Moon Mausoleum
An online magazine about the paranormal, haunted and macabre. We collect the ghost stories from all around the world as well as review horror and gothic media.
On the highway in El Salvador, be vary of who you stop for along the way. Especially beautiful women that asks for a ride to a nearby place. It might very well be the vengeful spirit of La Descarnada.
On the highway in El Salvador, be vary of who you stop for along the way. Especially beautiful women that asks for a ride to a nearby place. It might very well be the vengeful spirit of La Descarnada.
On the long stretch of highway from Santa Ana to Chalchuapa in El Salvador, an old legend is just refusing to die. The legend of La Descarnada, meaning the fleshless in English. She is a vengeful spirit in female form that lures and seduces men that she meets on her way. At first she looks beautiful, young and healthy, but when she has the man in her claws she shows herself in her true form: a rotten living skeleton.
The tale of La Descarnada is a typical ghost legend that are told all across South America and share many similarities with the legends of La Sayona in Venezuela and La Llorona in Mexico for instance. Often her origin story is rooted in being a scorned woman that goes after any man as she wasn’t able to get revenge on the one that mattered. The legend of La Descarnada has also evolved from an old folklore legend to be more similar to the urban legends like The Vanishing Hitchhiker.
The Vanishing Hitchhiker is a well known urban legend throughout the world. Here is a Moonmausoleum original writings based on the Urban Legend – The Vanishing Hitchhiker
The Legend of La Descarnada also has a lot in common with the legend of La Siguanaba. Also known as Cihuanahual, Caballona, Chuca, Sucia, Bandolera, Macihuatli, Matlacihua, Tisigua, and more, is a legendary figure from Central American folklore. Her name, derived from the Quiché language, means “spectral sister of the abyss.”
The Siguanaba is known for her eerie encounters with men who cross her path. As the legend goes, she appears to men, but her face remains hidden. It’s only after she has ensnared a man’s attention that she reveals her true visage, which is often described as a horse or a skull in different versions of the story. This shocking revelation can lead to illness, madness, or even death. The origin of this myth is complex, with roots in both pre-Hispanic Mesoamerican cultures and European folklore. Over time, these beliefs have intertwined, creating a unique and haunting legend that has persisted through generations.
Late at night on the highway she signals the passing cars to stop. If it is a man travelling alone, she asks for a ride. When he asks her where she is going, she mentions somewhere nearby on his way and it is too easy for him to say he will drop her off there.
Inside the car, she starts her seduction, looking at him provocatively and luring him in. The man doesn’t resist and gives in, starting to caress her. Then the transformation starts, and her beautiful silky skin starts to peel off, little by little and muscles and bones starts to appear under the man’s caresses.
When the man notices it, he freezes, but it is already to late. She continues to decompose right in front of him until she is left as a living skeleton. And those who live to tell the tale have no way of explaining just what happened to them. Although, according to legend they are the lucky ones, as La Descarnada is a folktale that usually ends in the men’s death.
As the legend of La Descarnada continues to send chills down the spines of those who hear it, there is no denying the cautionary tale it holds. The dark tale serves as a reminder to be wary of strange encounters and to trust one’s instincts, especially when traveling alone on long stretches of highway.
For those who have the misfortune of encountering La Descarnada, the outcome is often fatal. The men who fall into her trap are left scarred by the terrifying transformation they witness, unable to comprehend the supernatural force that just took place before their eyes. Their stories, if they’re lucky enough to survive, become cautionary tales whispered among friends and family, spreading awareness of the dangers that lurk on the roads of El Salvador.
And so, the tale of La Descarnada remains ingrained in the consciousness of those who traverse the highways of El Salvador. Her vengeful spirit forever entwined with the folklore of the land, serving as a reminder to heed the warnings of the past and to navigate the roads with caution and wisdom.
Descarnada – Wikipedia, la enciclopedia libre
Siguanaba – Wikipedia, la enciclopedia libre La descarnada – Leyendas de El Salvador
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