Traces of the Devil's Labour

A Devil's Stone supposedly once stood on the summit of Třemšín. Today it lies at its foot, beyond the settlement of Planiny. The Devil dropped it here after losing a wager. Beside the road from Roželov to Starý Smolivec is a large boulder about one and a half metres high, with a small cross on top. It is called the Devil's Bundle. The Devil lost it here, as the hoofprints pressed into the stone are said to prove. It is also said that the boulder covers the grave of a local hermit. North of Třemšín, below Kobyla hill (759 m), runs a rocky ridge ending above the forest road in a pointed rock. It is called the Devil's Spindle because it tapers to a point. The Devil lost his spindle here while competing with a giant. In the Třemšín forests at a place called U Nuslovny lies a boulder with a small cross attached. The spot is called U čertova kamene, or By the Devil's Stone. According to DrJ.Peisker's theory, names containing the Devil or a mare are remnants of a Slavic pagan cult. A place named after a mare was supposedly a centre for worshipping the god of good, and one named after the Devil for the god of evil. Between the two, this theory requires 'living water', as in this instance: below Kobyla is a spring of good water. Indeed, Dr Peisker cites Kobyla and the Devil's Spindle as evidence for his theory. (See Provodov.)