Sankt Nikolaus Bildstock
Sankt Nikolaus Bildstock stands in Heidelberg’s city forest, near the Drei Eichen forest parking area and north of Gaiberger Weg. The shrine stands beside Oberer St.-Nikolaus-Weg. It rises about 2.8 metres and presents Saint Nicholas of Myra on a Buntsandstein base. A nearby bench gives visitors a place to pause beside the monument.
Leonardo Schreiber founded the shrine in 1747 after narrowly escaping a lightning strike during a forest inspection. He was also a trained stonemason. He carved the original figure as a Catholic bishop, complete with a mitre and crozier. Gaiberg youths badly damaged the sculpture around 1800, leaving it headless for decades. In 1950, a soldier returning from Russian captivity commissioned a replacement from Helmut Waldherr of Wiesloch. Hugo Swart, Heidelberg’s mayor, blessed the restored shrine in December 1950.
A metal grid has protected the replacement since the restoration, while Saint Nicholas Day brings candles and flowers. The base inscription names Schreiber and refers to the gratitude behind this forest monument.
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