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Base Mérimée: Monuments historiques · France

Statue monumentale dite Schweissdissi

Mulhouse, Haut-Rhin, France

The record

Designation
Historic monument, registered (inscrit)
Protection
inscrit MH
Extent of protection
La statue monumentale, y compris son piédestal composé de rochers (cad. MZ 46) : inscription par arrêté du 4 mars 2008
Protection dates
2008/03/04 : inscrit MH
Type
monument
Main period of construction
1er quart 20e siècle
Dates
1905
Architect or builder
Beer Frantz (sculpteur)
Ownership
propriété de la commune
Address
rue du Tivoli
Commune
Mulhouse
Département
Haut-Rhin
Region
Grand Est
Country
France
Coordinates
47.74294, 7.34774
Mérimée reference
PA68000054

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swisstopo — Federal Office of Topography

5 historical maps cover this location, the earliest the 1890 map "Swiss Topo Map 1890" (swisstopo — Federal Office of Topography).

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This record on the Ministère de la Culture's POP platform ↗

The Ministère de la Culture's notice

Statue commandée au sculpteur Frantz Beer en 1905 par les chemins de fer suisses pour l'inauguration du tunnel de Simplon. Rejetée par son commanditaire initial, elle fut acquise par la ville de Mulhouse qui projetait l'aménagement de sa place de l'hôtel de ville. Montée sur un piédestal au centre d'une vaste fontaine à jets, entre le temple Saint-Étienne et l'hôtel de ville, la statue fut surnommée Schweissdissi par les Mulhousiens. La sculpture allégorique du travail, qui constituait aussi un hommage aux masses laborieuses, ne fut exposée que de 1906 à 1909 suite aux pétitions pour son emplacement jugé non conforme au caractère historique du lieu. L’œuvre fut déplacée près du parc du Tivoli. L’œuvre vaut aussi par la qualité de sa plastique et son style réaliste, tout en se référant à la grande tradition italienne des sculptures monumentales urbaines de la Renaissance. Elle fut conçue à Florence, d'où le contraposto, l'équilibre académique des proportions, la quasi nudité.

English translation

The text above is the record as published by the Ministère de la Culture, in French. The English below is a machine translation made by TreeAlive, not by the Ministère de la Culture; it has not been checked by a person. Where the two differ, the original is the record. Report a translation error: privacy@treealive.com

Statue commissioned from sculptor Frantz Beer in 1905 by the Swiss railways for the inauguration of the Simplon tunnel. Rejected by its initial patron, it was acquired by the city of Mulhouse which planned the development of its town hall square. Mounted on a pedestal at the centre of a vast fountain with jets, between the Saint-Étienne temple and the town hall, the statue was nicknamed Schweissdissi by the people of Mulhouse. The allegorical sculpture of labour, which also constituted a tribute to the labouring masses, was only exhibited from 1906 to 1909 following petitions against its location deemed unsuitable to the historical character of the place. The work was moved near the Tivoli park. The work is also valued for the quality of its plastic form and its realistic style, while referring to the great Italian tradition of urban monumental sculptures of the Renaissance. It was conceived in Florence, whence the contrapposto, the academic balance of proportions, the near nudity.

Nearby in the register

Other entries of the same register within about three miles of this one, by straight line.

Base Mérimée, Ministère de la Culture, data last updated 2026-09-17, reused under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab). Record text is reproduced unchanged. Ministère de la Culture · Licence Ouverte 2.0
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