Heiligenblut on the Grossglockner

Beautiful town at the foot of Austria's highest mountain, the Grossglockner, which towers over the town. The town itself lies at 1,288 metres above sea level, and this is where the famous Grossglocker-Hochalpenstrasse passes through. The town is famous for its impressive 15th-century church and a cheap car holiday here is highly recommended to enjoy the magnificent surroundings.

The name Heiligenblut (Holy Blood) comes from the famous legend of the bottle of Christ's blood. It was the Danish prince Briccius who brought this bottle back from Constantinople in the year 914. The bottle had been hidden in his wound in the calf to protect it from robbers. But an avalanche put an end to the transport, and the prince was buried by the snow. But three ears of corn grew on the same spot, and some peasants subsequently found his body. But when they went to bury him, the leg refused to stay underground. The bone was examined and the bottle of Christ's blood was recovered and later stored in the sacrament house of the Church of Saint Vinzinz. The town built its own crypt and an altar to Briccius, but due to lack of evidence, Briccius was never canonised.