Raskovnik

In Slavic folklore, the raskovnik or razkovniche (Serbian Cyrillic and Macedonian: расковник; Bulgarian: разковниче [rɐsˈkɔvnit͡ʃɛ]; Russian: разрыв-трава; Polish: rozryw) is a magical herb.

While razkovniche and raskovnik are the customary names in Bulgarian and Serbian respectively and the root is also preserved in the Leskovac dialect as raskov, in some parts of Macedonia it is known as ež trava ("hedgehog herb").

In Syrmia, the plant is referred to as špirgasta trava (a hapax legomenon),[4] in Slavonia it is known as zemaljski ključ ("earth key"), and in Slovenia's Savinja Valley as mavričin koren ("rainbow root").

[2] In the words of Serbian linguist and folklorist Vuk Stefanović Karadžić, “It is some (maybe imaginary) herb whose touch is thought to be able to open every lock or closure.”[6] According to the legend, the raskovnik could unlock any gate or padlock, regardless of its size, material or key.

[1][2][3] While the tricking of a tortoise was the most popular method in Bulgarian mythology, in Dalmatia the legend refers to snakes,[3] and among Serbs another version involves the locking of young hedgehogs in a box for their mother to unlock.

[9] Razkovniche is also the common Bulgarian name for the plant European waterclover (Marsilea quadrifolia) which, in its appearance, has many similarities with the descriptions of the mythical raskovnik.

Razkovniche is the Bulgarian-language name for the real plant Marsilea quadrifolia , which shares some features with the legendary raskovnik.
In some parts of Serbia , hedgehogs are believed to be animals capable of identifying the raskovnik and involuntarily assisting people in obtaining it.