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13 JANUARY or 20 JANUARY or 27 JANUARY On one day in January they come alive - Vogel Gryff, Wild Maa and Leu ride on a raft along the Rhein, they perform on the Mittlere Brücke, attend a banquet and dance until late at night. During the rest of the year, these characters symbolic of the three honorary societies of Kleinbasel continue to be present in the city, albeit in a quieter way. Do you know where to find them?  Painted on a blind wall of a house on Riehentorstrasse ...
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6 JANUARY / Dreikönigstag / the Feast of the Three Kings Three Wise Kings on the Münster Positioned on the corners of St. George's Tower, a procession of Three Kings faces the Madonna in the gable. Gothic figures in the style of the Parler school of masons, they have lean features and enormous heads foreshortened when seen from below. Originally sculpted in the first half of the 15th c., all have been replaced by copies in the 20th c.  Kneeling King, closest to Madonna; original from around 1420, replaced by a copy
6 JANUARY / Dreikönigstag / the Feast of the Three Kings Basel's best known Three Kings throne above the main entry of the hotel "Les Trois Rois". These statues, dressed in magnificent robes, are relics from an old inn that used to stand on the Schifflände until 1842. Created originally in the mid 18th c., these kings carved out of larch wood represent the Three Wise Men of the East. Following a good star, Caspar, Melchior and Balthasar are said to have travelled great distances before arriving in Bethlehem - they thus became patron saints of travelers, of inns and hostelries.  Statues of the Three Kings, above the main entrance of the hotel "Les Trois Rois" / "Drei Könige" on Blumenrain 8, in Basel
JANUARY - named after Janus Janus Glimmering in golden tones, when seen from afar the weather vane atop the Klingental church appears angel-like. On closer inspection, we see that it has two, rather abstract, faces. Vertically corrugated on one side, it resembles a flag made of fabric. Horizontally corrugated on the other side, this metal weather vane evokes an image of flowing water. The river Rhein is not far. When we look again, don't we see two different, somewhat deformed, elongated faces? Sitting atop the Klingental church roof is a public artwork: "Janus" by Jürg Stäuble won the Kunstkredit Basel-Stadt competition in 2010 and was erected one year later. The monastery church of the Dominican nuns, dating back to the late 13th c., was used after the Reformation as a warehouse, as military barracks and most recently as artists studios. All photos: D.B.-M. architecture walks and talks
JANUARY - named after Janus The first month of the ancient Roman calendar /Mensis Ianuarius / was named after Janus, the god of all beginnings and ends. Typically depicted as having two faces, Janus continues to be associated with doorways /januae / and archways /jani /. It should thus not be surprising to find a statue of Janus on the site where one of Basel's medieval city gates - St. Johanns-Schwibbogen - used to stand. Otto Bänninger's 1962 statue of Janus, reclining on the small green square known as the Totentanzplatz, continues to remind us of the past while it looks toward the future.  Otto Bänninger "Janus" 1962 Totentanzplatz, Basel
1 JANUARY / New Year's Day & Neijoorsaadringgede Until the time of pandemic and the most recent reconstruction of the Freie Strasse, a special ceremony used to take place at the Trident Fountain on the morning of the New Year's Day. One of the four Basilisk figures (normally spouting water) dispensed wine! Organised by Basel's Zunft zum Goldenen Stern - the guild which in medieval times had its meeting house on Freie Strasse, this event provided a very special way of welcoming the New Year - with a drink of Hypokras, wine mixed with sugar and spices.  Winter scenes around the Dreizack fountain
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