From St. Ursus to St. Verena - Solothurn, Switzerland

The mighty St Urs Cathedral, an important early classical church, is an imposing landmark.  The City of Solothurn is full of notable places of interest, including the clock tower with its astronomical clock, the Jesuit Church, the 11 fountains and - lying outside the city - the tranquil hermitage of St. Verena.

St Urs Cathedral :  

The Cathedral was built between 1762 and 1773 by architects Gaetano Matteo Pisoni and Paolo Antonio Pisoni. The cathedral's facade, with its imposing flight of steps, is simply awe-inspiring. The interior of this most important example of early classical Swiss architecture is constructed of light-coloured Jura limestone, and is also well worth seeing.

Jesuit Church:

The Jesuit Church, built between 1680 and 1689, is regarded as one of the best examples of baroque architecture in Switzerland.  A statue of the Virgin Mary sits atop the main facade.  \inside, the main altar, which dates back to 1704, is decorated with an image of the Assumption.  The interior is a unique example in the Italianate manner.

11 fountains:

Village fountains, used by women to wash their clothes, are a ubiquitous sight. in Solothurn, however, the official fountains are particularly grand and illustrate how wealthy the city was at the time of the Ambassadors  Moreover, Solothurn has more fountains (11 in total) than any other city in
Switzerland. The majority of the fountains were constructed in the 16th century.

Clock Tower:

The city's oldest structure was erected in the first half of the 13th century. The astronomical clock was added in 1545.  The clock has three hands.  The large hour hand shows the hours of day and night, while the smaller sun and moon hands run anticlockwise and indicate the position of the celestial bodies.The group of automata, consisting of a knight, death and a king, werealso installed in 1545.

Defences and towers:

The defences built between 1667 and 1727 encircled eleven bastions on either side of the Aare, which incorporated the older towers.  Because the rural population saw the defences as a symbol of oppression, they were almost entirely dismantled between 1835 and 1880. The large bastion next to
the Crooked Tower (Krummer Turm) were retained.

The Verena Groge / Hermitage

From Solothurn station, either follow the yellow signs or take the bus.  In the outskirts of the city, the quiet path leads you through the woods to the hermitage where St. Verena and St Martin, the hermit 's cell and the Oelberg and Magdalene caves are a moving experience.

Bus No 4 (for Ruttenen), exit at St Niklaus bus station.
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