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Seal of the Gazetteer Bureau of Tourism & Exploration
Gazetteer Bureau
Bureau of Tourism & Exploration · Est. 1954 (fictional)
Bern — Unesco 1983. Vintage travel badge drawn in flat colour, Gazetteer Bureau.

Bern

Unesco 1983

The old town has been on the UNESCO World Heritage list since 1983. The city was founded in 1191 and holds the title of federal city, which is not the same as capital. The Bureau observes the distinction. The town was laid out on a peninsula enclosed by the Aare, which decided its shape before any planner did. Seven hundred and ninety-two years separate the founding from the listing. The Bureau finds the interval unremarkable and has entered both dates without comment.

DesignationFederal City
Gazetted1191
Standing noticeUnesco 1983
Issuing officeGazetteer Bureau of Tourism & Exploration
See it on 195 products — from €3,49

Organic dish towel

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Bern badge on a organic dish towel, black, front

€13,99

Payment, delivery and returns are handled by Spreadshirt, who is the seller of record. You have 30 days to contact their support — no reason needed. Returns & exchanges · Legal notice

Product details

Dish towel made of 100% organic cotton.

  • With practical hanging loop
  • Absorbent, durable, and easy-care
  • Dimensions: 50 × 70 cm
  • Fabric quality: 170 g/m²
  • Material: 100% organic cotton
  • Brand: Beechfield
  • In stock. Printed once your order is placed.
  • Delivery 7 Oct – 9 Oct 2026 (Standard)
  • Whatever the reason — you have 30 days to contact support.

Also in the register

Other issued destinations

Lucerne badge issued by the Gazetteer Bureau
Lucerne
Bridge Quarter
 Montreux badge issued by the Gazetteer Bureau
Montreux
Swiss Riviera
 Kraken Island badge issued by the Gazetteer Bureau
Kraken Island
National Park · Invented
 Lauterbrunnen badge issued by the Gazetteer Bureau
Lauterbrunnen
Bernese Oberland

The source image

The badge is drawn, not photographed. Each drawing works from a reference image in the public domain or under a free licence — a photochrom print, a photograph, an etching. Here is the one used for this destination, and why it was chosen.

The drawing follows a photograph of the Zytglogge seen from the Kramgasse. The clock tower is the one building in Berne recognisable at a distance, which is what recommends it for a badge, where the subject must read at thumbnail size. The band carries 1191, the founding by Berthold V of Zähringen, and 1983, the year the old town entered the World Heritage list. Berne is a federal city and not a capital: the Constitution names no capital at all, and the Bureau observes the distinction rather than correcting it. The Zytglogge began as a city gate; the walls having moved outward twice, it found itself in the middle, and that is how a watchtower becomes a clock.

Hasler AG Zytglogge Gesamtansicht

Held by
Wikimedia Commons
Licence
Public domain

View the original consulted 2026-08-13

Sources

Every figure engraved on this badge is checked against a public source before it is used. Consultation dates are given.

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