garden and pergola were replaced by a three axe cast iron open hall way that was encased with artificial marble. The stairway was replaced and finished with elaborate iron rolling bars, the room arrangement remained unaltered. Christoph Merian died in 1858 before the refurbishment works were completed. Despite this the Villa was still used by his widow Margaretha Merian-Burckhardt as her summer residence. She died on 3 May 1886. With her death the will of her husband became legally binding and the public utility institution Christoph Merian Stiftung came into effect and inherited the manor Brüglingen and the five affiliated farmyards (Singerhof, St. Jakob, Ziegelhütte, Unter- und Vorder-Brüglingen) Other buildings Standing in Unteren Brüglingen, the lower district, is a mill from the 15th century. On the opposite side of the canal there is a tenantry house from the 16th century and a gardeners house dated 1824. In 1837 the architect Melchior Berri developed another farm house north of the manor house with an outbuilding with stables, in Vorder-Brüglingen, the "front" district of Brügglingen on the elevated plain. This raised plateau offers an ideal terrain for an English garden. To the south of the manor house gardens is Merian Park, which extends south to the Neue Welt district in Münchenstein. Modern history The Gothic Revival style watermill building has housed a museum since 1966. It is located on the bank of the "St. Alban-Teich" canal directly below the villa. In 1967 the institution Christoph Merian Stiftung made the decision to lease the villa and the estate to the city of Basel, gratuitously for one hundred years, so that a botanical garden could be established on the grounds. Grün 80 During the summer of 1980 Münchenstein was the host municipality for Grün 80, the 2nd Swiss exhibition for gardens and landscaping. The exhibition was held in Brüglingen and also made benefit of the entire estate grounds. The remains of the Grün 80 exhibition complex, and the villa's gardens and landscape, are now a public park named Merian Park. The botanical gardens are within the borders of Merian Park and cover an area of 135,000 m2. With a view to the Grün 80, during 1977, the Villa Merian was overhauled and became a coffee house. Since then the Villa has been reconverted and redecorated. The two cast iron verandas on either side of the house were removed, but all the other cast iron