"Dear old friend, now I'm back in the Upper Engadine, for the third time, and again I feel that here and nowhere else is my right home and hotbed." (Friedrich Nietzsche to Carl von Gersdorff, Sils-Maria, end of June 1883)

Nietzsche in Sils-Maria

Seven summers, for the first time in 1881, Friedrich Nietzsche spent an inspiring and creative time in Sils Maria. He lived in a modest room in the Durisch family's house during his stays. In the Engadine, with its dry, sunny climate, the weather-minded thinker found conditions from which he hoped to alleviate his violent migraine-like headache. A strict daily schedule not only regulated working hours and meal times, but also provided "5 - 7 hours of exercise every day", which he obtained by taking long walks in the area - the best opportunity to literally "philosophize" "fare. Even the first stay resulted in a key thought that gave his future work a new direction: the "thought of eternal return", the basic concept of Nietzsche's "So spoke Zarathustra".

The exhibition includes a rich collection of photos and documents, manuscripts and letters from the Sils period, the original death mask, various busts (Max Kruse, Willy de Boe), music, a complete collection of the works that Nietzsche himself published during his lifetime, including rare dedication copies. In addition, there is a documentation on the counterfeits for which Nietzsche's sister is responsible and on Nietzsche's time as a professor in Basel (Basler Stube with original furniture and documents from the time of Basel 1869-79)