Ottilien Shrine

Quite stately wayside shrine with seating in the immediate vicinity

Ottilie was born blind, much to the displeasure of her father, the Duke of Alsace. A blind child was a disgrace for the family, and so the Duke wanted to have his daughter killed. Her mother did not allow this and gave the child to the Palma monastery in Baume-les-Dames.
When Ottilie was 12 years old, the Bishop of Regensburg was supposed to baptize her. When the holy water touched her eyes, she could suddenly see. From then on, she dedicated her life to God.
Her father reconciled with his daughter and after his death left her his estate, the Hohenburg in the Vosges. Ottilie built a monastery there at the end of the 7th century and worked as abbess there.
On December 13, 720, Ottilie died in her monastery and was buried in the burial chapel.
Today she is the patron saint of the blind.

The Ottilien wayside shrine is a sign of earlier popular piety. An inconspicuous iron marking is embedded in the stone kneeler, which is an official survey point that indicates the height at exactly 255.618 m above sea level.