ABSTRACT
ABSTRACT: The pattern of tiled roofs, the consistent rhythm of arcaded streets in greenish sandstone punctuated with ornately crafted fountains, and the preservation of the fingers of streetscape threading a penninsula of hillside jutting into the rapidly flowing Aare give Bern the accolade of the best designed (and probably also best preserved) city of its scale in Northern Europe. This paper examines the dynamics of that view over time as the society has changed from rule by a council of patricians to a broad democratic culture. It demonstrates how the notion of a "Burgergemeinde" composed of thirteen guilds has maintained an institutional memory and a longer view of community value which justifies investments in community infrastructure and the preservation of open space.
