Villingen--again
Myles and Brigid could easily have spent another full day at Legoland, but we had to leave that evening for the Black Forest. We were going back to Villingen.
The Villingen part of the joined city of Villingen-Schwennigen was something all of us were looking forward to, even after the excitement of Legoland and having already been there previously. Like some of the other small towns we visit with Randy, we are amazed at the wealth of history held in these little places.
Villingen's medieval history is well on display throughout the town. Several of its towers, as well as some of its wall and many religious buildings still stand.
One of the disbanded monasteries now houses the municipal museum.
It was here we learned more about the very distant past of Villingen.
More after the jump
Much in line with Brigid's recent interest in archeology, there was a small exhibit on neolithic artifacts excavated in the region. There were Steinbeil (axes) from as long ago as 6000 BC, but most were from 3000 BC.
But the really big archaeological find just outside of Villingen, Magdelenenberg. was a 616 BC Celtic burial mound.
These exist all over Middle Europe from around the same time, but this site, the only one near Villingen, is the largest mound in that region, and has yielded the largest discovery of Hallstatt Culture wood in Middle Europe. This was part of the prince's burial chamber.
Also found in the area were many examples of Hallstatt jewelry.
It was such an interesting contrast to Myles saying under his breath often "Cutthroat Celts!" Do these look like the product of a cutthroat culture?
Also in Villingen we paid another visit to the Liebenfraukirche. It was unchanged from our previous visit, so we walked through to see the elements of the church that we remembered that we liked so much.
Like looking over the stone pulpit for the itchy dog under the Via Crucis.
And the 14th century Nägelinkreuz, which presented the candle lighting opportunity Brigid was seeking.
The last time we were in Villingen we hadn't the chance to see the Benedictine Church. The Cloister was founded in 1084, but the current church was built in 1719. In the morning before we left for Switzerland, the kids and I took a quick walk through it. I only took two pictures with my phone and many more with the little digital camera I had with me. Unfortunately, the next day in Switzerland I would learn that the camera started malfunctioning while I was taking pictures inside the Benedictine Church. So what I have are these two: one of the exterior....
....and one of this map of the interior.
Myles helpfully suggested that I could always just get the pictures from the Internet and photoshop ourselves in.
Villingen was, as before, an enjoyable little town in the Black Forest. While I hope Brigid will remember most the exhibit about the Celtic graves, I'm sure she will continue to associate walking around Villingen with the playground equipment that is all over town and the bakeries.
The Villingen part of the joined city of Villingen-Schwennigen was something all of us were looking forward to, even after the excitement of Legoland and having already been there previously. Like some of the other small towns we visit with Randy, we are amazed at the wealth of history held in these little places.
Villingen's medieval history is well on display throughout the town. Several of its towers, as well as some of its wall and many religious buildings still stand.
One of the disbanded monasteries now houses the municipal museum.
It was here we learned more about the very distant past of Villingen.
More after the jump
Much in line with Brigid's recent interest in archeology, there was a small exhibit on neolithic artifacts excavated in the region. There were Steinbeil (axes) from as long ago as 6000 BC, but most were from 3000 BC.
But the really big archaeological find just outside of Villingen, Magdelenenberg. was a 616 BC Celtic burial mound.
These exist all over Middle Europe from around the same time, but this site, the only one near Villingen, is the largest mound in that region, and has yielded the largest discovery of Hallstatt Culture wood in Middle Europe. This was part of the prince's burial chamber.
Also found in the area were many examples of Hallstatt jewelry.
It was such an interesting contrast to Myles saying under his breath often "Cutthroat Celts!" Do these look like the product of a cutthroat culture?
Also in Villingen we paid another visit to the Liebenfraukirche. It was unchanged from our previous visit, so we walked through to see the elements of the church that we remembered that we liked so much.
Like looking over the stone pulpit for the itchy dog under the Via Crucis.
And the 14th century Nägelinkreuz, which presented the candle lighting opportunity Brigid was seeking.
The last time we were in Villingen we hadn't the chance to see the Benedictine Church. The Cloister was founded in 1084, but the current church was built in 1719. In the morning before we left for Switzerland, the kids and I took a quick walk through it. I only took two pictures with my phone and many more with the little digital camera I had with me. Unfortunately, the next day in Switzerland I would learn that the camera started malfunctioning while I was taking pictures inside the Benedictine Church. So what I have are these two: one of the exterior....
....and one of this map of the interior.
Myles helpfully suggested that I could always just get the pictures from the Internet and photoshop ourselves in.
Villingen was, as before, an enjoyable little town in the Black Forest. While I hope Brigid will remember most the exhibit about the Celtic graves, I'm sure she will continue to associate walking around Villingen with the playground equipment that is all over town and the bakeries.
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