Switzerland Guide
Zürich
The Fraumünster
The graceful, slender-spired Fraumünster is a beautiful church boasting a breathtaking series of stained-glass windows by Marc Chagall that should not be missed.
Entrance is into the transept through the small east door beneath the spire, and attention is so concentrated on the Chagall windows that you may find the rest of the church roped off.
The Romanesque choir dates from 1250–70; it is extremely high (18m) and has a wonderful simplicity of design that would make it a magical place even without its windows. Chagall's blood-red "Prophets" window, on the north wall, features Elisha at the bottom watching Elijah mount to heaven in a chariot of fire; above, drenched in a divine blue, sits Jeremiah. The "Law" window, on the opposite wall, has Moses looking down upon the disobedience and suffering of the people, who are following a horseman into war. Below is Isaiah in the arms of a seraph, preparing to proclaim his message of peace to the world.
Of the three main windows, the left, known as the "Jacob", window, shows the patriarch's struggle with the angel and his dream of a ladder to heaven. The yellow "Zion" window on the right shows an angel trumpeting the beginning of eternity and the descent of New Jerusalem from the heavens; below are a radiant King David and Bathsheba. Finally, the central "Christ" window shows Joseph, standing at the bottom beside a huge tree – the tree of life, and the family tree of Christ. Scenes from Jesus' life and parables culminate in an associative depiction of the crucifixion; a cross is barely visible, and Christ is already floating free of the world towards the source of luminescence above.
Opening time: Daily 10am–6pm; Nov– March closes 4pm