Insider Tips
Miracle Oak Tree on former Swedish Territory
The Eastern part of what is nowadays Mecklenburg-Vorpommern had been Swedish for a long time. Between 1648 and 1815, large parts of Vorpommern belonged to the northern neighbour. The harbour city of Barth was situated in this territory. The one and only remaining legendary miracle oak tree of the country stands in Barth’s municipal forest. You can reach it by leaving Barth in a west direction towards the Darß peninsula.
Instead of going right onto the peninsula you continue walking straight ahead before turning left toward Planitz. A walk into Barth’s municipal forest following the main South-West footpath will soon lead to the signposted miracle oak tree. There use to be many miracle oak trees (sometimes also beech trees) in the country in the past centuries. Numerous healings of conditions like rheumatism, articular gout and palsy are regarded as reliable traditions due to the psychic miracle-effect and the willpower during climbing of these trees.
There was an unusual growth of the Barth’s oak tree stem with one of it’s branches which is preserved in a photograph of 1926. This created a hole in the tree through which an ill person had to go. There was a platform below the opening at about a height of three metres which could be reached by ladders. Allegedly, up to 50 crutches were dangling in the tree at one time because of the mostly fast healing. In the second half of the 19th century, the healing power of the oak tree had supposingly already ceased. A shepard sent his lame dog through the hole which was reserved for human beings. Since then, the opening has been diminishing more and more. The oak tree is supposed to still have a relaxing/restorative effect especially on Swedish people by just walking through the forest…
3 photos:
(1) Crown of Barth’s miracle oak tree, Foto: Hartmut Schmied, www.cryptoneum.de
(2) Historical photograph of the miracle oak tree in 1926, Repro: Hartmut Schmied, www.cryptoneum.de
(3) Opening of the miracle oak tree, Foto: Hartmut Schmied, www.cryptoneum.de
