In Czech national legends, Vyšehrad appears as the seat of the legendary prince Přemysl and princess Libuše. In reality, however, it was founded as a fortified settlement as late as the 10th century. According to experts, however, it is also a place with powerful energy, shrouded in a number of legends and myths. It is said that the way to draw the most life energy here is by touching the three stones of the Devil’s Column. Three stone cylinders leaning against each other stand in the middle of Prague’s Vyšehrad, in one corner of Karlach Park. Together, they weigh two and a half tonnes, and the individual pieces are between 160 and 240 cm long. The stones were originally located in the Church of Sts Peter and Paul and were moved to the park in 1888. Geological analysis revealed that these are the remains of two different columns. The stone does not come from the Prague area, but from a quarry near Kamenný přívoz by the Sázava River, from where it was probably transported to Vyšehrad on rafts. Researchers are puzzled by a mysterious inscription on one of the stones that has yet to be deciphered: SMMRIEMW. No one knows what the Devil’s Column was originally used for. Some theories claim that it is a milestone on an ancient road, while others refer to it as a medieval pillory from the former town of Vyšehrad. According to others, it is a pre-Christian monolith used for astronomical purposes from between the 5th and 10th centuries. Another likely explanation is that these are parts of a column supporting the vault of the original Romanesque Basilica of St Peter from the 11th or 12th century. In 1503, the column suddenly broke and collapsed onto the floor of the cathedral, taking part of the vault with it. The name Devil’s Column is explained by a charming legend from the 17th century. It is said that the devil himself brought the column to Vyšehrad from Rome. He intended to carry off the soul of the local priest, who had succumbed to sinful card gambling, but Saint Peter intervened and advised the priest to give the devil one last task. The devil failed to bring the column from Rome in time, so in his rage he threw it down so hard that it broke into three pieces. Another legend tells that during the siege of Vyšehrad by the Hussites in 1420, the column was knocked down by a huge Hussite catapult called Čert (Devil). It is said that the stones smell of hellish sulphur. According to esotericists, the column is charged with powerful, but not entirely positive, energy. Even so, the stones are often visited by people who are sensitive to energy.