The Caleuche is a legendary ghost ship from Chiloé, in southern Chile. Tradition says that the ship appears on the shores of the island to enchant the fishermen with a wonderful music, and thus attract them to turn them into slave crew members who would be cursed for all eternity carrying one leg bent over their back, similar to the Invunche.
Overview[]
Another legend says that its crew members Found Witches where they hold their parties and learn new spells. To get to the ship, they must ride on a Sea Horse.
Some think that its final port is the City of the Caesars, a wonderful place nestled somewhere in the Andes Mountains, where its residents live forever.
It is believed that originally the Caleuche was only a ghost ship, but the Millalobo would have given it the gift of consciousness, and great powers; with the objective that the Caleuche acts as the place of permanence of those who die in the sea, whose souls are rescued by his daughter, the Pincoya.
On the island, there is a belief that the Caleuche's crew make magical pacts with certain merchants, assuring them material prosperity in exchange for keeping the secret or doing certain favors; like lending their houses for boat parties or other illegal and obscure fines.
Trivia[]
- Sailors know that they must sail showing respect for the sea, without partying or bustling, otherwise they may attract Caleuche.
- The legend is a local version of The Flying Dutchman, which may have arrived on the island thanks to the Spanish invaders or the Dutch corsairs who sailed off the Chilean coast.
- Some believe that the myth was created to mask the smuggling of goods, and some associate the ship with the OSNI (unidentified submersible object) phenomenon.