He uses a human spine as a horsewhip, and the head he carries has the consistency of molded cheese. In fact, some scholars speculate that headless horseman stories written by the Brothers Grimm, as well as the Irish legend of the Dullahan, may very well have inspired Irving to write his story.Īccording to legend, the Dullahan is a headless horseman who calls out the name of someone about to die, often someone who he is chasing. While Irving’s tale is Americans’ most well-known headless horseman story, many other cultures, including Scandinavians and Celtics, have their own versions as well. Drawing influences from Norse mythology, the Dutch tales of his youth, and the writings of fellow writer Francis Scott Key, Irving created a haunting tale which continues to capture the imagination of readers today. Washington Irving’s “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow,” now hailed as an early American folklore classic, has an interesting origin story. A headless horseman roams the Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in October 2019.
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