What happened
Barbara Radziwiłł, the second wife of Sigismund II Augustus, whom the king had married secretly against the wishes of his mother and the senators, died in Kraków on 8 May 1551, only months after her coronation. According to legend, the grieving king surrounded himself with astrologers and sorcerers, and the only one who granted his wish was Master Twardowski. In a darkened chamber, by candlelight, before a magic mirror, the sorcerer warned the king not to speak or move. When Barbara's figure emerged from the darkness, Sigismund Augustus could not restrain himself – he called her name and rushed toward her, and the apparition instantly dissolved into the air. The mirror Twardowski supposedly used is still shown in the sacristy of the church in Węgrów. The scene was captured, among others, by Jan Matejko in an unfinished sketch of 1884.
Witnesses
According to legend, King Sigismund Augustus and Master Twardowski; the story is known from later tales, including Kraków legends recorded in the 19th and 20th centuries.
Explanations and hypotheses
Twardowski stands on the border between history and legend – historians suspect that his model was one of Sigismund Augustus's court magicians or astrologers, while German researchers linked him to a scholar from Wittenberg. No contemporary sources confirm a “séance” involving the king. Roman Bugaj cited a version in which the show was a court stage effect, with a woman strikingly similar to the late queen playing the apparition. For the Romantics, the story became a symbol of love stronger than death.
Legend A story handed down through generations – it can be neither confirmed nor disproved.
Sources
- Onet Podróże – Węgrów. Zwierciadło strachu. Tajemnicze lustro Jana Twardowskiego
- Muzeum Historyczno-Archeologiczne w Ostrowcu Świętokrzyskim – Twardowski na kogucie (2024)
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