The Slower Road

Today: an unusual vehicle from Mr. Sallmann’s collection of Swiss carriages and sleighs.

This odd-looking contraption is known as a Gemmiwagen (named after the Gemmi Pass in the Bernese Alps).

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Melanie reports that (as you can see in this photo of a photo of one in use), it could serve as a form of courting vehicle. In this case, the gentleman would ground-drive the horse while being able to chat with his lady friend. And she wouldn’t have to be bothered to climb the steep Swiss mountain roads.

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This photo shows the contraption on the seat back that makes it adjustable, to accommodate the incline of the road:

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And, finally, here’s an old photo of a young lady about to set out for a ride in a Gemmiwagen:

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To see photos of some of the oldest vehicles in Mr. Sallman’s collection, stay tuned for the May issue of The Carriage Journal.

CAA member Melanie Brooker (California) was in Europe not too long ago, and she made a point of scheduling a visit with Robert Sallmann (a CAA life member who lives in Switzerland) to tour his impressive carriage collection.

She sent many more photos for the “In the Carriage House” department in The Carriage Journal (coming up in the May issue) than we can possibly use, so I thought I would share some of the extras here.

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this Cabrio-Landau was used in Interlaken, Switzerland

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in 1973, Robert Sallmann and his family spent a week driving this vehicle from their home in Amriswil to St. Mortiz, a journey of about 120 miles

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Melanie wrote, “This Feder-Chaise was my favorite vehicle in Mr. Sallmann’s collection. Feder translates to Spring in English, so this would be a Spring Chaise. It has lovely C-springs front and rear; it also has a built-in weather apron and a glass windshield.”

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Here are a few other carriages and some of the many sleighs in Mr. Sallmann’s collection:

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