Pfannenstiel (Zürich) - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Pfannenstiel is a wooded mountain respectively a region

Region

Region is most commonly found as a term used in terrestrial and astrophysics sciences also an area, notably among the different sub-disciplines of geography, studied by regional geographers. Regions consist of subregions that contain clusters of like areas that are distinctive by their uniformity...

overlooking the Lake Zürich

Lake Zurich

Lake Zurich is a lake in Switzerland, extending southeast of the city of Zurich. It is also known as Lake Zürich and Lake of Zürich. It lies approximately at co-ordinates ....

and Zürcher Oberland

Zürcher Oberland

The Zürcher Oberland in Switzerland, is the hilly south-eastern part of the Canton of Zurich, bordering on the Toggenburg, including the districts of Uster, Hinwil, Pfäffikon as well as the Töss Valley as far as the district of Winterthur. The territory gradually fell under the control of the city...

in the canton of Zürich

Canton of Zürich

The Canton of Zurich has a population of . The canton is located in the northeast of Switzerland and the city of Zurich is its capital. The official language is German, but people speak the local Swiss German dialect called Züritüütsch...

in Switzerland

Switzerland

Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....

Geography

Pfannenstiel (Swiss German

Swiss German

Swiss German is any of the Alemannic dialects spoken in Switzerland and in some Alpine communities in Northern Italy. Occasionally, the Alemannic dialects spoken in other countries are grouped together with Swiss German as well, especially the dialects of Liechtenstein and Austrian Vorarlberg...

: Pfannenstil meaning pan handle

Frying pan

A frying pan, frypan, or skillet is a flat-bottomed pan used for frying, searing, and browning foods. It is typically in diameter with relatively low sides that flare outwards, a long handle, and no lid. Larger pans may have a small grab handle opposite the main handle...

) is commonly used for the mountain and the region

Region

of a longish mountain area. It is located in the district of Meilen, some 15 km (9.3 mi) in the southeast of the city of Zürich

Zürich

Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...

, bordered by Greifensee

Greifensee

Greifensee is a small lake in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland.- Geography :Lake Greifen is located to the northeast of the city of Zurich, separated by the Pfannenstiel from Lake Zürich...

and Zürcher Oberland

Zürcher Oberland

in the northeast, Lake Zürich

Lake Zurich

Lake Zurich is a lake in Switzerland, extending southeast of the city of Zurich. It is also known as Lake Zürich and Lake of Zürich. It lies approximately at co-ordinates ....

in the southwest and the area around the municipality of Hombrechtikon

Hombrechtikon

Hombrechtikon is a municipality in the district of Meilen in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland.-History:Hombrechtikon is first mentioned in 1200 as Humbrechtigkon. In 1217 it was mentioned as Hunbrechticon.-Geography:...

in the east. In the northwest, Pfannenstiel is bordered by the village of Forch

Forch

Forch is a village and a mountain pass located in the municipalities of Küsnacht and Maur in the canton of Zürich, Switzerland.- Geography :Forch is located approximately in the southeast of Zürich, nearby Zumikon and Maur...

and a former mountain pass (668 metres (2,192 ft)) leading from Glatt valley

Glatt Valley

The Glatt Valley is a region and a river valley in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland.- Geography :The River Glatt is a tributary of the River Rhine in the Zürcher Unterland area of the Canton of Zurich...

to the Lake Zürich shore. Its highest point (Okenshöhe) is about 450 metres above the Lake Zürich. From southeast to northwest, Pfannenstiel is part of a chain of peaks respectively mountains: Guldenen (778 metres (2,552 ft)), Wassberg (715 metres (2,346 ft)), Öschbrig (696 metres (2,283 ft)), Adlisberg

Adlisberg

Adlisberg is a wooded mountain overlooking the Zürichsee , neighboored in the northwest by the Zürichberg.- Geography :Adlisberg mountain is located to the east of the city of Zürich, between the Glatt river valley and Lake Zürich. Its highest point is about above the Lake Zürich...

(701 metres (2,300 ft)), Zürichberg

Zürichberg

The Zürichberg is a wooded hill rising to 679 metres , overlooking Lake Zurich and located immediately to the east of the City of Zurich in Switzerland, between the valleys of the Limmat and the Glatt rivers...

(676 metres (2,218 ft)), Käferberg

Käferberg

Käferberg and Waidberg are the summits of a wooded mountain respectively chain of hills overlooking the inner city of Zurich, Lake Zurich, Albis chain and Uetliberg, as well as the Limmat Valley and the Zürcher Unterland in Switzerland....

-Waidberg (601 metres (1,972 ft)) and Hönggerberg (541 metres (1,775 ft)).

The area alongside Lake Zürich had been formed as the left moraine

Moraine

A moraine is any glacially formed accumulation of unconsolidated glacial debris which can occur in currently glaciated and formerly glaciated regions, such as those areas acted upon by a past glacial maximum. This debris may have been plucked off a valley floor as a glacier advanced or it may have...

of the Ice Age

Ice age

An ice age or, more precisely, glacial age, is a generic geological period of long-term reduction in the temperature of the Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental ice sheets, polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers...

glacier, the bed of which is now the Lake Zürich.

History and origin of the name

On the origin of the name Pfannenstiel remembers the plate (Inn

INN

InterNetNews is a Usenet news server package, originally released by Rich Salz in 1991, and presented at the Summer 1992 USENIX conference in San Antonio, Texas...

sign) of the Vorderer Pfannenstiel restaurant: A pan

Frying pan

containing pitch

Pitch (resin)

Pitch is the name for any of a number of viscoelastic, solid polymers. Pitch can be made from petroleum products or plants. Petroleum-derived pitch is also called bitumen. Pitch produced from plants is also known as resin. Products made from plant resin are also known as rosin.Pitch was...

used to send smoke signals. In the 17th century or much earlier, the government of the city of Zürich

Zürich

Zurich is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is located in central Switzerland at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich...

established a system of :de:Hochwachten to warn, in cases of emergency as threat of war, the neighboring Hochwachten on the Albis

Albis

The Albis is a chain of hills in the Canton of Zurich, Switzerland, stretching for some 19 km from Sihlbrugg in the south to Waldegg near Zurich in the north. The chain forms, among others, the border between the Affoltern and Horgen districts. The best known point is Uetliberg at 870 m,...

, near Forch

Forch

, on Zürichberg

Zürichberg

, Käferberg

Käferberg

, Bachtel, Uetliberg

Uetliberg

The Üetliberg is a mountain in the Swiss plateau, part of the Albis chain, rising to 873 m . The Uetliberg offers a panoramic view of the entire city of Zurich and the Lake of Zurich. There is also a hotel in the name of "Uto Kulm" on this small mountain...

, and so on, by fire and smoke. The Pfannenstiel Hochwacht was located on the summit

Summit (topography)

In topography, a summit is a point on a surface that is higher in elevation than all points immediately adjacent to it. Mathematically, a summit is a local maximum in elevation...

called Okenshöhe as from there numerous other Hochwachten were in direct sight. For the same reason, in 19th century Okenhöhe was uses for a triangulation point as other triangulation points can be measured. These measurements form the backbone of the national geographical survey. Nevertheless, the pan with the fire as sign of "bad luck" it's not the real origin of the term Pfannenstiel: It was first mentioned in documents of the year 1333, and it is assumed that the term points to a meadow and farmland nearby forming a panhandle.

Literary honor

Pfannenstiel got further literary honor: The Swiss poet Albin Zollinger

Albin Zollinger

Albin Zollinger was a Swiss writer.- Life :Albin Zollinger was the son of a precision mechanic and grew up in Rüti, Zürich and Argentina, where his parents unsuccessfully tried to establish a secure existence for the family...

(1895-1941) immortalized Pfannstiel in his novel „Pfannenstiel: Die Geschichte eines Bildhauers“ („The Story of a Sculptor“). In the novel, a sculptor returns to Switzerland, and disappointed by the political reality, he retires on Pfannenstiel, builds a house and finds an intact village community. Three weeks before his death at the age of 46, Zollinger met the young Max Frisch

Max Frisch

Max Rudolf Frisch was a Swiss playwright and novelist, regarded as highly representative of German-language literature after World War II. In his creative works Frisch paid particular attention to issues relating to problems of human identity, individuality, responsibility, morality and political...

on the Pfannenstiel.

Pfannenstiel tower

In 1893, on the Bachtel mountain was built an observation tower

Observation tower

An observation tower is a structure used to view events from a long distance and to create a full 360 degree range of vision. They are usually at least tall and made from stone, iron, and wood. Many modern towers are also used as TV towers, restaurants, or churches...

of steel which was declared in 1979 by the government of the canton of Zürich as an object of historic preservation

Historic preservation

Historic preservation is an endeavor that seeks to preserve, conserve and protect buildings, objects, landscapes or other artifacts of historical significance...

. Six years later, the tower was stored by the Swiss Post

Swiss Post

Swiss Post is the postal service of Switzerland. A public company owned by the Swiss Confederation, it is the country's second largest employer...

(former PTT) on technical reasons, and in 1992, the tower was rebuilt on Pfannenstiel. The tower is riveted and is made of steel and cast iron

Cast iron

Cast iron is derived from pig iron, and while it usually refers to gray iron, it also identifies a large group of ferrous alloys which solidify with a eutectic. The color of a fractured surface can be used to identify an alloy. White cast iron is named after its white surface when fractured, due...

. The reconstruction was done by specialists from Eastern Europe where this technology still was in use. The new location for the reconstruction was initially controversial: The cantonal authorities preferred the highest elevation on the mountain in the middle of forested area. The exucutive of the municipality of Meilen

Meilen

Meilen is a municipality in the district of Meilen in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland.- History :Archaeological findings in Meilen date back more than 4,000 years. In January 1854 the level of lake Zürich was particularly low and the locals took the chance to gain some land...

was not satisfied as it is a protected area. The final location is somewhat below located in the municipality of Egg

Egg, Switzerland

Egg is a municipality in the district of Uster in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland.-Geography:Egg has an area of . Of this area, 58.1% is used for agricultural purposes, while 23.2% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 18.1% is settled and the remainder is non-productive...

Further points of interest

Pfannenstiel is a picturesque area, and the upper side of the mountain houses four restaurant

Restaurant

A restaurant is an establishment which prepares and serves food and drink to customers in return for money. Meals are generally served and eaten on premises, but many restaurants also offer take-out and food delivery services...

s overlooking Lake Zürich

Lake Zurich

Lake Zurich is a lake in Switzerland, extending southeast of the city of Zurich. It is also known as Lake Zürich and Lake of Zürich. It lies approximately at co-ordinates ....

, Etzel

Etzel (mountain)

The Etzel is a mountain in the Alps on the south side of Lake Zurich in the canton of Schwyz in Switzerland....

, Zimmerberg

Zimmerberg

Zimmerberg is a mountain and a region located in the district of Horgen in the canton of Zurich, Switzerland. Its name bases on the Old High German word zimbar in the meaning of lumber.- Geography :...

, Albis, Uetliberg to the south and to the west, and Greifensee

Greifensee

Greifensee is a small lake in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland.- Geography :Lake Greifen is located to the northeast of the city of Zurich, separated by the Pfannenstiel from Lake Zürich...

, Glattal

Glatt Valley

, Bachtel and Zürcher Oberland

Zürcher Oberland

to the north and east. The upper part of the mountain is mostly woodland and a popular recreational area with picnic sites, in addition there are hiking

Hiking

Hiking is an outdoor activity which consists of walking in natural environments, often in mountainous or other scenic terrain. People often hike on hiking trails. It is such a popular activity that there are numerous hiking organizations worldwide. The health benefits of different types of hiking...

routes. In winter season a cross-country skiing

Cross-country skiing

Cross-country skiing is a winter sport in which participants propel themselves across snow-covered terrain using skis and poles...

trail is a popular point of interest.

As mentioned, Okenshöhe triangulation point is the highest elevation on Pfannenstiel allowing beautiful views. It is named after the natural scientist Oken who, in the beginning of the 19th century, did a lot of tours on mountains rarely visited. In 1838 he bought the area now called Okenshöhe. His heirs donated the land to citizens of the municipality of Meilen. They formed the Mittwochsgesellschaft (Wednesday society) which did not allow to overbuilt this area.

Region Pfannenstiel

The term "Region Pfannenstiel" usually refers to the mountain, the area and plateau

Plateau

In geology and earth science, a plateau , also called a high plain or tableland, is an area of highland, usually consisting of relatively flat terrain. A highly eroded plateau is called a dissected plateau...

between Zollikon

Zollikon

Zollikon is a municipality in the district of Meilen in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland.-Geography:Zollikon has an area of . Of this area, 21.2% is used for agricultural purposes, while 37.7% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 40.8% is settled and the remainder is non-productive...

-Zollikerberg and Hombrechtikon

Hombrechtikon

-Feldbach

Feldbach, Switzerland

Feldbach is a village near Rapperswil, Switzerland. It is located on the north bank of the lake of Zurich and is part of the political municipality of Hombrechtikon. In the local dialect it is called Fäldbach....

bordered by the upper Glatt valley

Glatt Valley

–Zürcher Oberland

Zürcher Oberland

and Lake Zürich. This region

Region

includes the municipalities of Egg

Egg, Switzerland

, Erlenbach

Erlenbach, Switzerland

Erlenbach is a municipality in the district of Meilen in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland.-History:Erlenbach is first mentioned in 981 as Liber Heremi though this identification is questionable. Between 1173-90 it was mentioned as Erlibach....

, Herrliberg

Herrliberg

Herrliberg is a municipality in the district of Meilen in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland.- History :There are findings dating back to the Bronze age....

, Hombrechtikon

Hombrechtikon

, Küsnacht

Küsnacht

Küsnacht is a municipality in the district of Meilen in the canton of Zurich in Switzerland.-History:Küsnacht is first mentioned in 1188 as de Cussenacho....

, Meilen

Meilen

, Männedorf

Männedorf

Männedorf is a municipality in the district of Meilen in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland.-History:Like in all other village along the lake of Zürich, archeological findings indicate settlements in the stone ages. The original settlement in the 7th or 8th century was called village of Manno...

, Oetwil am See

Oetwil am See

Oetwil am See is a municipality in the district of Meilen in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland. It is located in the Pfannenstiel region.-Geography:...

, Stäfa

Stäfa

Stäfa is a municipality in the district of Meilen in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland.-Geography:Stäfa has an area of . Of this area, 46.1% is used for agricultural purposes, while 18.8% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 34% is settled and the remainder is non-productive...

, Uetikon am See

Uetikon am See

Uetikon am See is a municipality in the district of Meilen in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland.-History:Uetikon am See is first mentioned in 1150 as Uotinchova. Until 1924 it was known as Uetikon.-Geography:...

, Zollikon

Zollikon

and Zumikon

Zumikon

Zumikon is a municipality in the district of Meilen in the canton of Zürich in Switzerland. It is located in the Pfannenstiel region.-History:...

Transportation

Forchbahn

The Forchbahn is a gauge narrow-gauge light railway in the canton of Zürich, linking central Zürich to the eastern suburbs near Esslingen via Forch. The name is often abbreviated to just FB, which also appears on the trains...

tram way (S18) from Zürich Stadelhofen railway station to (preferred) Forch

Forch

or Esslingen

Esslingen, Switzerland

Esslingen is a village in the municipality of Egg, Switzerland, in the canton of Zürich. It is located in the Pfannenstiel region, approximately 15 km southeast of Zürich. In the local dialect it is called Esslinge.The population is 1565...

train station, S-Bahn Zürich on the lines S6

S6 (ZVV)

The S6 is a regional railway line of the S-Bahn Zürich on the Zürcher Verkehrsverbund , Zürich transportation network, and is one of the network's lines connecting the cantons of Zürich and Aargau.- Route :...

and S16

S16 (ZVV)

The S16 is a regional railway line of the S-Bahn Zürich on the Zürcher Verkehrsverbund , Zürich transportation network, and is one of the network's lines connecting the cantons of Zürich and Schaffhausen.- Route :...

(Küsnacht

Küsnacht

Küsnacht is a municipality in the district of Meilen in the canton of Zurich in Switzerland.-History:Küsnacht is first mentioned in 1188 as de Cussenacho....

: Küsnachtertobel to Forch), as well as S6

S6 (ZVV)

and S7

S7 (ZVV)

The S7 is a regional railway line of the Zürich S-Bahn on the ZVV and is one of the network's trunk lines.- Route :...

to Meilen (Bus line 922, stop Vorderer Pannenstiel) or Stäfa

Stäfa

or Hombrechtikon

Hombrechtikon

-Feldbach and local bus lines 955 and 970, run up to different parts of the Pfannenstiel area. In the summer there are regular boats to Zürich as well as along the lake to Rapperswil

Rapperswil

Rapperswil-Jona is a municipality in the Wahlkreis of See-Gaster in the canton of St. Gallen in Switzerland.Besides Rapperswil and Jona, which were separate municipalities until 2006, the municipality includes Bollingen, Busskirch, Curtiberg, Kempraten-Lenggis, Wagen, and Wurmsbach.-Today:On...

, run by the Zürichsee-Schifffahrtsgesellschaft

Zürichsee-Schifffahrtsgesellschaft

The Lake Zurich Shipping Company or Zürichsee-Schifffahrtsgesellschaft is a public Swiss company operating passenger ships and boats on Lake Zürich....

(ZSG). A small motorship of the ZSG is named after the mountain.

Literature

Albin Zollinger
Albin Zollinger
Albin Zollinger was a Swiss writer.- Life :Albin Zollinger was the son of a precision mechanic and grew up in Rüti, Zürich and Argentina, where his parents unsuccessfully tried to establish a secure existence for the family...

: Pfannenstiel. Die Geschichte eines Bildhauers, novel, 1940 (literally: „Pfannenstiel. The Story of a Sculptor“). Suhrkamp-Taschenbuch, Frankfurt am Main 1990. ISBN 3518402803

External links

Hiking on Pfannenstiel

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