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Basel-Münsterhügel

1st-century BC establishmentsArchaeological sites in SwitzerlandBuildings and structures in BaselCeltic townsHistory of Basel
Oppida
Basel Schaukästen Murus Gallicus
Basel Schaukästen Murus Gallicus

Basel-Münsterhügel is the site of an Iron Age (late La Tène) fort or oppidum, known as Basel oppidum, constructed by the Gaulish Rauraci after the battle of Bibracte in 58 BC. It the site of Basel Minster, in the Swiss city of Basel. The fort was abandoned or destroyed shortly after its construction, before the end of the 1st century BC, with the Roman conquest of the Alps and the establishment of the province of Gallia Belgica. By the early 1st century AD, there was a small vicus on the hill built on top of the ruins of the oppidum, possibly the origin of the name Basilia, from a toponym villa Basilia "estate of Basilius". In the mid-3rd century, the ruined oppidum was rebuilt as a Roman castrum, fortified with an encircling wall in c. 270. The vicus was abandoned, and the hill served as part of the Roman fortifications of the Rhine against the advancing Alamanni throughout the 4th century. The name Basilia for the Roman fortification is first mentioned in 237/8, and is named by Ammianus Marcellinus as a base used by Valentinian I in his campaign in Gaul in the 360s. The castle was abandoned after the death of Flavius Aetius in 454 and was probably once again in ruins by the 6th century, when the Alamannic settlement was established that would grow into the medieval city of Basel. The first Basel cathedral was built on the site in the early 9th century (replaced by an early Romanesque structure in c. 999–1025, and by the current late Romanesque church in the 12th century). The site was excavated by Furger-Gunti in the 1970s. There is an older undefended La Tène site at Basel Gasfabrik, not far from the oppidum, which was abandoned after the fort was completed.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Basel-Münsterhügel (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Basel-Münsterhügel
Rittergasse, Basel Altstadt Grossbasel

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N 47.5557 ° E 7.593 °
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Keltische Befestigung «Murus Gallicus»

Rittergasse
4010 Basel, Altstadt Grossbasel
Basel-City, Switzerland
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Basel Schaukästen Murus Gallicus
Basel Schaukästen Murus Gallicus
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Basel
Basel

Basel ( BAH-zəl); also known as Basle ( BAHL); (German: Basel [ˈbaːzl̩] (listen); French: Bâle [bɑl]; Italian: Basilea [baziˈlɛːa]; Sutsilvan: Basileia; other Romansh: Basilea [baziˈleːɐ] (listen)) is a city in northwestern Switzerland on the river Rhine. Basel is Switzerland's third-most-populous city (after Zürich and Geneva) with about 175,000 inhabitants. The official language of Basel is (the Swiss variety of Standard) German, but the main spoken language is the local Basel German dialect. Basel is famous for its many museums, including the Kunstmuseum, which is the first collection of art accessible to the public in the world (1661) and the largest museum of art in Switzerland, the Fondation Beyeler (located in Riehen), the Museum Tinguely and the Museum of Contemporary Art, which is the first public museum of contemporary art in Europe. Forty museums are spread throughout the city-canton, making Basel one of the largest cultural centres in relation to its size and population in Europe. The University of Basel, Switzerland's oldest university (founded in 1460), and the city's centuries-long commitment to humanism, have made Basel a safe haven at times of political unrest in other parts of Europe for such notable people as Erasmus of Rotterdam, the Holbein family, Friedrich Nietzsche, Carl Jung, and in the 20th century also Hermann Hesse and Karl Jaspers. Basel was the seat of a Prince-Bishopric starting in the 11th century, and joined the Swiss Confederacy in 1501. The city has been a commercial hub and an important cultural centre since the Renaissance, and has emerged as a centre for the chemical and pharmaceutical industries in the 20th century. In 1897, Basel was chosen by Theodor Herzl as the location for the first World Zionist Congress, and altogether the congress has been held there ten times over a time span of 50 years, more than in any other location. The city is also home to the world headquarters of the Bank for International Settlements. The name of the city is internationally known through institutions like the Basel Accords, Art Basel and FC Basel. In 2019 Basel was ranked the tenth most liveable city in the world by Mercer.