The Heidelberg Bridge Monkey dates back to the 15th century. It was a stone statue sitting in the tower of the Old Bridge, which was located opposite

Heidelberg Heidelberg (; Palatine German language, Palatine German: ''Heidlberg'') is a city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Neckar in south-west Germany. As of the 2016 census, its population was 159,914 ...

’s Old Town. The purpose of the tower was to instill fear and respect in anyone arriving in the town, while the monkey represented mockery. The statue was destroyed with the tower during the

Nine Years' War The Nine Years' War (1688–1697), often called the War of the Grand Alliance or the War of the League of Augsburg, was a conflict between France and a European coalition which mainly included the Holy Roman Empire (led by the Habsburg monarch ...

. Touching his bare backside, the monkey showed the

Electoral Palatinate The Electoral Palatinate (german: Kurpfalz) or the Palatinate (), officially the Electorate of the Palatinate (), was a state that was part of the Holy Roman Empire. The electorate had its origins under the rulership of the Counts Palatine of ...

Greeting to passers-by. His backside was pointed towards the town of

Mainz Mainz () is the capital and largest city of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Mainz is on the left bank of the Rhine, opposite to the place that the Main (river), Main joins the Rhine. Downstream of the confluence, the Rhine flows to the north-we ...

, which was situated opposite the river bank, and thus, the greeting was addressed to the Bishops of Mainz. The people of Heidelberg wanted to demonstrate that the Bishops in Mainz held no power over the Electors of the Palatinate. The intention of the mirror in the monkey’s hand was to encourage people to engage in critical self-reflection. A poem written by

Martin Zeiller Martin Zeiler (also ''Zeiller'', born 17 April 1589 in Ranten, died 6 October 1661 in Ulm) was a Baroque era German author. Zeiler's father was an exile from Upper Styria, forced to emigrate due to his protestant confession. Zeiler was schoo ...

in the 17th century can still be seen beside today’s version of the monkey: ''“Why are you staring at me?
'' ''Haven’t you seen the old monkey in Heidelberg?
'' ''Look around and you probably will see –
'' ''more monkeys like me!”''

Bronze statue

Upon the wish of the association Alt-Heidelberg,

Gernot Rumpf Gernot Rumpf (born 1941) is a German sculptor known for his fountains and other bronze sculptures, with the Palatinate and biblical motifs. These can be seen not only in German cities, but also in Jerusalem and Tokyo. A part of his work came u ...

designed a bronze statue of the monkey with a hollow head in 1977. It was then installed at the Old Bridge next to the tower in 1979. In contrast to its predecessors, the monkey's right hand does not grasp its posterior, but shows the

sign of the horns The sign of the horns is a hand gesture with a variety of meanings and uses in various cultures. It is formed by extending the index and little fingers while holding the middle and ring fingers down with the thumb. Religious and supersti ...

, which is supposed to ward off the

evil eye The Evil Eye ( grc, ὀφθαλμὸς βάσκανος; grc-koi, ὀφθαλμὸς πονηρός; el, (κακό) μάτι; he, עַיִן הָרָע, ; Romanian: ''Deochi''; it, malocchio; es, mal de ojo; pt, mau-olhado, olho gordo; ar ...

. Today, the statue is a popular tourist attraction. It is said that if a visitor touches the sign of horns, they will return to Heidelberg. If a visitor touches the mirror, they will become wealthy, and if they touch the mice next to the monkey, they will have many children.

Plush toy

A plush toy of the monkey has been available for purchase since May 2016. There are two versions of it with different sizes, which can be obtained in several shops in Heidelberg Old Town. Since the plush toy is intended for children, the monkey does not grasp its posterior or show the sign of horns. Instead, it touches its mouth. The monkey's chest is labeled with the city's name, beneath which there is a coat of arms, which is a combination of the coat of arms of Electoral Palatinate, the coat of arms of

Baden Baden (; ) is a historical territory in South Germany, in earlier times on both sides of the Upper Rhine but since the Napoleonic Wars only East of the Rhine. History The margraves of Baden originated from the House of Zähringen. Baden is ...

and the

flag of Germany The national flag of Germany is a tricolour (flag), tricolour consisting of three equal horizontal bands displaying the national colours of Germany: Sable (heraldry), black, Gules, red, and Or (heraldry), gold (german: :de:Schwarz-Rot-Gold, Sc ...

References

{{Reflist Animal sculptures in Germany Tourist attractions in Heidelberg Sculptures in Baden-Württemberg