Polish legend tells of a 16th-century nobleman named Pan Twardowski who sold his soul to the devil in exchange for wisdom and mystical powers. You know, the classic Faustian deal. Various versions of his legend tell of him riding around on a rooster, attending witches' sabbaths, running into his own doppelganger, and ending up stuck on the moon when he tries to cheat the devil out of his soul. Twardowsky became an extremely popular folk hero for the Polish people, and his story has been adapted numerous times in literature, ballet, art, and film. Modern animated versions show the mage flying through space in a starship.

Further legend says that Twardowski once held a seance at the request of the Polish king, Zygmunt August, whose wife, Barbara Radziwłłówna, had recently died. One of the instruments used in the seance was a mirror belonging to Twardowski and presumably charged with diabolical power. Allegedly, the seance was at least partially a success, with Barbara Radziwłłówna appearing briefly in the mirror's glass in sight of the king, giving him a glimpse of his lost beloved.

This very mirror is thought to reside these days in a church in Eastern Poland. Someone, probably the clergy of the church itself, commissioned a wooden frame to be built around the metal mirror. The frame is engraved with a Latin text that reveals its turn from diabolical to godly service: "Twardowski played with this mirror, practicing arcane arts; now it serves God."

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