Schaffhausen, capital of the canton of that name, situated close to the Untersee and north of the Rhine, is enclosed on three sides by Germany. Its well preserved medieval town center and the picturesquely situated Kastell Munot make it one of the most interesting towns in Switzerland. Schaffhausen is also an important hub of communications and industrial town (iron and steel works, chemical plants, engineering works, clocks, textiles and playing cards).
Schaffhausen grew up as a transshipment point for traffic on the Rhine, here interrupted by the Rhine Falls. In 1045 the Emperor Henry III granted Count Eberhard von Nellenburg the right to mint coins here, and about 1050 the Benedictine abbey of All Saints was founded. From 1330 to 1415 the town was mortgaged to the Habsburgs, and thereafter, until 1501, was a free Imperial city. In 1454 Schaffhausen concluded an alliance with the Confederation, of which it became a member in 1501. From 1798 to 1803 the town and canton were part of the Helvetian Republic.
The All Saints Museum is housed in the former Schaffhausen abbey. The collection is varied, with religious art, prehistoric artifacts, furnishings, weapons, costumes, and more.
To the east, dominating Schaffhausen on a vine-clad hill is Kastell Munot (1564-89), a circular structure designed in accordance with Dürer's principles of fortification, with walls more than 5 m/16ft thick and vaulted gunports below. The principal tower has a ramp in place of a staircase to allow supplies to be carried up to the artillery. From the battlements there is a fine view of the town.
The Münster dates to the 11th and 12th C when it was the Benedictine abbey of All Saints. The interior is furnished in simple decor and the exterior displays a bronze figure of David with Goliath's head.
The museum in the complex of the former Benedictine monastery contains archaeological finds, church treasures, a natural history section and an art collection featuring works from the Middle-Ages to the present.
Address: Museum zu Allerheiligen, Baumgartenstrasse 6, CH-8200 Schaffhausen, Switzerland
Hours:
11am-5pm; Closed: Mon
Always closed on: New Year's Day (January 1), Christmas - Christian (December 25), Christmas Eve - Christian (December 24), Good Friday - Christian
Tips: Free admission the first Saturday of each month.
The Hallen für neue Kunst is a museum of contemporary art, which offers major works by international artists from the 1960's - 1980's in a refurbished textile factory
Address: Hallen für Neue Kunst, Baumgartenstrasse 23, CH-8200 Schaffhausen, Switzerland
To the east of Fronwagplatz the long Vordergasse opens out into a square. On the right of the Vordergasse the 15th C. Rathaus (Council House), with the fine Chamber of the Great Council (Grossratssaal, 1632) and the Council Arcade (Ratslaube, 1586)
At the corner of Münstergasse in Schaffhausen is the colorful Haus zum Ritter (1485), with paintings on the facade by Tobias Stimmer (originals, 1570, removed in 1935, now in All Saints Museum; reproductions of 1938-39, restored 1943). Diagonally across the street the Late Gothic St John's church (Protestant) has an imposing tower.
In a spacious square south of Fronwagplatz, Herrenacker, are the old Kornhaus (Granary, 1679) and the Schaffhausen Municipal Theater (rebuilt 1956). In a small square immediately east, the Beckenstube, is situated the Cantonal Government Building (Regierungsgebäude), a skillful conversion of the old Arsenal (17th C.), with a magnificent doorway.
Diessenhofen (416 m/1,365ft; pop. 3,000) is a medieval town of 3,000 inhabitants, once a free Imperial city, with its fine Gothic burghers' houses, old fortifications (Siegelturm, 1545), parish church of St Dionysis (1200; rebuilt 15th century) and the Dominican convent of St Katharinental (1571; Baroque conventual church). On the opposite side of the river is the German village of Gailingen. Diessenhofen is about 10km/6mi to the east of Schaffhausen.
An old wooden covered bridge crosses from Diessenhofen to the opposite bank of the Rhine to the health resort of Gailingen (pop. 2,500; neurological rehabilitation center), with a St Nikolaus chapel (1100) and an interesting Jewish cemetery (1676); in the 19th C. there were as many Jews as Christians in Gailingen.
Read More
Old Town
Read Less
Read More
Diessenhofen - Official House Museum
Old Town, Schaffhausen
Rhine Falls, Schaffhausen
Rhine Falls, Schaffhausen
Old Town, Schaffhausen
Kastell Munot, Schaffhausen
Schaffhausen
