Schwabentor

The Schwabentor (Swabian Gate) is the medieval stone tower gate at the eastern edge of Freiburg's old town, one of two surviving city gates from the medieval fortification ring. Built in the 13th century to guard the road to Swabia, it was modified in the 16th and 19th centuries. The tower has five storeys of local red sandstone with a pitched tiled roof and a large clock. For centuries it housed the city's tram signaling equipment; tram line 1 still passes directly through the gate, which is one of the more striking sights in the old town. Inside the tower: a small museum of Freiburg's civic history (Zinnfigurenmuseum, tin-figure museum, EUR 3 adults, EUR 1.50 kids, small and niche but 30 minutes of interest for families). The Schwabentor-facing side of the tower has a huge 19th-century fresco showing Saint George and a merchant caravan. From the gate, the Oberlinden square and the Augustinermuseum are 5 minutes on foot.