Objekt 2409
The railway breaks through the city wall
Description
In 1844, the French railway opened an extension to Basel. A special gate
was built into the city wall for the five trains that travelled daily between
Basel and Strasbourg or Colmar. The French railway station was the first on
Swiss soil. This view illustrates the amount of attention the railway drew:
the public follows events from the city wall. Yet as early as 1860, the construction
of the Centralbahnhof rendered the French railway station superfluous
and the Schällemätteli prison was built on its grounds. Today it is
the location of the new Life Sciences Campus of the University of Basel.
Object description
View of the first Französische Bahnhof in Basel
artist: G. L.
Basel, 1847
oil on canvas
acquired with federal financial support
Inv. 1934.504.