Villa at Museumstrasse 12

About the building

On the Museumstrasse in the Kirchenfeld stands a two-storey villa under a mansard roof that stands out above all for its ornament. The dormers are made of sheet metal, their round-arched gables decorated with rich rocaille, the shell-like ornament of the Rococo. Tuscan pilasters on tall pedestals frame the three-bay facades; between them the corners of the house are rounded and banded.

The house was built in 1898. The building inventory names the Bern building contractor B. Vicari as client, and probably also as designer. The villa belongs to the Kirchenfeld group, the first planned district of Bern, whose land the Burgergemeinde had sold to the English Berne Land Company in 1881.

Towards the Museumstrasse the villa shows a central projection with banded render and a curved gable, whose ornament is now missing. In front of this projection, on the ground floor, stands a semicircular porch with Ionic columns and a balustrade. The side bays have upright rectangular windows below and segment-headed ones above, set over curved sills. The south side was also given a two-storey iron veranda. The cellar base is slightly recessed and topped by a rounded moulding.

The entrance lies in the middle of the west side beneath a basket-arched lintel. Its keystone is a faun mask with garlands of twigs sprouting from its ears. The building inventory stresses the abundance and quality of this carving. In 2005 the house was renovated and placed under protection; the original diagonally panelled fence survives. Look for the faun mask at the entrance.

Researched and summarised by Bärn Kit. Sources: Bauinventar der Stadt Bern: Museumstrasse 12 · Bauinventar der Stadt Bern: Baugruppe Kirchenfeld · Wikipedia (de): Liste der Kulturgüter in Bern/Kirchenfeld-Schosshalde (Süd) · Wikidata: Q128601684