It is one of the founding cantons of Switzerland; Switzerland's name is derived from the name of the canton, and the flag of Switzerland from its coat of arms.
For the history of the name, see Schwyz. The Swiss Federal Charter is on display in Schwyz. Northeast of the town of Schwyz is Einsiedeln Abbey. An excavation of the karst caves in the valley of the Muota river Muotatal revealed numerous sites, some dating to the Younger Dryas period c. Ibex and red deer bones, along with charcoal, indicate that the animals were butchered and cooked in these camps.
In the first Stone Age tool in the canton, a stone drill, was discovered. During the late Neolithic and early Bronze Age , a number of pile dwellings and other settlements developed around the lakes of the canton. During the Bronze Age, several bridges were built between the promontory of Endingen in Rapperswil , St.
Gallen and the settlements at Hurden. Over , posts and seven bridges have been discovered, along with several settlements and ritual sites.
On the Schwyz side of the lake, ten different settlements from BC have been discovered. However, after BC there is very little evidence for further Bronze Age settlements in the canton.
