Goaltender Marti Riesen playing for Switzerland against the Soviet Union, circa 1950.
Ice hockey — a hard man’s sport?

Sport always reflects gender roles and images. Ice hockey being a rather extreme example. This is largely due to the way in which the sport has evolved.

Caricature entitled La Toilette d’un clerc de procureur, 1816: a lawyer's clerk has his wig generously powdered by a servant or barber.
The power and pomp of the wig

During the Baroque and Rococo periods no self-respecting man or woman would consider themselves properly dressed without one finishing touch: their wig. Fashionable first at the French court, their popularity then spread all over Europe. Coiffed hairpieces long served as a symbol of social status for both sexes.

Climax of the fire at Lucerne railway station: the main dome collapses.
The fire at Lucerne railway station

On 5 February 1971 a devastating fire broke out at Lucerne railway station, destroying large sections of the Art Nouveau building. It was the biggest railway station fire since the formation of SBB.

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Two men on a mission to prevent the First World War

Lukas Vogel 17.02.2026 Heinrich Angst, the first director of the Swiss National Museum, and German socialist August Bebel worked together to prevent the outbreak of the First World War. They failed.
The Swiss Heinrich Angst wanted to prevent the First World War together with others.

Children’s trains in the service of neutrality

Carmen Bortolin 12.02.2026 During the Second World War, the Swiss Red Cross brought thousands of war-stricken children to Switzerland from France. Intended to provide humanitarian assistance, this initiative also served political purposes – and not all children were welcome.
French and Monegasque children arriving in Geneva on board an evacuee train, 16 June 1942.

The Zurich strangler

Patrik Süess 10.02.2026 In 1853 the hunt was on for a man who killed two women in the Zurich area. He had strangled them. The criminal investigation was a major test for Zurich’s fledgling police force, the "Zürcher Polizeikorps".
In 1853, a murderer of women spread fear and terror throughout the Zurich region. When he was caught, he strangled himself. Illustration by Marco Heer

English ‘regicides’ seek exile in Switzerland

Maximilian Spitz 05.02.2026 When Charles II from the House of Stuart acceded to the English throne in May 1660, a number of Englishmen, including Edmund Ludlow, John Lisle and William Cawley, were forced to hastily pack their belongings and flee the British Isles for continental Europe. These gentlemen were prominent political figures who preferred exile over death. The end of their journey on the continent was the Swiss Confederacy.
Even in exile in the Swiss Confederation, those who had signed the king's death warrant had to be on their guard. Illustration by Marco Heer.
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Hammer and sickle on the Gotthard

Jakob Tanner 16.12.2025 Medievalist Marcel Beck kept a diary throughout his military service. It reveals a different, rarely seen side of active service during the Second World War.
Letter-writing was part of everyday life during the Second World War, as depicted in this photo from 1942. Some people, like Marcel Beck, also wrote diaries.

Sexuality in the Middle Ages

Valérie Lüthi 13.06.2024 If we hazard a look at the medieval era, we discover a history of sexuality that is far more multilayered than we might at first have imagined. While the Christian church sought to extend its influence into private bedchambers, ‘lascivious’ attitudes and practices stood in the way of its ambitions.
Detail from The Garden of Earthly Delights by Hieronymus Bosch, 1490-1500.

Switzerland’s most famous midwife

Christophe Vuilleumier 11.02.2025 Marie Colinet, a Geneva native and pioneer in the field of medicine, made history in the 16th century. She initiated a number of innovative procedures as a midwife and doctor – including Switzerland’s first successful caesarean section.
Marie Colinet was not only a skilful midwife, but also an inventive doctor. Illustration by Marco Heer.

The hotelier who saw the light

Helmut Stalder 27.01.2026 Johannes Badrutt sought to offer guests at the Kulm Hotel in St. Moritz a truly exclusive experience. He built Switzerland’s first hydroelectric plant and installed its first electric lighting system in the hotel dining room – and all before Edison had invented the light bulb. An historic event with unexpected results.

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