The Mystery of the Carved Stones

Beside the castle’s main entrance, three stones are set one above another in the wall. They bear carved figures of three men, now badly damaged, which has only further stimulated interpreters’ imaginations. The top stone shows a seated figure “hewing a tilted column with a hammer”. Emanuel of Lešehrad considered it a remnant of Templar and, more broadly, stonemasons’ tradition, supposedly depicting the castle builder. Another interpretation sees a smith. Beneath it is a seated man in a pleated cloak, with a long ribbon falling across his shoulders. Beckovský, who saw the sculptures when better preserved, wrote that this figure held some inscription. Local folk tradition saw him as a sorcerer. Lowest is a bearded figure, perhaps with folded arms. The same tradition interpreted him as a “spirit summoner and great sage”.