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Did you know?

In more recent legends, the drowned maiden (or man) was sometimes said to appear as a coal-black horse wrapped in clanking chains, rising from the darkest depths of rivers and lakes. That, too, was a topielica or topielec.

Folk communities had their ways of defending themselves from such creatures. The most effective tools were objects of deep religious significance: a rosary, scapular, priest’s stole, or blessed herbs. These weren’t just used against water demons, but also to protect homes and households from evil.

Ethnographer Jan Świętek, author of the classic Lud nadrabski, described a local ritual for capturing a topielec. According to him, when a spot in the river claimed too many lives, it was suspected to be the creature’s lair. A wooden bucket with a crucifix and burning candle would be floated downstream. If it began to spin, it meant the demon was below.

Then, a brave man would prepare himself with holy items, tie a rope around his waist (held by villagers on shore), and dress in tight trousers tied at the knees and a bedsheet under his belly – to prevent the creature from grabbing him by the... well, let’s say “vital parts.” Once the man caught the demon, he rang a repaired old bell to signal the villagers. They’d pull both out and subdue the creature with blessed water and a scapular before dragging it to the church. There, they’d beat it with church bells until it promised to leave the river for a set number of years.

Moral of the story: always throw the cross first. Holy water second. Then chains. Then church. That’s demon banishment 101.