Chapel of Our Lady of the Oak

In the Illwald forest, the chapel of Our Lady of the Oak bears witness to popular piety.

According to tradition, the chapel was built in the 18th century, after a statue of the Virgin Mary was found in a boat by a couple of fishermen. Originally, it was a modest shrine; the statuette was simply placed in the trunk of an old oak tree.

In 1798, the municipality decided to have the oak tree housing the statue of the Virgin cut down, which caused a great stir among the inhabitants. A niche was dug in the trunk of a nearby oak to house the statue.

In 1925, the chapel was completely destroyed by fire. It was quickly rebuilt on the old model but in reinforced concrete; it was inaugurated in 1927 as the date inscribed above the door attests.