Wasen, one of the larger villages in the Emmental, Switzerland, to which the Anabaptist movement found early entry. In the 16th century there was a considerable congregation there, which held its meetings in a lonely spot in the forest known as the Tauferloch (Anabaptist Hollow), back in the valley of the Kurzenri, between cliffs. Their leader, Hans Meister, a close friend of Hans Haslibacher, for many years evaded his captors in a hiding place in his own house. He was buried in his house; for when the house was rebuilt in the 19th century his skeleton was found there. A mason, Peter Ritter, who made fun of the skull, was immediately stricken with violent pains and died soon after. (The Zionspilger of 1890, No. 18, p. 3, reprints an article on Wasen from the Berner Tagblatt of 1 September 1890).

Adapted by permission of Herald Press, Scottdale, Pennsylvania, and Waterloo, Ontario, from Mennonite Encyclopedia, Vol. 4, p. 892. All rights reserved. For information on ordering the encyclopedia visit the Herald Press website.

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