This photochrome print of the Spalenthor in Basle (Bâle) is part of “Views of Switzerland” from the catalog of the Detroit Publishing Company (1905). Baedeker’s Switzerland and the adjacent portions of Italy, Savoy, and Tyrol (1913) characterized this tower, which was built around 1400, as “the handsomest of the remaining gates of Bâle.” Located in the St. Paul suburb near the border between Switzerland and France, this tower, with its tiled roof, was one of the two main gates of Basle. It originally served as an outer city defense and medieval fortification, but was also a significant transport point of goods from France. In particular, it controlled traffic from Alsace, which was a major source of Switzerland’s food at the time.