Switzerland and snow have a very special history. It ranges from skiing to avalanche research. As the planet heats up the snow is melting, and it’s happening here in Switzerland as well. What has happened? And how will it snow in the future? A search for clues.
Hidden amidst the single-family homes, blocks of flats and public facilities in Switzerland are approximately 360,000 shelters designed to offer protection in the event of war breaking out. The protective structures, which today are used as wine cellars, hobby rooms or storage areas, were for the most part built during the Cold War.
It’s only thanks to the efforts of historian Maurice Jaenneret (1887-1961) that a magnificent section of wallpaper from a Jura farmhouse was saved from destruction in 1958.
In 1900, the Swiss artist Ferdinand Hodler created three frescoes the armory hall of the Swiss National Museum in Zurich. Hodler ignored the wishes of his patrons and sparked a nationwide controversy with the composition of the picture for his work «The Retreat from Marignano».
The new building of the Estonian National Museum, opened in 2016, is spectacular in every way. The building reveals a lot about the eventful history and the present day self-image of the smallest of the Baltic countries.
Due to the new lockdown of the museums, Hibou Pèlerin has been forced to take a compulsory break. He is using this time to read some new publications on cultural history. A brand new world history of the museum by Krzysztof Pomian has him riveted.
A stained-glass work of exceptional artistic quality dating from 1588, on permanent loan from the Swiss National Museum, adds a touch of dramatic beauty to the Ittinger Museum in the Kartause Ittingen.
