12/17/2024
Eagles, Dragons and Spectres
Czech Republic is rich in stories and legends. We may not realize when we watch the landscape from a train, but nearly every place that we pass is connected to a mysterious story. Let us present at least some of them.
Dragons on the Coat of Arms of Kolín
Once upon a time, a dragon lived under a rock by the River Elbe near Kolín. He would take on a human form every night and go to the town where he visited the neighbours. One night, he saw a beautiful girl in a window and fell in love. The girl returned his affections, but wondered why he only came to see her at night. The dragon had to admit the truth. He could only be freed from the curse if a virgin was willing to marry him. The girl promised to do so, but her father, the local magistrate, told the dragon groom off. The desperate girl waited in vain, and when her lover failed to return for one month, she jumped into the river.
But the legend has it that she did not drown, but turned into a dragon herself. Since then, two dragons were often seen by the river at dawn, lovingly touching their heads. People believed that seeing them was a sign of happiness, and chose dragons for their city emblem.
🦅 The Founding of the Church in Orlová
The origins of the church in Orlová near Ostrava are explained in another legend. The Silesian Duke Mieszko (reigned ca 1164–1211) went hunting one day. Together with his pregnant wife and entourage, they stopped at the place of the future church to have a rest. Suddenly, he saw a giant eagle sitting on a tree with sacramental bread in its beak. The eagle dropped the bread, which shocked the duchess to the extent that she immediately gave birth to a son named Casimir. Despite the unusual circumstances of his birth, the boy later became the new ruler. Mieszko was grateful, and had a chapel built in the place where the eagle, his family’s heraldic animal, had announced the birth of his son. He named the place Orlová (Eagle’s), and a village which grew there later became a town. The legend is depicted in the choir of the church.
The Devil’s Cave by Přerov
Near the Předmostí neighbourhood of Přerov lies the old quarry of Žernava. Once upon a time, there was a cave inhabited by devils who tortured the whole region. No wonder the locals decided to take revenge on them. One night, they met by the cave, hid, and waited for the first devil to come out. When he did, one man attacked him. The other devils came out, the man started to run, and the devils pursued him.
It was a trap. When the devils were far from their cave, the other men attacked them with hayforks and flails. The surprised devils ran in all directions. Satan himself came out of the cave last, roared, and disappeared in the forest. People wanted to fill in the cave, but then decided to leave it as a reminder of the last devil of Žernava. Later, they started to quarry limestone there, and the whole rock disappeared.
TEXT: Karol Nagy
PHOTO: Shutterstock.com
The whole article is to be found in the winter issue of the Leo Express magazine
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