Rechberg (Park)

Students at Zurich University know the oasis between the university buildings and the Kunsthaus Zürich only too well. But for many people, Rechberg is an insider tip, for the beautiful baroque garden is not immediately visible from the street.

If you get out of the tram at the “Neumarkt” stop, you will find the park entrance just a short way up the hill. The view immediately opens up over the magnificent garden, leading to terraces further up. Designed in 1790, the general division of the area into courtyard, parterre, and terraces still remains to this day, as does also the garden walls, fountains, and extended orangery. The garden is a popular recreation area for students, tourists, and locals alike.

Besides the lovingly planted seasonal shrubs and flowers, a special feature of the park is the graffiti, “Undine”, on the façade of the university building of the Department of German. Nowadays, the work by the controversial graffiti artist, Harald Nägeli – who illegally sprayed numerous buildings in the 1970s and can be regarded as the Swiss precursor of Banksy – is under a preservation order.