If you enter the Church of St. James in the Old Town, the first thing that catches your eye is a strange black object hanging on a chain near the entrance. It is a memento of sinful greed—a real, dried human hand. Legend tells of a thief who stayed locked inside after vespers to steal precious jewelry from the statue of the Virgin Mary. However, when he touched her string of pearls, the statue’s hand came to life and gripped the thief’s wrist so tightly that he could not move. The Minority brothers found him there in the morning. Since the statue would not release its grip, they had to cut the thief’s hand off. At that moment, the statue released the arm, and the hand was hung on the wall as a warning, where it has remained for centuries.

However, this church hides another chilling secret in the form of the magnificent tomb of the High Chancellor Jan Václav Vratislav of Mitrovice. This masterpiece by Ferdinand Maxmilián Brokoff is associated with a tragic legend of a premature burial. It is told that the Chancellor fell into a deep coma and was presumed dead. After the burial, however, people in the church heard strange thumping and scratching coming from the tomb. When it was opened years later, the Chancellor’s body was found outside the coffin, with broken nails and an expression of immense horror on his face. Since then, it has been believed that his soul still wanders the sanctuary, seeking justice for his terrible end in the subterranean darkness.