories.

» St. Peter’s Church is considered the oldest in the city. According to archival data, the first St Peter’s church was built in 857. It was less than 10 metres high.
»  Then the next temple was built here in 1000. In 1230, a third church was erected here instead of the previous ones.
»  The tower next to the temple was used as a fire tower until 1911. And it still belongs to the city.
»  The tower is interesting because of its huge dials – 9 metres in diameter and a 4-metre minute hand – installed with the help of hundreds of workers in 1538. The clock still counts the time with great accuracy. It is listed in the Guinness Book of Records as the largest clock in Europe.
»  Inside, there are choirs of the 12th century, fragments of frescoes of the 13-15th centuries, a font of the 16th century.
»  St. Peter's Church is the burial place of Rudolf Brun, the first Zurich mayor (buried in 1360), pastor Leo Jud, Ulrich Zwingli’s friend and colleague, who was the first to translate the Bible into Swiss German.