“The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” & “Sleepy Hollow” TV show, just made-up fiction. Right? But if its not? What is its based on a real legend?
The Dullahan or Dullaghan (Gan Ceann, Irish for “without a head”, a type of fairy in mythology of Ireland. It is “depicted as a headless rider, usually on a black horse, who carries their own head in their arm. Usually, the Dullahan is male, but there are some female versions. It is said to be the embodiment of the Celtic God Crom Dubh. The mouth is usually in a hideous grin that touches both sides of the head. Its eyes are constantly moving about and can see across the countryside even during the darkest nights. The flesh of the head is said to have the color and consistency of moldy cheese. The Dullahan is believed to use the spine of a human corpse for a whip, and its wagon is adorned with funeral objects: it has candles in skulls to light the way, the spokes of the wheels are made from thigh bones, and the wagon’s covering is made from a worm-chewed pall or dried human skin. The ancient Irish believed that where the Dullahan stops riding, a person is due to die. The Dullahan calls out the person’s name, drawing away the soul of his victim, at which point the person immediately drops dead.”
“There is no way to bar the road against a Dullahan—all locks and gates open to them when they approach. They do not appreciate being watched while on their errands, throwing a basin of blood on those who dare to do so (often a mark that they are among the next to die), or even lashing out the watchers’ eyes with their whips.
Are Dullahan afraid of anything? Can they be driven away? Yes! Afraid of gold. And 1 gold pin can drive one away.
Sources & Further Reading:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dullahan
https://monster.fandom.com/wiki/Dullahan
StarWolf Geek 