Thomas Weibel19.03.2024"Let others tell of storms and showers, I’ll only count your sunny hours" is a phrase that has graced countless poetry albums. Researchers from the University of Basel have now found out that the sundial has been in use for at least 3,200 years.
Alexander Rechsteiner18.12.2023The 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.
Karin Stüber14.12.2023Before the national languages established themselves across the territory of what is now Switzerland, its inhabitants spoke the Gaulish language, which later gave way to Latin. Inscriptions offer small insights into the language culture some 1800 years ago.
Thomas Weibel02.11.2023After decades of research, a seemingly innocuous find retrieved from a Roman shipwreck was revealed as a sensational scientific discovery, proving that the ancient Greeks were capable of making mechanical models of the cosmos with hitherto unimagined precision. The ‘Antikythera Mechanism’ is an analogue ‘calendar computer’.
André Perler23.05.2023Since they were founded centuries ago, place name have undergone constant change. Unsophisticated descriptions of the local landscape, or ownership, have morphed into abbreviations popular among the young. In Winterthur’s case, it has gone from ‘Uitoduro’ to ‘Winti’.
Thomas Weibel08.11.2022Wilhelm Tell’s crossbow is, so to speak, the national weapon of Switzerland. In actual fact the weapon has its origins in ancient China, and although superior to the bow the crossbow didn’t have the best reputation.
Kurt Messmer15.08.2022The Greek myths are a treasure chamber of human possibilities and limits. A little foray into the life of Heracles, the greatest hero of them all, provides ample evidence of this. The setting is archaic and mythical; the knowledge gained is ageless.
Andrea Schaer11.07.2022At the thermal springs in Baden, the Romans worshipped a goddess with her roots in Egypt. After the Baden region converted to Christianity, a saint from Lower Egypt became the patroness of the spa town on the Limmat.