There are many things Prague is known for – Charles Bridge, the Prague castle, weekend breaks – but connections with Darth Vader tend to be few and far. Which isn’t to say that there may not be one.

Walking from the Charles Bridge towards the old Town Square usually means threading your way through the throngs of tourists that perpetually flow in both directions. Savvy tourists take one of the parallel routes to save on the jostling. Free of the masses, you can quickly reach your destination this way but if hurry too much, you just might miss some mysterious little nugget that only Prague has to offer.

On the north-eastern corner of Mariánské Namesti (Maria Square), there is a sculpture of a knight who bears more than a striking resemblance to the arch-villain from Star Wars. The statue has nothing to do with the real Darth Vader though, since it was sculpted in the early 20th century.

The statue reminds passers-by of a legend that was associated with the building that had previously stood on this spot. The street on northern side of the square, Platnéřská, is named after the armourers workshops that lined this thoroughfare in the Middle Ages.

According to legend, a war-weary knight in black armour had been seen wandering around Prague. He ended up in this street to get some work done on his armour that was worn and chipped after long battles with the enemy. The craftsman he found had a beautiful daughter who the knight instantly fell in love with. She repeatedly refused his advances, infuriating the knight who stabbed her for refusing him.

As she lay on the street, her blood pooling around her golden curls, she cursed her attacker causing the knight turned to stone.

Every hundred years, on the same day and at the same time as the murder, the ghost of this knight appears seeking absolution which can only be given by an innocent girl.

Many years later, a widow and her daughter moved into this building, which was now no longer a workshop. The ghost appeared to the young girl and explained what he needed from her. Predictably scared, the daughter revealed the secret to her mother who lay in wait for the knight the next day.

(Obviously, the knight couldn’t just be absolved by the daughter; he had to explain things to her and then come back the day after. The after life works in much the same way as any standard government department)

The next evening, the ghost appeared and was horrified to find the mother rather than the innocent girl it was expecting. It exclaimed, “A hundred more years to wait!”.

And has yet to be seen again.