Hans Brühlmann Rundweg, Station 5

Büel with its oldest houses

The oldest traces of settlement directly near the village of Vättis can be found in the distinctive Büel hills. Due to the Tamina stream, the area of Vättis was at high risk of flooding for a long time, and avalanches repeatedly came up to the edge of the village. The Büel, on the other hand, was the only safe place in Vättis for thousands of years, and yet conveniently close to the water, and the starting point for all directions. The incision at the middle Büel is still recognizable as an artificial border to the rear Büel: Apparently, a Stone Age culture had already chosen the Vorderbüel as a settlement site and developed it into a 360° defensive structure. The oldest known year of a house in Vättis am Büel (Büel 1) is also suitable. Trenches from the French period (1799) have once again reminded us of the Büel as a defensive mound.In modern times, the Büel became known as a lookout hill and, above all, as a fairground. The St. James' Festival of the Vättis Music Society is inconceivable without the Büel.