The Trumpeter of Kraków
On the great market square of Kraków a trumpet signal sounds every hour from the tall tower of St Mary’s Church. Each time the melody breaks off abruptly in mid-note. Those who hear it for the first time wonder why.
1 The watchman on the tower
In the 13th century a trumpeter kept watch day and night on the highest tower of St Mary’s Church. His duty was simple and heavy at once: at the approach of danger or fire he blew the signal, so the gates could be shut and the citizens warned.
On a grey morning he saw a cloud of dust on the horizon. Riders. The feared Mongol cavalry was nearing the city at a gallop.
2 The signal that broke off
The trumpeter began the hejnał with all his strength. The bright notes cut across the roofs and woke the city. Gates were barred, men reached for their weapons. But while he was still playing, an archer below drew his bow.
An arrow struck the watchman in the throat. The melody broke off in the middle of a note. The trumpeter collapsed, yet his warning had reached the city in time.
3 The unfinished tune
Kraków survived that day, and the people did not forget the watchman. Ever since, the hejnał is played every hour, and each time the melody breaks off on the very note where the arrow once struck.
The unfinished tune is a tribute that has echoed for centuries. Four times an hour the trumpeter turns to the four points of the compass, and four times the silence falls, sharp and unmistakable, over the square.
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