Ernen counts at the moment 408 habitants and lies on a sunny slope at 1200 m altitude.   Some history about Ernen The name Ernen developed originally from the Celtic word „agranion“. Graves found on the Wasen show us, that there lived already people in this area at about 500 b . C. These finds can be seen today in the museum of Binn. In the middle age, Italian families from the Italian aristocracy immigrated and adapted often the names of the village they settled down. In Ernen it had been the Sirs of Aragno, who possessed a manor house in Ernen. From the ruins of the original castle, today's church tower was build. Until the 14th century the governor (Meier) was chosen from this family, who reigned often quite high-handed. In 1135 it was the first time, that people spoke of the „Meiertum Ernen“. At the end of the 14th century it was decided that the governor (Meier) of the „Zenden Goms“ had to change between Ernen and Münster. But the centre of justice always remained in Ernen. Georg Supersaxo from Ernen and Cardinal Schiner (about 1465-1522) from Mühlebach wrote part of Europe’s history. Supersaxo as a statesman and representative of the French crown. Schiner as a cardinal was representing the pope and sympathising with the German King Karl V. Both opponents have been friends at school, but became enemies at their later politician career. Both died in exile. At the time of the reformation, Ernen defended his religious beliefs with the „Matze“ which was a symbol of revolt. Ernen left the Union of the seven „Zenden“ and formed an alliance with central Switzerland. ( Explanation of Matze: It was handled like this: everybody who didn’t agree with the government put a nail into a big wooden post, build up in a public place as a symbol of protest and revolt).   The paintings of Wilhelm Tell had been made in 1578 to welcome a delegation from Central Switzerland. They are the oldest in Switzerland and had been ordered to be painted by a Mr. Volken, who was the owner at this time. You can see the arrow-shot of Tell, who had to shoot an apple from his son’s head, and the vow on the Rütli. Finally the fall of the tyrant Gessler. From the family Schiner more descendants had their interest in politics. The most known is Matthäus Schiner, who was a nephew of the cardinal. He bore the political task of the „Landeshauptmann“ from 1581-83, 1587-89, 1607-11. Also his grand-child Fabian Schiner followed him in his duty. Some political leaders came from the family names as the Sigristen, Jost, Kreyg und Clausen. The museum Jost Sigristen gives an interesting impression of these times. In the 19th century the influence of the Erner and Mühlebacher politicians diminished. Felix Clausen from Mühlebach received the honour to become first judge of Switzerland’s federation, being originally from the Wallis region.   Already in the early middle age (14 Jh.) Ernen had an important role as a transit village with a big reloading and market place on the trading road over the pass of Albrun to Italy. But also the through traffic in the direction of the Furka pass to central Switzerland passed trough Ernen. Ernen had his economial peak in the 16./17. century. The so called house of Wilhelm Tell with it's oldest paintings of Wilhelm Tell in Switzerland, was used as a station to store goods and an provide shelter for people and animals on their trading travels. Because Ernen was the capital city of Goms, it was also center of justice. The building of justice stands nearly in the center of the village place and was used for official affairs of the region Goms. People had to pay their taxes there (the tenth). It was also used as a prison and had a torture cell. It was built in 1750 - 1762. Today there is a museum with historical documents, which can be seen during one of our village tours. The gallows had been fixed between three columns, they can still be seen today. It is said that the gallows were reserved for the local residents. In 1764, the three last criminals had been executed on this hill. In the village itself you can find many different wood carvings on the building walls. One is the saint St. George with dragon on the so called Restaurant St. Georg on the central village place. On a little walk through the village you can discover many nice corners.   Church St. Georg in Ernen To be seen from afar, towers the parish church as a landmark of Ernen over the rolling fertile fields of Ernen. The new construction had been done 1510 –1518 by the famous architect Ulrich Ruffener from Prismell (Val Sesia). It was partly built on the foundation wall of an early roman basilica of the 11th century. In 1862 – 1865 big changes in the new gothic style had been done by Antonio Croci from Mendrisio. He changed to a 4 arching ceiling and installed two little side chapels and new windows. He made a bigger choir arch, lowered the level of the choir and added a sacristy in the south. During the restoration under the direction of the federal government (1964 – 1968), the changes of 1865 had been removed. They tried to restore the late gothic style of the church, but left the baroque interior decoration. The side chapels and the new gothic sacristy were removed and the old windows reinstalled. A wooden construction replaced the 4arched ceiling, and the church got a new roof covered with traditional shingles made of wood. The several times whitewashed paintings were carefully restored (The painter signed with H.R.).   The original of the pieta was of the 14th century and impressing by it’s simple style. It was one of the first pietas of this kind in Switzerland but unfortunately had been stolen in 1980. Today there is a copy to be seen. Due to the same crime several wooden sculptures vanished from the baptism font from 1679. A masterpiece is the high altar of 1761 with it’s figures made by Placidus Schmid who was a master artist from Disentis. The wooden and hand carved choir seats were designed by Hans Siegen from Lötschental and Jörg Matig from Mörel in 1666. Nice to see is the original wooden carving of St. Georg who fights a dragon. In old days it was fixed under the front roof of the restaurant St. Georg in the village square. Beautiful is also the ceiling of the choir, decorated with unusual paintings and special details. Interesting to see is the museum of the church.   A special treasure is the organ built in 1679 by Christopher Aebi, from which there are only three left. One is to be found in Fribourg, the other on the hill of Valeria in Sion and the third is the one in Ernen. Since 1973 Mr. Prof. Szathmàry a famous organist, gives his international courses and a concert with his students (always in August). After the new road in direction to the Furka pass had been opened in 1864, all the traffic passed on the opposite side of the valley . This meant a time of poverty for Ernen, as the new road provided profit for other villages, but the treasures of history in church and town were preserved. Only later , Ernen Mühlebach Steinhaus Ausserbinn and Binn constructed a road for the circulation to connect the four little towns. From that time tourism in Ernen started to develop. Already in 1932 Ernen prevented the destruction of the old village centre with fierce construction regulations. The restoration of the old buildings have been done regularly, and the underground transfer of all phone- electricity- and tv-cables was a pioneering feat. In 1969 a new zone planning was done in order to help the village keep it’s character, and to integrate new constructions and housing estates neatly into the surroundings. In 1979 Ernen earned Switzerland's Henry-Louis-Wakker price for it’s beautiful and well preserved village.   Surroundings of Ernen In Springtime the fields of Ernen are gorgeous to look at with all the cherry tree blossoms. Already in old times the fertile ground of this fields was well known. Over this field passed the whole circulation over the pass of Albrun to Italy and also in direction to the pass of the Furka. Niederernen In 1292 "Aregno inferiori" was first mentioned. Until it was united with Ernen it had it's own political community. Next to the road is the 1684 constructed, and the since 1809 to St. Antonius devoted chapel. It's high altar was created by Johann Sigristen and Moritz Bodmer - like the one in the chapel in the forest of Ernen. The ceiling has been beautifully painted by an artist at the end of the 18th century. The once significant village shrunk since 1800 to a permanent smaller village. A fire destroyed in 1788 nine houses and in 1880 three houses. The "Vorschutz"-Haus from 1533 is at the narrowest passage through the village. The ornaments with a coat of arms on its front are rather seldom, dated 16th century.   Mühle im "Bonacher" The old mill in the part of the village called Bonacher, lies south west, a little downhill the village. It's on an old water supply that's called Wuhr that was used for hundreds of years for the watering of the fields. It works with a horizontal water-wheel placed under the mill, which drives the grinding process with a direct axle without a translation. This way to grind wheed was far known in the Savoyard regions and in the south Alps. This mill is the last preserved one east of Brig.   "Ze Chännle" Long ago, the water was transported from four big water supplies that where the so called "Drusera, Dorfera, Kummera and Wuhr". The "Chännle" were the wooden constructions, which transported the water to the fields. The fields east from the gallows hill had been watered with a little wooden water supply of the big Wuhr (picture). They had been used and repaired for generations until it was replaced by the modern watering system. Not used any more it fell into disrepair. 1989 the community "Stifung und Vereinigung" rebuild it after old documents to visualise the old fight for the daily water. Chalk oven in the area "Schlund" Burned chalk was still the mostly used binding agent in mortar and roughcast in house construction until the 19th century. Only with the invention of cement it lost it's importance, and so did the chalk ovens. Situated close to chalk supplies, most of them disappeared in the landscapes once the material wasn't in use any more. Only a few of the old ovens have been preserved, the one on the Alp Frid on 1780 m above sea level has been restored in 1991. The fabrication of chalk took several steps. At first the chalk stone and a lot of wood where placed in several layers in the chalk oven and it took four to five days and about 1000 degrees to make the layers glow. To cool them down, again two to three days. The white chalk powder got mixed with water. The result was a thick tough flowing milk, stored in marshy earth holes. To obtain the final mortar sand was mixed with water and the tough chalk milk.   Putzhaus "üf en Egge" In the summer the water supply "Putzera" transported the water from the Mühlbach to the Alp Frid, and the water supply "Eggera" brought the water to the meadows "üf en Egge" and the "Binegge". When there was heavy snowfall in winter or rain in the summer this water supply was cut down some times. Therefore the people were supposed to store water in big wooden barrels for nearly every barn. The "Putzhaus", a traditional wooden house, provided an essential water supply too. In it's inside are on three sides hollow tree trunks, to water the thirsty beasts and livestock. The water was ladled with a wooden scoop into the tree trunks. In the four books "Erner Schriften" you will find nice pictures and many interesting information about the people of Ernen and the surroundings with a music CD of the "festival of the future". This beautifully illustrated books in a nice cover for Fr. 140.- are available at the tourist office. Only one book costs Fr. 35.- and the music CD Fr. 15.- Here you can print the village map, you can download it as a Word or PDF document.