Horror of Dance of Death on Spreuer Bridge in Lucerne

About 400 m from the famous Kapellbruecke Bridge or Chapel Bridge is another covered wooden bridge, the Spreuer Bridge. Include a walk through (German: Spreuerbrucke) Spreuer Bridge over the River Reuss as one of the things to do in Luzern. It is one of the oldest bridge and popular bridges of Lucerne,  is shorter than the Chapel Bridge with its water tower.

The bridge is called the Spreuer bridge because chaffs of wheat were thrown in the river here. So the bridge is also known by the name – Chaff Bridge.

Spreuerbrucke Bridge Lucerne 67 paintings

Death Bridge in Lucerne with 67 Paintings

History of Spreuer Bridge in Lucerne

Built in 1408 it formed a part of the outer fortification of the city of Lucerne in medieval times. The present bridge is a rebuilt version of 1568 because a storm in 1566 destroyed the original bridge. Major renovations were done on the bridge once more in 1889. 

Some legends mention that the bridge which was built to connect the city mills with the baker’s quarter on the other side of the river. The bakers were placed on the left bank as it was feared that the fire from their stoves, kept alive at night would destroy the whole city.

Must see feature of Spreuerbrucke Bridge is a small chapel in the middle, dedicated to the Virgin Mary. This was made in 1568. Like Chapel Bridge this too has a series of paintings in its ceilings but the theme is different.

Spreuerbrucke Bridge Luzern

Bridge in Lucerne Switzerland

Spreuerbrucke Bridge Lucerne Switzerland

Spreuerbrucke Lucerne Covered Bridge

67 Paintings in Spreuer Bridge Lucerne

Painter – Casper Meglinger
Time – 1625 – 1635
Theme – Danse Macabre (Dance of death).

The paintings in Death Bridge in Lucerne were based on the theme ‘17th Century plague ‘The Black Death’’. The theme is that it does not matter who you are—man and woman, child, priest, warrior, prince, wise man, a young bride, a devout nun, a lawmaker, a hunter, a craftsman, everyone—you were at the mercy of the Plague, at the mercy of Death itself.

 Dance of death paintings

Lucerne Bridge Paintings

Spreuer Bridge in Lucerne Switzerland is famous:

  • Being one of the most popular Lucerne’s landmark
  • This bridge is considered to be Europe’s oldest covered bridge.
  • Spreuer Bridge was originally a part of the city fortifications
  • This is one of the two covered wooden footbridges
  • It has a striking series of paintings
Spreuerbrucke Bridge in Lucerne

The Death Bridge Spreuerbrücke

These paintings begin at the northern bank side with a little verse:

All living things that fly or leap
Or crawl or swim or run or creep
Fear Death, yet can they find no spot
In all the world where Death is not.

Between 1626 and 1635 Kaspar Meglinger added 67 paintings representing the “Dance of Death”. Hence the Spreuerbrücke bridge is also known by the name Dance of Death Bridge.

There is another one modern bridge over the River Reuss with metal railing. We enjoyed walking across all the three bridges in Lucerne; two historical, one modern.

Luzern things to do

Lucerne Covered Bridge

Also read: Needle Dam over River Ruess

Trivia:  A third bridge of this type – the Hofbrücke – existed in Lucerne, but was demolished in the 19th century.
Address: Spreuerbrücke, at Kasernenplatz, 6004 Luzern, Switzerland
Google Coordinates: 47.05218655639328, 8.301576369313803

Pin this for later

Walking Tour of Lucerne Old Town Switzerland
Unveiling the Magic: My First Snowfall Experience

32 Responses to “Horror of Dance of Death on Spreuer Bridge in Lucerne

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.