The Hollow Tree in Castlevania: Belmont’s Curse sits under Pauper’s Grave in Holy Innocents’ Cemetery, and nothing on the surface points you to it. Its entrance is a cracked stone wall at the base of a candle-covered statue altar. You also can’t walk there from the spot where the game first mentions the tree, because the path out of that chamber only goes one way.
Quick answer: Teleport to the surface of Pauper’s Grave, go right to the candle-covered altar under the Hollow Tree map icon, and break the cracked wall on its lower-left side.
Hollow Tree entrance location in Pauper’s Grave
The entrance is on the upper, outdoor level of Pauper’s Grave. Cross the wooden bridge heading right until you reach a large statue altar covered in candles. On the area map, this altar sits directly beneath the golden tree icon labelled HOLLOW TREE, so a quick look at the map confirms you’re in the right place.
The left side of the altar’s base is a cracked stone wall. It looks like part of the platform, but it breaks after a few melee hits and opens onto a stone staircase that leads down toward the roots. Pauper’s Grave has one breakable wall and one secret area, and this wall leads to that secret area.
How to reach the Hollow Tree from the Spirit’s clue
The Hollow Tree becomes relevant once you speak to a glowing purple Spirit on a lower ledge in Pauper’s Grave. That ledge doesn’t connect back up to the altar, so you have to take a longer route through the neighbouring districts and use a mirror to get to the surface.
You know it worked when the wall is gone and the staircase is visible. Dropping down the shaft at the bottom of the stairs takes you into the roots under the map’s Hollow Tree marker. If the wall doesn’t break, check the map again, because the altar under the tree icon is the only one that hides the stairs.
Pauper’s Grave and The Prophetess clue records
The Hollow Tree clue is one of the clues filed under The Prophetess, the Arcana card tied to Medusa. The Prophetess has 4 clues in total, and three of them are found in Holy Innocents’ Cemetery.
| Clue | District | Area |
|---|---|---|
| The Roots of the Hollow Tree | Pauper’s Grave | Holy Innocents’ Cemetery |
| Cemetery Fountain | Fountain of the Innocents | Holy Innocents’ Cemetery |
| Guardian’s Gaze | Roman Baths | Holy Innocents’ Cemetery |
Pauper’s Grave is small, but it has several things worth checking off while you’re there.
- Breakable walls: 1
- Secret areas: 1
- Mirror of Life: 1
- Clue: The Roots of the Hollow Tree
The Prophetess grants Medusa’s spell, Petrifying Gaze. Its Works of Mercy are to petrify an enemy carrying a shield, and a second task called Not again, Perseus!, which asks you to kill 25 enemies with fall damage right after petrifying them in midair.
