After returning from an excursion in the Austrian Alps (Tyrol area) I
was intrigued as to why some summits have a cross atop them and some
don't. I found this link but can't speak German but there would appear
to be numerous reasons.
http://home.arcor.de/tom-tom-tom/Webseiten/gipfelkreuze.htm

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Request for Question Clarification by scriptor-ga on 24 Oct 2005 12:01 PDT

Dear hairydug,

I don't post this as an answer yet because I don't know whether you'll
be satisfied. I read the text (I am German, so it is no problem for
me) and I had some quick looks at several other online sources to make
sure that the basic statement of the website is correct. The answer:
There are absolutely no rules why a summit has or has not a summit
cross. They are erected for a multitude of reasons, and sometimes
without any reason at all but to look impressive and attractive to
tourists and alpinists. They are erected by local tourism offices,
mountaineers clubs, private individuals, and, and, and ... and they
are always erected without formal permits (which is, in
German-speaking countries, almost an incredible act of individualism).
Generally, if a summit does not have a cross, it's simply because no
one felt yet like erecting one there. But there are no rules defining
what mountains should have a cross.

Regards,
Scriptor

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Request for Question Clarification by tlspiegel-ga on 24 Oct 2005 12:40 PDT

Hi hairydug,

Please let me know if my findings answer your question.

The Rambler's Association
http://www.ramblers.org.uk/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=4567

"As can be seen from my other postings I hike only in Bavaria. One
thing I love is that many of their mountain summits, (large and
small), have a cross at or very close to the summit. Some very big,
some small.

I love them. They give me a target to go for that I can sometimes see
from my starting point. They give me a focal point if/when I reach the
summit. And somewhere to say a very short prayer of thanks that I have
made it to the top, (one of the reassons the Germans put them there)."

****

"A couple of examples of Bavarian mountain summit crosses. They are a
very popular and familiar aspect of Bavarian hiking. As previously
mentioned I usually say a short prayer when I am lucky enough to reach
one. Others just touch the cross. We all have our little rituals I
guess. But whatever the ritual, they are a wonderful target to aim at
for a days mountain hiking."

See photo of 3 large crosses at bottom of this page:
http://www.germanhikes.co.uk/ramblers/ramblers.html#nextc 

*****

http://www.ramblers.org.uk/forum/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=4221

"I think the reason for the very small memorial plaques found up on
German mountains reflects the very deep rooted feeling and love the
Germans have for their mountains. When someone who maybe spent a
lifetime hiking the trails and eventually dies on one, it seems to me
a very appropriate way of leaving a very small reminder of their life.

Another tradition in German mountains is to find a cross, large or
small, at the summit of most mountains."


Best regards,
tlspiegel

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Clarification of Question by hairydug-ga on 24 Oct 2005 14:47 PDT

Thanks Scriptor for your time
I have been looking into this since my return in August but was unsure
if there were any parameters as to why someone would erect a summit
cross. I also came across a cross in Bielerhohe that overlooked the
dammed lake as a memorial to a man who loved the area and that got me
thinking further as it was not a summit cross. Perhaps if you could
highlight the various reasons that crosses are erected in the Alps, in
a list format, I would be happy and consider my question answered.
Thank you

Something else that may be pertinent (something I learned from a
German tv program on art):  until the beginning of the 19th century,
the high mountains were not seen as romantic or beautiful scenery. 
They were boding, frightening, raw nature, maybe no longer a place
where evil spirits dwelt (think of Norway's jutenheim = home of the
giants, or the "Home of the Mountain King" in Peer Gynt, or in
Germany, the witches on the Brocken, the highest mountain in the
Harz), but still with some undertones of that.  Conquering a peak was
tempting the evil forces, proving that the Christian God was stronger.
 The mountain folk were pious and unsophisticated.  Planting a cross
staked a Christian claim to a peak, and it was a great effort, maybe
one of pentence or of thanks to fulfil a vow.
Of course, a little pride and recognition for this can't be ruled out,
a spur to place a cross on an even higher peak.