3D view of 2D histogram (heat map) in gnuplot

The questions of the OP: How can I ...

There are a few workarounds that produce an output resembling the sample that you show. They do not have all the bells and whistles you may want for formatting, but they are approximations which look "ok".

1. As per http://lowrank.net/gnuplot/plotpm3d-e.html#6.9 , pm3d should do the trick for what you need. See also pm3d down in this link.

2. If shading is essential, you can try using some of this. But you should work out quite a bit.

3. Another poor-man approximation to what you are asking for is given here.

I do not have gnuplot here to test these.

... (or can I)

It is widely documented that there is no facility for a 3D histogram plot, and anything to do a real such plot with the corresponding options (shading, spacing, back walls, perspective view, selection of point of view, etc.) requires complex user programming.