A drinking horn full of FCZ-history(n)

It happened last summer. Saro Pepe was just landed with his family after a several weeks tour to Costa Rica in Zurich-Kloten, yawning the Smartphone and was up seconds later, suddenly bright. In the first Mail, he read, informed him of a certain Irene Bruhin, she was in possession of a pretty special FCZ Memorabilie if he was interested as a Director of the club Museum. He called, and days later he was sitting in the train to Freiburg, where the Bruhins live. There arrived, he was presented with a drinking horn, the silver plaque revealed that it had paid to the Club as a reminder "to our first mud". And that this game on 30. August 1896 in Zurich-Hardau against FC Phönix St. Gallen and 3:3 had ended.

furthermore, learned Pepe, Irene's father, Toni, had found the Revelation as an employee of the company Kibag in 1981, during the demolition of the old Letzigrund-East stand, where at that time also offices and warehouses were open, and that he want to hand you over to the club had, this showed no interest. So the Bruhins – which have always been the football and with football not much can start – made the drinking-horn as a decoration in the room. Yes, and as father died Bruhin, the daughter of the idea, to contact again the FC Zürich – where they joined, this time on very open ears.

fatal grandstand fire

Even if the happy coincidence of months ago, you feel Saro Pepe the excitement still, what he doesn't like to conceal the fact: "The Horn is now the oldest of the exhibited object of the collection, which is why we have the Trophy case needs to be rebuilt . . . and, together with the European Cup, it also determines the most valuable, especially from a documentary point of view."

In contrast to FC Basel, or St. Gallen, according to Pepe, both on a virtually full club archives, the historical documents of FC Zurich in 1929, when the total fire of the large wooden grandstand at the Letzigrund in which the archive was destroyed. The only existing document from these early years is a Protocol of a meeting of the members, in the stocks of value objects are listed, among other things, a drinking-horn, dated August, 1896, whereby the authenticity of the unique Exhibit is confirmed.

The plaque of the Ur-Cup, the FCZ donated yourself. Photo: Patrick Gutenberg

the club of the 80s, Bruhins not refused a gift, surprise him by the way, noticed Pepe in the interview: "The dusty past, not interested at the time, no one was at the other Clubs is different", you have focused primarily on the New and the future. "In fact, the sport began to historical consciousness in the FCZ only in the Era Canepa", so, a trained archivist, has served since the opening of the FCZ-Museum in 2011 as its head. And in its function, this awareness promotes.

this is Also why the ancient drinking horn for Saro Pepe is more than just a great Cup it is served to him in the last few months, as he researched in archives, sports magazines and Newspapers to further facts about the club's history, often as a kind of "signpost". Specifically with regard to open questions regarding the emergence of. It is known that FC Zurich was founded in 1896 by former players from the clubs Excelsior, and Turicum. But why the players were there anyway? What age were you? And the constituent act was truly on 1. August instead?

Hans Gamper drank out of it

Many of such blind spots has Pepe, in the meantime, can eliminate, usually by research, once also a contemporary of coincidence with half: and When he saw in the archive of the Agency of sport information SI an Envelope with old team photos of the Grasshoppers, it went through the recordings rather apathetic . . . and suddenly a direct hit in the Hand: the back of The picture had been incorrectly sorted, it's not GC, but the guys of the FC Excelsior in the fine thread and the name showed; the rarity came from 1895.

From the young spunden this team – in the middle of Hans Gamper (middle row Fifth from the left) – was born in 1896 in the FCZ. Photo: FCZ-Museum

The photo is terrific, because many of those youngsters shows – most of them were still a school student, called in the following year to FC Zurich. As Pepe found out, some of them have been in September, 1895, for "gross misconduct" FC Excelsior excluded, others went later in frustration, because they were little used.

in 1926, the many years of FCZ-President Hans Enderli wrote in his review of 30 years of FCZ for the German football magazine "Kicker", "that a small group was the most eager and joyful, to all but the enterprising footballer" in the summer, had laid in 1896 in the Restaurant at The time of Charles the Great by the formation of the Football Club Turicum "the Foundation-stone for the today's football-Club Zürich". But if this FC Zurich on 30. August of the same summer his first Match of the carried – see horn inscription – had to have decided the Turicumer the name change shortly after the founding. A proof that this is true on 1. August was not done, exists. Pepe is suspected, the significance of the date had only been written at a later time, "because it looks good".

"The man who founded FC Barcelona, has drunk from this Horn. The power of this unique, once again, great."Saro Pepe, head of the FCZ-Museum

without a Doubt there is evidence that Hans Gamper, at the time of the photos is still Captain of the FC Excelsior, from the start of the FC Zurich followed, and the first Captain was. "This means that the man who founded FC Barcelona, has drunk from this Horn. The power of this unique assumes, once again, great", Pepe, laughing.

Less great frame, in which the historic game took place was, however. A charity festival had been announced by advertisement the occasion with "Roman sacrifice, great athletic opportunities, associated with great Night". The Event, which was held on the Grounds of the racing track Hardau at albisriederplatz – about where today the controversial "Y"object of art, wrote the "Zürcher Post" on 1. September 1896: "the Feast in the Hardau an evil star presided." And: "It brought him to a creative impulse to create something New and Original." And finally: "This lack of both, as well as the all-too-high prices and the frosty weather, the bad visit mainly." In the NZZ, then dealt with the Sportive: "Had played in Zurich, initially with some Reserve, whether out of politeness or that of the fresh Morning is not aroused the proper zeal, they improved but soon their position."

A mystery is still unsolved

For Saro Pepe almost sensational, however, were two other findings. The a relates to the original club crest, from its appearance, you had no idea – until he discovered now, in a follow-up to the Match, that it will be characterized as "large, in the Zürcher colors prange of football". And in an Ad for the first FCZ game, he read: "colors: St. Gallen: Blue-Yellow. Zurich: White-Blue". Previously had been accepted as a founding colors of Red and White, from the White-Blue of GC differentiate, but it seems that this happened only later.

All right – up to the question of which animal the of the Bruhins the FCZ paid, around 50 centimeters long Horn comes. This has not found out the cunning tracker.

revelation aperitif drinking-horn, morning,17 o'clock, FCZ-Museum, Werdstrasse 21.

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Created: 08.02.2019, 14:21 PM