against the swamp. They reclaimed the reedy country with what was then still primitive equipment. The water lily stands for the wetland while the plough stands for the clearing of the land. The tinctures come from the arms once borne by the House of Wittelsbach, once rulers of the Electorate of the Palatinate, to which Biblis belonged from 1461 to 1623. Religion St. Bartolomew’s Catholic parish St. Bartolomew's Church (St. Bartholomäuskirche) comes from the year 1865. The forerunner church became too small for the population, which had sharply risen. The plans for the current church were drawn up by the then Grand Duchy of Hesse district building master Christian Horst. He designed the church as a “neo-Early Gothic”, three-naved column-borne basilica with quire and transept on the model of the Elisabeth Church in Marburg. The Catholic parish belongs to the Biblis Catholic parish cluster, which consists of these parishes: St. Bartholomäus Biblis St. Christophorus Wattenheim St. Theresia v.K.J. Groß-Rohrheim St. Antonius Nordheim Jewish community In Biblis there was a Jewish community from the 18th century until 1938. In the mid 19th century, the Jewish community numbered some 200, roughly 8% of the wider community's population. Under Rabbi Salomon Bodenheimer (1813–1886), a Talmud-Torah school and other institutions were founded, which were of great importance to Jews far beyond as well as in Biblis. The community's synagogue was built in 1832 on the lot at Enggasse 6. On Kristallnacht (9 November 1938), it was desecrated by SA members, who thoroughly destroyed the inside, after which it was used for other purposes; in 1981, it was torn down. A memorial stone still recalls the now long-gone building. At least 13 Jewish former inhabitants of Biblis were deported to the death camps where they were murdered. Regular events Every year in June the four-day Gurkenfest (Cucumber Festival) is opened by the Gurkenkönigin (“Cucumber Queen”) for the enjoyment of the local population and visitors alike. Economy and infrastructure Transport Biblis lies on the Bundesstraße 44 federal road and the Landesstraße 3261 state road. Autobahn interchanges are in Lorsch, Heppenheim and Gernsheim, about 10 km away. Biblis station has direct connections to Mannheim (half-hourly), Frankfurt (hourly) and Worms (hourly). Education Katholische Kindertagesstätte Sonnenschein (Catholic daycare) Kindergarten Pusteblume Schule in den Weschnitzauen (primary school and Hauptschule) Nuclear power station Biblis has the Biblis Nuclear Power Plant, situated on the river Rhine with two blocks of pressurized water