Showing 1-12 of 12 results
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Augusta Raurica
By the Rhine, these Roman ruins are Switzerland's largest. They're the last remnants of a colony founded in 44 BC that had grown to 20,000 citizens by the 2nd century. Today, restored features include an open-air theatre and several temples. There's also a Roman Museum which features an authentic Roman house among its exhibits.
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Bank for International Settlements
Ticino architect Mario Botta is worth checking out; see his Tinguely Museum and the grey-striped offices of the Bank for International Settlements - incidentally, this was the bank most seriously implicated in the 1990s Holocaust scandal.
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FC Basel
FC Basel, the leaders of the Swiss football league, play at St Jakob Park, some 2km east of the main train station. The stadium, by Herzog & de Meuron, is the prototype of their mega-famous Munich creation. Its translucent skin looks best when lit up, which only happens during games, every week or so. Take tram No 14 to get there.
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Fondation Beyeler
Of all the private Swiss collections made public, former art dealers Hildy and Ernst Beyeler's is the most astounding. Sculptures by Miró and Max Ernst are juxtaposed against similar tribal figures, while 19th- and 20th-century masterpieces from the likes of Picasso and Rothko hang in leading Italian architect Renzo Piano's light-filled, open-plan building.
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Kunstmuseum
The Kunstmuseum concentrates on two periods: from 1400 to 1600, and from 1800 to the present day. The medieval collection includes the world's largest number of Holbein works. The smaller contemporary collection features Picassos and Rodins, and spills over into the Museum für Gegenwartskunst.
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Münster
A mix of Gothic exteriors and Romanesque interiors. The tomb of the famous Renaissance humanist Erasmus of Rotterdam (1466-1536), who lived and died in the city, lies in the cathedral's northern aisle.
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Museum Jean Tinguely
Built by leading Ticino architect Mario Botta, the Museum Jean Tinguely resonates with playful mischievousness. Unfortunately, you're not allowed to touch most of Tinguely's 'kinetic' sculptures, which would rattle, shake or twirl if you did. But with springs, feathers and wheels radiating at all angles they look appealingly like the work of a mad scientist.
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Rathaus
The vivid red Rathaus, built in the 16th century has since been restored.
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Schaulager
There's an asymmetrical gatehouse to the Schaulager and a huge video screen on the front façade giving you a foretaste of the rolling temporary exhibitions in the angled, generously sized interior. Open to the public in summer only, the gallery welcomes artists, museum workers and teachers throughout the year.
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Tinguely Fountain
The Tinguely Fountain will seem familiar to anyone who's seen the famous Stravinsky fountain outside Paris's Pompidou Centre. In Paris, however, Swiss sculptor Jean Tinguely's madcap machinery is accompanied by the plump day-glo figures of his wife and collaborator Niki de Saint Phalle. This Basel fountain is all his own doing.
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Vitra Design Museum
Always fancied seeing the amazingly organic Bilbao Guggenheim Museum in Spain and find yourself in Basel? Then, pop across the German border to the Vitra Design Museum for a small taste of the same.
Showing 1-12 of 12 results
