Place - NiedzicaThe White Lady of Niedzica

In the courtyard of the so-called upper castle in Niedzica and near the castle chapel, a female figure in white appears amidst the roar of a violent wind. She grows into a supernatural apparition, reaching up to the ceiling. Legend has it that this is the ghost of the unfortunate Inca princess Umina, who lived here for several years in the second half of the eighteenth century as the wife of one of the castle's owners.

In the mid-eighteenth century, Sebastian Berzevica, a descendant of a Hungarian family, set off for South America in search of adventure—and likely fortune. Years later, he settled in Peru and married an Indian woman from a noble family descended from the ancient rulers of the Inca Empire. They had one daughter, Umina, who, at fifteen, married a young man from an equally distinguished Inca family, Tupak Amaru. In 1780, a revolt against the Spanish broke out in Peru, led by a relative of Umina's husband. After the uprising's failure, the Spanish took revenge on all who participated or supported it. Sebastian Berzevica, along with Umina and her husband, fled to Europe, taking with them part of the legendary Inca treasure, which belonged by right to the Tupak Amaru family.

But the Spanish vengeance reached them in Europe as well – Umina's husband was stabbed to death in a Venetian alley. Shortly before his death, Umina gave birth to a son. Old Berzevicy decided to return to the castle on the Dunajec River with Umina and her grandson. A year later, at Niedzica Castle, Umina was stabbed to death in the courtyard before the entrance to the chapel. To save his grandson, Berzevicy ordered his distant cousins, the Benes, to adopt him, leaving his estate to them.

Anthony—as the name is mentioned in the adoption document—knew the secret of his origins and the Inca treasure. On his deathbed, he begged his sons not to seek the riches of Peru's rulers, as they were cursed. Umina was reportedly buried beneath the chapel in a silver coffin, and beneath the shroud was a document written in the knotted "kipu" script—perhaps Tupak Amaru's will, or perhaps a clue to the treasure? Unfortunately, despite extensive archaeological research, neither Umina's coffin nor the treasure were found.