Well I don't think it's a human spine-- that looks like wayyyy too many vertebrae
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Edit: so turns out this is most likely actually a prop from one of the Hercules movies
As bonus content, I did get to learn from this that some of the Irish folklore fairies could apparently be a LOT more hardcore than tinkerbell OR the headless horseman myth ever let on:
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"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, at which point the person immediately drops dead."
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They also carry their head under their arm, which has skin consistent with moldy cheese. So there's that.
Apparently he also holds his head high, allowing his eyes that are "alight with an evil fire" to scan the horizons for his victims. He is only allowed to speak once when he rides-- the name of the victim.
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The whip itself is not for show, either. If he sees anyone looking at him when he passes, he will either douse them with a bucket of blood, or use his spine-whip to whip one of their eyes in it's socket, blinding them.
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He enjoys his job, also, so his face is split with a constant grin from one side to the other.
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Apparently he's a bit like superman, however, in that in all his glory he does have a weakness: on some nights (not all) he may randomly decide he's become terrified of gold.
'
Edit: so turns out this is most likely actually a prop from one of the Hercules movies
'
"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, at which point the person immediately drops dead."
'
They also carry their head under their arm, which has skin consistent with moldy cheese. So there's that.
'
The whip itself is not for show, either. If he sees anyone looking at him when he passes, he will either douse them with a bucket of blood, or use his spine-whip to whip one of their eyes in it's socket, blinding them.
'
He enjoys his job, also, so his face is split with a constant grin from one side to the other.
'
Apparently he's a bit like superman, however, in that in all his glory he does have a weakness: on some nights (not all) he may randomly decide he's become terrified of gold.
Just rip some poor dude's spine off and use it to kill people
Good time