The name of the city of Bern comes from the German word for bear. Bears, which are the symbols of this Swiss city, can be seen here on every corner. Cafes and shops are named in their honour, monuments are erected, teddy bears are sold in any souvenir shop. But the Bernese didn't stop there and decided to create a menagerie outside the Old Town, the so-called Bear Pit, where live bears would be kept all the time. The daily life of the bears in a deep stone pit or on a solid netted area on the riverbank can be viewed from the Nideggbrücke Bridge or from the riverside.
The first mention of live bears being kept in Bern dates back to 1441. Old documents in Bern record that the city authorities allocated funds to buy acorns for the leering pets. In those days, the bears lived in cages set up in the Bear Square - Berenplatz. The bears were then transported from place to place until their current habitat was chosen. This took place in 1857. In 1925, a smaller pit was dug next to the existing pit for bear cubs.
In 1975, a campaign was launched in the local press against the terrible conditions of the bears in the Bear Pit. City officials had to go to great lengths to repair and improve the concrete pit. Many activists believed that this was not enough for the normal life of the slanted bears. Therefore, in 2009, Bear Park was opened on the steep slopes between the Are River and the concrete Bear Pit. The pit and this open-air space are connected by an underground tunnel, allowing the bears to return to their lodge at any time, play and eat lunch in the pit, and then head to the riverbank to lie on the grass or swim in the fenced pool.
The smaller pit, where the cubs used to be kept, is no longer for the animals. A souvenir shop now operates on the premises, and the pit itself has wooden figurines of the cubs.
