Raskovnik

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Raskovnik (Расковник) is a plant in Serbian mythology, and other Slavic mythos. According to Vuk Stefanovic Karadzic's Dictionary:

It is some (may be imaginary) grass for which it is thought that of it (when brushed by it) every lock and every other closure can open by itself.^[1]

While people know that raskovnik exists, no one can show how it looks^[2]. Thus, there are various methods for finding it: Vuk recorded that in Zemun a trader, wishing to find it, locked an old woman into leg irons, and let her wander a field in the night; if the irons would unlock by themselves, that would be a place where raskovnik grows^[2]. Another method requires the use of a hedgehog (sometimes a turtle): young hedgehogs should be found and locked in a box; their mother will find raskovnik and unlock the box with it; but one should be quick, as the hedgehog will swallow the plant after using it^[2].

It was believed that treasures (notably the treasure of Tsar Radovan) would be locked in such a way that use of raskovnik may be necessary to unlock it, and so the plant was searched for by treasure hunters^[2].

[edit] Literature

• Ljubinko Radenkovic. "Расковник у кругу сличних биљака" (HTML). Retrieved on 2006-09-06.

[edit] References

1. ^ As cited in Miljkovic, Branko. Изабране песме (HTML). Retrieved on 2006-09-06. 
2. ^ ^{a b c d} [1970] "Расковник", Српски митолошки речник (in Serbian). Belgrade: Nolit, 252-253.