With the rise of shows such as Sleepy Hollow, the figure of the Headless Horseman has come back to the cultural mind again. This raises a question: Does this dark rider truly exist, or is it just a folktale used to scare people into staying off the late night roads?

The Dullahan is a headless rider mounted on a dark steed or riding in a carriage or wagon made of human bones. Like their carriage, they are often depicted wielding a weapon made from a human spine as well. The Dullahan’s head, severed from its shoulders, is often found under its arm or on the seat next to it. The head is a grotesque and disturbing thing: colored like moldy cheese with beady black eyes that dart about like flies.

In recent times, this figure has been toned down somewhat. The head itself is completely missing now, sometimes replaced with an appropriately sized surrogate head that they carry in its absence. This is typically due to having lost the head, something which offends the Dullahan greatly and drives them to general violence. This may also be because their surrogates in these cases are often somewhat less than dignified.

No one knows what the head of a Dullahan looks like. In fact, their face and head are such matters of secrecy that they remain constantly concealed – a fact which led to the belief that they had no head at all.

The modern Dullahan does tend to wear motorcycle or car driving gear and are actually quite often found riding or driving through the country-side or even on major motorways. Their vehicles tend to be flashy and they will typically appear uncomfortable or out of place on something that does not have a special flair to it.

This has been theorized by modern scholars to be the origin of the myth that their carriages may have been made of human bones as it is not uncommon for paint jobs on vehicles to feature such things.

The Dullahan is an excellent rider and hunter. Their skill with weapons is extraordinary and they have been said to even be able to whip out a person’s eyes accurately with their bone whips.

Dullahan also exhibit the extraordinary ability to pass through any door unhindered. Any locks and attempts to bar their path will be unlocked and cleared ahead of them. Doors and gates will open themselves ahead of an approaching Dullahan. This, in the old times, made Dullahan unstoppable by villagers who would try to block them with city walls and large gates.

However, the most extraordinary ability of the Dullahan was their ability to both sense and cause the deaths of others around them. It is said that if the Dullahan were to ever stop riding that someone would die, and that the only time they speak is to say the names of those that are about to die. At this point, as they say the person’s name, that person would die instantly.

The Dullahan’s skill as a rider and hunter is accurate. Though they rarely hunt in the modern day due to easier access to markets, their riding skills have not diminished and they spend much of their hours behind the wheel or on motorcycles.

Their nature as unstoppable was embellishment of their general talents. While they have no supernatural powers, it is difficult to stop them once they are riding and they have been known to break through any obstacle in their path. This is rarely demonstrated in public, but is easily understood when you have witnessed one in action.

As for their speaking: Dullahan do not speak under any circumstances as far as we know today. Many Dullahan either avoid all communication or have adopted text communication, especially with the ease of access to modern technology.

Dullahan are hostile to living things. Though they are rarely aggressive to the point of attacking someone, they will not hesitate to take the lives of those on the brink of death. If someone were to try to interfere with this action, however, they will not hesitate to maim or kill anyone in their path.

As part of their unstoppable nature, Dullahan are said to be absolutely fearless of all things except one: gold. Though physical harm and violence will not ward them, anything made of gold will often be enough to ward them away. This includes simple gold plating or costume jewelry.

However, modern interpretations have removed this weakness and have made them much more aggressive. To this point, many modern depictions of Dullahan are violent warmongers or even represented as the literal horseman of death.

Dullahan have no care for normal humans and will often ignore their presence provided they are not confronted or impeded. They tend to prefer to keep moving and live fairly migrant lifestyles that make them somewhat like hermits. Though it is often true that Dullhan have been individuals you do not want to cross, only a brave few have tried to get in the way of a Dullahan in some time.

However, it has been shown that Dullahan can be kept in captivity if necessary without fear for the lives of those around them. The requirement for this safe containment seems to be that the Dullahan, while restrained, still remain in motion.

As for their fear of gold: this is a myth born from the misinterpretation of a common Dullahan defect. Due to their isolated and single-minded nature, many Dullahan have no concept for money and will become confused or even distraught when they encounter it.

Because of the relative common use of gold in money, it became easy for people to misinterpret the behavior as a fear of the gold, rather than the fear of the minted coins.

Besides these traits, little is known of the Dullahan. With their lifestyle and secretive nature, not to mention their refusal to communicate, much remains unknown about these people to this very day despite centuries of attempts to research them.