A Walser hamlet with a wooden church - Obermutten
Overview
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Intro
Originally built by the Walser people, the hamlet of Obermutten enjoys an enchanting location on a sunny saddle overlooking the Albulatal valley. The well-preserved settlement of timber buildings, which includes a rare example of a wooden church, perfectly illustrates the preference of its founders for isolated, elevated locations.
Obermutten's old timber farmhouses occupy a lofty site on open Alpine meadowland, some 1,863 metres above sea level. They form the highest part of a Walser settlement arranged at three different levels. The German-speaking settlers migrated to the region in the early fourteenth century. By the late-eighteenth century, Obermutten had evolved into a hamlet featuring the "knitted" log houses typical of the Alpine region. A somewhat unusual feature for Walser settlements is the compactness of the hamlet and the way its farms are arranged around a central open space. Dating from 1718, the small wooden church with its painted organ is the only one of its kind in Canton Graubünden.
A major fire in 1946 virtually split the hamlet into two parts. The buildings in the eastern, fire-damaged section were reconstructed in the local vernacular style, but for reasons of fire safety now stand further apart. The unscathed western section, on the other hand, features the historic log buildings still in their compact, pre-1946 layout. Since the 1970s, farming has ceased and Obermutten has evolved into a holiday destination. By 2019, it had just four year-round residents.
Trip tip
The ascent via the old, winding gravel track is only open to hikers and mountain bikers. The oldest building in the settlement houses the village museum. Food and lodging are available at Gasthaus Post. The Walserweg trail, which takes several days to complete, is recommended for hiking aficionados interested in Walser culture.
ISOS
ISOS is the Federal Inventory of Swiss Heritage Sites of national importance. The inventory is maintained by the Federal Office of Culture (FOC) and lists the most significant settlements in Switzerland. Today, some 1,200 places are included in the inventory, from hamlets right through to cities. The inventory provides information on the development and identity of the settlements listed in it, thereby contributing to the preservation of architectural diversity in Switzerland and promoting both sustainable planning and a high-quality Baukultur.
