The Die That Flew Apart in Two

In Rudolf's treasury there used to be an artfully carved backgammon board with dice, one of which was in two pieces. On that board Saint John of Nepomuk played with the devil for the soul of a Prague student who, as he lay dying in a duel, had cried out: 'Help me, Saint John of Nepomuk!' The devil threw eighteen with three dice and thought he had won; but Saint John threw so hard that one die flew apart in two, and so he had three sixes as well, and a one besides from the second piece of the die. He therefore won the student's soul, on which the devil had already set his appetite.