Lucerne

The Water Tower and the Chapel Bridge, both built ca. 1300, are Lucerne’s trademarks. The oldest preserved wooden bridge in Europe displays a series of 17th century paintings on triangular panels under its eaves. A major part of the bridge, including the paintings, was almost completely destroyed by fire on August 18, 1993. The reconstructed bridge was reopened on April 14, 1994. In the meantime, many of the paintings have been replaced or recopied. The octagonal Water Tower, like the Chapel Bridge, formed part of the inner city fortifications and has served as an archive, a city treasury and a prison.

The Dying Lion Monument created by the Danish sculptorThorwaldsen is world-famous. It is dedicated to the memory of the Swiss mercenaries who were slaughtered while protecting the French monarch at the Tuileries in 1792.