Audio tour The Dark Side of Zurich

What do people usually say about Zurich? Switzerland's financial heart... The city of bankers and shoppers... The streets where everyone is in a hurry...

We invite you to get to know a radically different Zurich.

Think 500 years back and imagine a medieval city with medieval customs. An executioner lives somewhere nearby, across the street they are taking a woman suspected of witchcraft to prison, and not very far away the city council is deciding on how to execute the guy who stole four bags of salt.

Do you want to see and find out where people were tortured in Zurich and how, where the pillory was located and where executions took place? We will not only guide you through the key places associated with this dark side of the city, but also tell the true story of the real people. You will learn how stoically the beautiful Elsbeth, suspected of witchcraft, endured torture, how cruelly the maid Adelheid was executed, and how rich Agatha did not manage to escape a death sentence.

Along the way, you will also see the main sights of Zurich and find out where the executioner's house was located, why the stained glass window depicting the crucified Christ is green in Fraumünster Church, and who was executed near the Grossmünster building. You will also see the Town Hall where death sentences were announced and find out where a person could take the last sip of wine when going to the execution.