Brig's symbol
The castle of Stockalper is a vast and generous residence and the most important baroque palace of Switzerland. The ancestors of the ¿big Stockalper¿ Kaspar Jodok Stockalper (1609-1691) came from Milano. In 1360 Anton Olteri came to Brig and purchased an alp on the Simplon, the Stockalp. From that time on the family was called Stockalper. The former Stockalper house was built in 1533, enlarged in 1640 and again expanded between 1640 and 1660 by Kaspar Jodok Stockalper. The big palace was erected between 1658 and 1678 by the ¿big Stockalper¿, who became immensly rich, especially through the salt trade.
The palace consists of a rectangular building of four floors flanked by a court of two arcade wings consisting of two and three floors. These wings served as a storehouse for the merchandise of the owner. Three towers topped with golden onion domes dominate the court. They go by the names of the Three Wise Men; the highest is called Kaspar. The castle museum exhibits documents related to the life of Kaspar Jodok Stockalper. One finds in addition a collection of the folklore and cultural history of the Upper Valais, the Stockalper archives and library.
