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1031Dwelling from Brienz, Berne, 1776

Heinrich von Flüe, toll administrator in Brienz, had this house built. He managed an inn with storage for transport goods and stables for draft animals.

Icon Museumsplan Nr. 1031 Wohnhaus aus Brienz BE

Captain of Finance

Heinrich von Flüe, toll administrator in Brienz, had this house built. He managed an inn with storage for transport goods and stables for draft animals. As relay stations, such toll houses were important infrastructure for trade and transport. Von Flüe also acted as a shipping agent from 1762 till 1776 in Brienz, a popular place for transferring goods from boats to pack animals. Von Flüe became a wealthy man. He built his house on the "Trachtstutz" near the harbour, ideally located for traffic by land and lake. In 1969 the house yielded place to a new post office.

Das Wohnhaus aus Brienz BE (1031) im Freilichtmuseum Ballenberg.

Traffic and Tourists

After 1782 two families lived in the double house. They, like later occupants, lived from transport and tourism. We find the trades of boatsmen, shippers, coach drivers, freight carriers, innkeepers and mountain guides. Woodcarvers also relied on the tourist economy; from the beginning of the 19th century the art of woodcarving developed into the most typical handiwork of the region. After about 1820 some house owners installed a "Butik" (workshop with salesroom) in their tall cellars. They were woodcarvers either full-time or on the side. Otto Hulliger was the last to pursue this trade in 1937–1938. The shop sign was made by Alfred Stähli (1882–1972), who had his "Butik" in the "Schiffschopf" in Brienz.

Das Wohnhaus aus Brienz BE (1031) im Freilichtmuseum Ballenberg.

Art on Houses

The dwelling part is in timber construction and the facade is richly decorated: the entire window front is densely loaded with friezes. These decorative bands are carved right into the wall timbers and run in stylised wave forms and foliage patterns across the whole width of the house. The protrusion of individually carved wall timbers which lend additional structuring to the façade is also typical for the Bernese Oberland.

Das Wohnhaus aus Brienz BE (1031) im Freilichtmuseum Ballenberg.

What can you see now in Brienz where this dwelling used to stand?

What used to be a roadhouse is now a post office. 

Ballenberg
Swiss Open-Air Museum

Museumsstrasse 100
CH-3858 Hofstetten bei Brienz

+41 33 952 10 30
info@ballenberg.ch

Opening hours

10 April to 2 November 2025
10 am to 5 pm daily

Annual holiday from 20 December 2024 to 5 January 2025

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