Neuchâtel

Geschichte

Neuchâtel, or Neuchatel; is a town, a municipality, and the capital of the Swiss canton of Neuchâtel on Lake Neuchâtel.The city has approximately 34,000 inhabitants . The city is sometimes referred to historically by the German name, which has the same meaning. It was originally part of the Holy Roman Empire and later under Prussian control from 1707 until 1848.The official language of Neuchâtel is French.Neuchâtel is a pilot of the Council of Europe and the European Commission Intercultural Cities programme.HistoryPrehistoryThe oldest traces of humans in the municipal area are the remains of a Magdalenian hunting camp, which was dated to 13,000 BC. It was discovered in 1990 during construction of the A5 motorway at Monruz (La Coudre). The site was about 5m below the main road. Around the fire pits carved flints and bones were found. In addition to the flint and bone artifacts three tiny earrings from lignite were found. The earrings may have served as symbols of fertility and represent the oldest known art in Switzerland. This first camp was used by Cro-Magnons to hunt horse and reindeer in the area. Azilian hunters had a camp at the same site at about 11,000 BC. Since the climate had changed, their prey was now deer and wild boar.