Weinplatz (literally: ''wine square'') is a popular public square adjacent to the ''Gmüesbrugg'' bridge and the historical

Schipfe Schipfe is a residential district in Zürich, Switzerland, located on the eastern slope of the Lindenhof, one of the oldest parts of the Helvetii Oppidum Zürich-Lindenhof, by the river Limmat. Historians and the '' Weinplatz'' suggest that the ...

quarter.

Geography

Weinplatz is situated in the historical center of Zürich, previously known as Celtic-Roman ''Turicum'', on the southeastern foothill of the Lindenhof, right westerly of the Rathausbrücke bridge-plaza, north of the

Münsterhof Münsterhof (literally: Fraumünster abbey courtyard) is a town square situated in the Lindenhof quarter in the historical center of Zürich, Switzerland. Münsterhof is the largest town square within the ''Altstadt'' (old town) of Zürich, and i ...

plaza, and south of the

quarter on the eastern bank of the Limmat.

Transportation

Located next to the Rathausbrücke, public transport is provided by the Zürich tram lines 2, 4, and 15. At the ''Storchen'' stop,

Zürichsee-Schifffahrtsgesellschaft The ''Zürichsee-Schifffahrtsgesellschaft'' or Lake Zürich Navigation Company (commonly abbreviated to ZSG) is a public Swiss company operating passenger ships and boats on Lake Zürich. The company operates services connecting lake-side towns ...

provides also public transportation towards Bürkliplatz and

Zürichhorn Zürichhorn is a river delta on Zürichsee's eastern shore in the lower basin of the lake. The area is part of the parks and quays in the Seefeld quarter of the city of Zürich in Switzerland. The gardens are one of the most popular recreational a ...

. Individual transportation usually is prohibited. The area is part of the

pedestrian zone Pedestrian zones (also known as auto-free zones and car-free zones, as pedestrian precincts in British English, and as pedestrian malls in the United States and Australia) are areas of a city or town reserved for pedestrian-only use and in whi ...

in the old town of Zürich, hence, vehicle traffic is limited between lower

Limmatquai ''Limmatquai'' is a street in the Swiss city of Zürich. It is named after the Limmat, and it follows the right-hand (eastern) bank of that river for about through the '' Altstadt'', or historical core, of the city. The street was once important ...

downstream and the

Bellevueplatz Bellevueplatz ("Bellevue Square", from the French ''bellevue'' meaning "beautiful sight") is a town square in Zürich, Switzerland built in 1856. Named after the former Grandhotel Bellevue on its north side, it is one of the nodal points for r ...

square upstream.

History

In 70/75 AD a harbor district rose on the newly acquired lands on the Limmat riverbank at the foot of the former Oppidum Lindenhof at the

–Weinplatz area, and the settlement area of the Gallo-Roman '' Turicum'' was extended on the right bank of the Limmat at the present

. Public buildings made of stone and paved roads were built. Suggested by the recent archaeological evidence uncovered during construction at Münsterbrücke, the present Weinplatz may have been the site of the civilian harbour of the Celtic-Roman ''Turicum''. At the site of the present Weinplatz towards St. Peterhofstatt the remains of remarkable 2nd to 4th century AD ''

Thermae In ancient Rome, (from Greek , "hot") and (from Greek ) were facilities for bathing. usually refers to the large imperial bath complexes, while were smaller-scale facilities, public or private, that existed in great numbers throughout ...

'' were excavated. Being part of the ancient ''Kornhausplatz'' (Rathhausbrücke) plaza, Weinplatz was used as a grain and vegetable store in medieval times, and became in 1630 the public market for local wines, the present ''Weinplatz'' square. Despite the relocation of the market to the

plaza in 1647, the name is still the same. Some medieval sources mention the ''Rother Turm'' building, meaning the "red tower" which was used by the

House of Rapperswil The House of Rapperswil respectively Counts of Rapperswil (''Grafen von Rapperwil'' since 1233, before ''Lords'') ruled the upper ''Zürichsee'' and ''Seedamm'' region around Rapperswil and parts of, as of today, Swiss cantons of St. Gallen, ...

as its seat in Zürich in the early 13th century; much later it became a 'literature café' and was demolished. Weinplatz now is a popular tourist destination, nearby the Münsterhof plaza, and it is the location of some small shops and cafés.

Points of interest

Thermengasse

Towards St. Peterhofstatt, the remains of the Roman ''Thermae'' were discovered on occasion of archaeological excavations in 1983/84. The site is partially open to the public and illustrated by information boards, as well as replicas of some of the artefacts that were found at the site.

Haus zum Schwert

First mentioned in 1265, the Zürich knight Jakob Mülner handed over his residential tower ''zum Schwert'' (literally: sword tower) to the

Fraumünster Abbey The Fraumünster (; lit. in en, Women's Minster, but often wrongly translated to urLady Minster) is a church in Zürich which was built on the remains of a former abbey for aristocratic women which was founded in 853 by Louis the German for h ...

, and returned it as a fief. From the daughters of Gotfried II, in 1406 the complex came to Hans Brunner who set up an inn. Today, the former tower is an accommodation building and houses a shop at its ground floor.

Hotel Zum Storchen

The origin of the name "Zum Storchen" (literally: To the Stork) is unclear, but a local legend tells that the name comes from several of rare black storks that brooded on its roof long ago. In 1357, the building "Hus zum Storchen" (literally stork house) was mentioned for the first time in tax records of the city. About 100 years later, it was designated as a hostel, a tradition that lasted for several hundred years. In 1938 the medieval structure was rebuilt to house the present hotel, bar and restaurant. The building also serves as the guild house of the ''Zunft zur Schiffleuten'', a medieval guild of the fishermen and boatmen, whose name is perhaps a reference to the ancient harbour at the Weinplatz square near the hotel.

Literature

* Regine Abegg, Christine Barraud Wiener: ''Die Kunstdenkmäler des Kantons Zürich.'' Band II.II: ''Stadt Zürich.'' Wiese Verlag, Basel 2003. .

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Weinplatz Zurich Altstadt (Zürich) Squares in Zürich History of Zürich