Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters

Take your next trip with Atlas Obscura!

Our small-group adventures are inspired by our Atlas of the world's most fascinating places, the stories behind them, and the people who bring them to life.

Visit Adventures
Trips Highlight
Borneo orangutan
Malaysia • 12 days, 11 nights
Wild Borneo: Secrets of an Ancient Rainforest
from
Pastel de nata
Portugal • 8 days, 7 nights
Portugal: A Culinary Adventure from Porto to Lisbon
from
View all trips
Top Destinations
Latest Places
Most Popular Places Random Place Lists Itineraries
Add a Place
Download the App
Top Destinations
View All Destinations »

Countries

  • Australia
  • Canada
  • China
  • France
  • Germany
  • India
  • Italy
  • Japan

Cities

  • Amsterdam
  • Barcelona
  • Beijing
  • Berlin
  • Boston
  • Budapest
  • Chicago
  • London
  • Los Angeles
  • Mexico City
  • Montreal
  • Moscow
  • New Orleans
  • New York City
  • Paris
  • Philadelphia
  • Rome
  • San Francisco
  • Seattle
  • Stockholm
  • Tokyo
  • Toronto
  • Vienna
  • Washington, D.C.
Latest Places
View All Places »
Glymur
Bones on display in the museum.
RSU Anatomy Museum
The sign declares this the number-one gumbo shop in town.
Gumbo Hut Shioya
The Phono Museum features decades of different sound technology.
Phono Museum Paris
Latest Places to Eat & Drink
View All Places to Eat »
The sign declares this the number-one gumbo shop in town.
Gumbo Hut Shioya
The pavlova comes crowned with jewel-like fruit.
Central Park Boathouse
The Village Tavern of Long Grove - exterior.
The Village Tavern
Hunter House Hamburgers
L’Escamoteur
Recent Stories
All Stories Video Podcast
Most Recent Stories
View All Stories »
Ivan the Terra Bus
The Bus, the Myth, the Legend: Ivan the Terra Bus
1 day ago
Pigeons were included in a series of 1891 illustrations entitled “Household Pets.”
What Makes a Pest a Pest?
2 days ago
Burros Alfa and Beto, seen here with Luis Soriano in 2008, have been helping the teacher deliver books for more than 20 years.
How One Man and His ‘Biblioburro’ Spreads Literacy in Rural Colombia
4 days ago
Price Tower
What Happened to Price Tower, Frank Lloyd Wright’s Only Skyscraper?
5 days ago

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All Poland Darłowo King Eric's Golden Dove
AO Edited

King Eric's Golden Dove

This statue is said to bring good luck to visiting lovebirds.

Darłowo, Poland

Added By
Kenneth Flugrad
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
The Golden Dove up close   KFlu / Atlas Obscura User
The Golden Dove up close   KFlu / Atlas Obscura User
The Golden Dove in its niche   KFlu / Atlas Obscura User
  Ewkaa / CC BY-SA 3.0 PL
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

King Eric VII was a king-turned-pirate who spent years pillaging the realm that he had once ruled over after being overthrown. Along with many treasures, he brought back a golden dove from the island of Gotland that was said to. hold the power of everlasting love. With this token, he remained happily married to his lifelong love Cecilia.

The original golden dove was buried with King Eric, but a reproduction has been cast and imbued with the same powers of romance. 

Inside the courtyard of Darłowo Castle from which King Eric once ruled, the golden dove rests in a niche next to a plaque describing its story and importance. It is known that any couple that gently strokes the golden dove will stay together for all time, just like Cecilia and her pirate king.

Careful who you do this with, it just might work!

Related Tags

Love Luck Legends Statues Birds

Know Before You Go

The golden dove is located within the Darłowo Castle courtyard. Therefore you can only visit this place when the castle museum is open check Google and the castle website for opening hours to ensure you are able to see it.

Community Contributors

Added By

KFlu

Edited By

Michelle Cassidy

  • Michelle Cassidy

Published

November 14, 2024

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • https://www.narratively.com/p/the-king-who-became-a-pirate
  • https://www.thevintagenews.com/2018/01/07/eric-of-pomerania/
King Eric's Golden Dove
4 Zamkowa
Darłowo, 76-150
Poland
54.419725, 16.412027
Visit Website
Get Directions

Nearby Places

Mermaid of Ustka

Ustka, Poland

miles away

Potato Monument

Biesiekierz, Poland

miles away

Rowokół

Smołdzino, Poland

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Poland

Poland

Europe

Places 201
Stories 14

Nearby Places

Mermaid of Ustka

Ustka, Poland

miles away

Potato Monument

Biesiekierz, Poland

miles away

Rowokół

Smołdzino, Poland

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Poland

Poland

Europe

Places 201
Stories 14

Related Places

  • Budapest, Hungary

    Prince of Buda and Princess of Pest Statue

    On Gellért Hill, this statue depicts the tragic tale of lovers divided by the Danube.

  • Old Town Wishing Bell.

    Warsaw, Poland

    Old Town Wishing Bell

    This bell stars in a tragic love tale and is said to make wishes come true.

  • Mieszko.

    Warsaw, Poland

    Mieszko the Stone Bear

    Legend says this is actually a heartbroken prince waiting for his true love's kiss.

  • Tableau on the Charles Bridge depicting Saint John at the bottom of the Vltava River.

    Prague, Czechia

    Location of Saint John of Nepomuk's Martyrdom

    A plaque marks the spot where the saint was shoved off the Charles Bridge and into the river.

  • Synevyr Lake.

    Mizhhirs'kyi district, Ukraine

    Synevyr Lake

    This stunning mountain lake was named for a pair of tragic lovers whose statues stand at the center.

  • David Hume’s statue in front of St. Giles Cathedral on the Royal Mile.

    Edinburgh, Scotland

    David Hume's Statue

    Touching this 18th-century Scottish philosopher’s toe allegedly conjures good fortune.

  • The cathedral exterior.

    Genoa, Italy

    Genoa Cathedral

    This cathedral hides a sculpted dog that determines your fate and an unexploded shell from World War II.

  • Chizhik Pyzhik close-up.

    Saint Petersburg, Russia

    Chizhik Pyzhik

    Perhaps the tiniest sculpture in Saint Petersburg is a little bronze finch inspired by a song.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.