On Friday, 10 May 2024, unknown perpetrators vandalised six stations of the Way of the Cross on the Haniel spoil tip in Bottrop and stole four copper plates. According to the Diocese of Essen, a police report has been filed, and this is not the first time the site has been targeted.
The 1,200-metre-long Way of the Cross, established in 1995 on the site of a former coal mine, features 15 copper reliefs depicting the Passion of Christ, incorporating elements of mining culture. The artwork was created by Sister Tisa von der Schulenburg, artist Adolf Radecki, and apprentices from the local mine.
Stations where only replicas of the copper engravings were installed sustained only minor damage, suggesting that the perpetrators were primarily interested in the material value of the original copper.
“We have rarely seen this kind of brutality here. The thieves clearly knew what they were doing,” said Michael Sagenschneider, spokesperson for RAG Montan Immobilien.