Alexander Rechsteiner

Alexander Rechsteiner

Alexander Rechsteiner holds an M A in modern English literature and political science and is Head of Marketing & Communication at the National Museum Zurich.

From magi to kings

Alexander Rechsteiner 18.12.2023 The Three Kings have inspired countless customs and traditions, and no nativity scene would be complete without them. A look at the newborn baby Jesus’ three wondrous visitors and their backstory.
The Three Kings bringing the baby Jesus precious gifts, as depicted in the Golden Gospels of Henry III, circa 1220.

The different fates of Switzerland’s dialects

Alexander Rechsteiner 27.09.2023 Dialects play different roles in Switzerland’s language regions: in German-speaking Switzerland they dominate everyday life, while in French-speaking Switzerland they have virtually disappeared, and in Italian-speaking Switzerland they are only spoken with close friends and family. The reasons behind these differences can be found in history.
The French- and German-speaking areas of Switzerland meet on the hills above the town of Biel-Bienne

A balancing act on water

Alexander Rechsteiner 26.07.2023 Alice Baumann was one of the world’s most successful waterskiers in the 1960s. Time for a look at some exhilarating photos from the pioneering age of water skiing.
Talented Swiss waterskier Alice Baumann training on Lake Zurich, August 1962.

Wheel to wheel

Alexander Rechsteiner 15.07.2022 Highs and lows are part of everyday life in Swiss cycling – both figuratively and literally. The sport of cycling can look back on a history filled with anecdotes.
Koblet and Kübler at the 1951 Tour de Suisse. Kübler won the Tour ahead of Koblet.

The first federal military training school

Alexander Rechsteiner 04.07.2022 Twice a year, around 8,000 to 10,000 young men and women begin their course of instruction at Rekrutenschule (RS), the Swiss Army’s military training school. The “RS” run by the Swiss Armed Forces is nearly as old as the federal state itself. The first Rekrutenschule was conducted in Winterthur on 4 September 1849.
A dragoon with the vet in front of a riding school, ca. 1855.

Switzerland’s first railway

Alexander Rechsteiner 07.03.2022 On 15 June 1844, a railway train ran on Swiss territory for the first time. The train didn’t go from Baden to Zurich; instead, it ran a distance of about two kilometres from the French border to the city of Basel.
For the construction and operation of the first railway on Swiss soil, the railway company had to adhere to detailed specifications. Illustration: Marco Heer

Switzerland: a land of paradoxes

Alexander Rechsteiner 04.02.2022 It can be hard to get a true picture of something when you’re only seeing it from the inside – to really understand it, you need the view from outside as well. Take the Swiss mentality, for example. On closer inspection, our mindset turns out to be a multifaceted mirror reflecting a country filled with paradoxes and contradictions.
Postcard featuring the Matterhorn, 1980.

Silvesterkläuse both beautiful and ugly

Alexander Rechsteiner 31.12.2021 Every 31 December and 13 January, bizarre and fantastical figures rove the hinterland of the Canton of Appenzell Ausserrhoden. Some wear ornate headdresses, others grotesque animal faces. These are the "Silvesterkläuse" that usher out the old year and ring in the new.
‘Schöne’ Silvesterkläuse, or New Year mummers, doing the rounds in Urnäsch, sometime between 1975-1985.