Werd Islands
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Werd Island is the main island of the small island group ''Werd Islands'' in the westernmost part of the Lower Lake of Lake Constance just before the
High Rhine The High Rhine (german: Hochrhein) is the name used for the part of the Rhine that flows westbound from Lake Constance to Basel. The High Rhine begins at the outflow of the Rhine from the Untersee in Stein am Rhein and turns into the Upper Rhine ...
leaves the part of the lake known as . It is located on Swiss territory between
Stein am Rhein Stein am Rhein (abbreviated as Stein a. R.) is a historic town and a municipality in the canton of Schaffhausen in Switzerland. The town's medieval centre retains the ancient street plan. The site of the city wall, and the city gates are preserve ...
and
Eschenz Eschenz is a municipality in Frauenfeld District in the canton of Thurgau in Switzerland. History The prehistoric shore village on ''Werd Island'' and in the ''Seeäckern'' area (northeast of Eschenz) are rich archeological sites that have contr ...
.


History

The Werd was already inhabited in 5000 BC, using stilt houses. Stone tools used by
hunter-gatherers A traditional hunter-gatherer or forager is a human living an ancestrally derived lifestyle in which most or all food is obtained by foraging, that is, by gathering food from local sources, especially edible wild plants but also insects, fungi, ...
in the Middle Stone Age have been found. In the
Neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several p ...
, Werd provided an ideal place to settle. Between 1931 and 1935, the island was excavated under the direction of Karl Keller-Tarnuzzer. Numerous items such as stone axes, arrowheads, a flint sickle, pottery shards, bone fishhooks from the
Neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several p ...
and the
Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second prin ...
came to light. Tools, weapons and jewelry from the Bronze Age were found. Water levels of Lake Constance fell to an extreme low in the winter of 2005–2006. This uncovered a large waterfront areas and some prehistoric artifacts. A selection of prehistoric, Roman Era and medieval artifacts is on display at the entrance of the
refectory A refectory (also frater, frater house, fratery) is a dining room, especially in monasteries, boarding schools and academic institutions. One of the places the term is most often used today is in graduate seminaries. The name derives from the Lat ...
on the island. Other important finds are now housed in the Museum of Archaeology in
Frauenfeld Frauenfeld ( Alemannic: ''Frauefäld'') is the capital of the canton of Thurgau in Switzerland. The official language of Frauenfeld is (the Swiss variety of Standard) German, but the main spoken language is the local variant of the Alemannic ...
and in the local museum in Eschenz. In 50 BCE, the
Romans Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
built a pile bridge between Rhaetia and
Magna Germania Germania ( ; ), also called Magna Germania (English: ''Great Germania''), Germania Libera (English: ''Free Germania''), or Germanic Barbaricum to distinguish it from the Roman province of the same name, was a large historical region in north-c ...
via the island. The two bridge sections had a length of 220 and 217 meters and a width of six meters. This Roman road, known in the literature as the ''Rheatian Boundary Street'' led from the
Vicus In Ancient Rome, the Latin term (plural ) designated a village within a rural area () or the neighbourhood of a larger settlement. During the Republican era, the four of the city of Rome were subdivided into . In the 1st century BC, Augustus ...
'' Tasgetium'' (Eschenz) via Rielasingen, Singen, Friedingen, Steißlingen, Orsingen, Vilsingen and
Inzigkofen Inzigkofen is a municipality in the district of Sigmaringen in Baden-Württemberg in Germany. Historically, it is part of the Swabian north Alpine foreland basin. It consists of three districts: Within Engelswies is the now-abandoned Talsbe ...
to a
ford Ford commonly refers to: * Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford * Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river Ford may also refer to: Ford Motor Company * Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company * Ford F ...
across the
Danube The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , p ...
at Laiz. In Orsingen there was a junction to
Pfullendorf Pfullendorf is a small town of about 13,000 inhabitants located north of Lake Constance in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It was a Free Imperial City of the Holy Roman Empire for nearly 600 years. The town is in the district of Sigmaringen south of ...
and Burgweiler. Near ''Dürren Ast'', there was a further junction through the Ablach Valley to
Meßkirch Meßkirch (; Swabian: ''Mässkirch'') is a town in the district of Sigmaringen in Baden-Württemberg in Germany. The town was the residence of the counts of Zimmern, widely known through Count Froben Christoph's '' Zimmern Chronicle'' (1559– ...
,
Krauchenwies Krauchenwies is a municipality in the district of Sigmaringen in Baden-Württemberg in Germany. Geography Krauchenwies lies about south of Sigmaringen and north of Lake Constance. It is on the ''Oberschwäbischen Barockstraße'' (west route) ...
and Mengen- Ennetach.


Chapel

Saint Othmar, the first abbot of the
Abbey of St. Gall The Abbey of Saint Gall (german: Abtei St. Gallen) is a dissolved abbey (747–1805) in a Catholic religious complex in the city of St. Gallen in Switzerland. The Carolingian-era monastery existed from 719, founded by Saint Othmar on the spot ...
was sent into exile to Werd in 759. He died on Werd on 16 November of that year. The St. Othmar chapel on the island was erected in his memory in the 15th Century. It belongs to the
Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
parish of Eschenz. The island is owned by the
Benedictine , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...
Einsiedeln Abbey Einsiedeln Abbey (german: Kloster Einsiedeln) is a Benedictine Catholic monastery in the village of Einsiedeln in the canton of Schwyz, Switzerland. The abbey is dedicated to Our Lady of the Hermits, in recognition of Meinrad of Einsiedeln, a he ...
. It is, however, leased by the
Franciscans , image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg , image_size = 200px , caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans , abbreviation = OFM , predecessor = , ...
; they live in a house attached to the chapel.


Archipelago

Werd is the main island of a small island group. It has an area of 1.59
hectare The hectare (; SI symbol: ha) is a non-SI metric unit of area equal to a square with 100- metre sides (1 hm2), or 10,000 m2, and is primarily used in the measurement of land. There are 100 hectares in one square kilometre. An acre is ...
belongs to the ward Untereschenz of the municipality of
Eschenz Eschenz is a municipality in Frauenfeld District in the canton of Thurgau in Switzerland. History The prehistoric shore village on ''Werd Island'' and in the ''Seeäckern'' area (northeast of Eschenz) are rich archeological sites that have contr ...
, in the Swiss Canton
Thurgau Thurgau (; french: Thurgovie; it, Turgovia), anglicized as Thurgovia, more formally the Canton of Thurgau, is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of five districts and its capital is Frauenfeld. Thurgau is par ...
. The highest point of the island is 398 metres above sea level or 2 metres above lake level (396 m). It is connected to the south bank of the river by a 125 meter long wooden bridge. The two smaller islands in the group belong to the municipality of
Stein am Rhein Stein am Rhein (abbreviated as Stein a. R.) is a historic town and a municipality in the canton of Schaffhausen in Switzerland. The town's medieval centre retains the ancient street plan. The site of the city wall, and the city gates are preserve ...
of
Canton of Schaffhausen The canton of Schaffhausen, also canton of Schaffouse (german: Kanton Schaffhausen; rm, Chantun Schaffusa; french: Canton de Schaffhouse; it, Canton Sciaffusa) is the northernmost canton of Switzerland. The principal city and capital of the ca ...
. They are uninhabited and form the nature reserve and bird sanctuary ''Middle and lower Werdli''. Middle Werdli island has an area of 0.4 hectares; Lower Werdli measures 0.6 hectares. The boundary between the cantons of Thurgau and Schaffhausen, follows the center line of the Rhine here. The bridge at Stein am Rhein is generally considered to be the boundary between the Lower Lake of Lake Constance and the
High Rhine The High Rhine (german: Hochrhein) is the name used for the part of the Rhine that flows westbound from Lake Constance to Basel. The High Rhine begins at the outflow of the Rhine from the Untersee in Stein am Rhein and turns into the Upper Rhine ...
.''Schweizerische Zeitschrift für Hydrologie'', vol. 21–22, page 49: ''The end of the lower lake and thus the entire Lake Constance lies beneath the Rhine bridge at Stein.'' The Werd islands lie just above the bridge and are therefore inland islands, not
river island River Island is a London-based, multi-channel fashion brand, founded in 1948 by Bernard Lewis. The retailer has a presence in over 125 of worldwide markets, in stores and online. Best known for its trend focused womenswear offering, River Isl ...
s. The Western tip of Lower Werli is about 320 meters upstream from the bridge.


Gallery

image:Werdinsel Brücke.JPG, Bridge to the main island image:Werdinsel Kapelle.JPG, Convent image:Werdinsel Spirale.JPG, Spirals in the Rhine before the island


References and sources

* Heinz Finke: ''Inselspaziergänge. Werd, Liebesinsel, Reichenau, Mainau, Dominikanerinsel, Lindau.'', 1991, * Karl Keller-Tarnuzzer: ''Die Inselleute vom Bodensee'', 1935


Footnotes


External links

*
Franciscan Friars on the island of Werd

Photo: turf maze at Werd, viewed from the air
{{Authority control Landforms of the canton of Schaffhausen Landforms of Thurgau Islands of Lake Constance in Switzerland