Atonement Cross at the Heiligenwiesen (Wenschdorf)

The cross stands to the left of the road leading from Wenschdorf to Monbrunn, at the entrance to a field track. It rises on a pasture right next to a birch tree. The field name of the spot is „bei den Heiligenwiesen“.

An exact date of origin has not come down to us for this cross; the specialist literature classifies it as probably late medieval. No specific legend or tale is documented for this particular stone cross.

As a general observation, stone crosses in the Odenwald mostly originated in the Middle Ages and typically stand at forks in the road, in fields or in woodland. Their meaning is often uncertain – they are understood as possible atonement crosses, erected in reconciliation after violent disputes, or as memorial stones for fatal accidents. For most crosses the precise origin remains obscure; over generations they lived on in oral tradition and local legend. This description applies to the type of monument in general and should not be taken as a documented interpretation of this specific cross.

The stone cross is part of the official „List of architectural monuments in Miltenberg“ compiled by the Bavarian State Office for the Preservation of Monuments, where it is assigned to the district of Wenschdorf. Wenschdorf was incorporated into the county town of Miltenberg during the Bavarian territorial reform. The technical description, including the measurements, draws on Bormuth et al., „Steinkreuze im bayerischen Odenwald“ (1997, p. 478).