Roots
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One evil Celtic creature is the Questing Beast, a monster with the head of a snake, the body of a leopard, the backside of a lion and the hooves of a deer
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Both a muse and a demon, Leanan Sidhe is a beautiful fairy who was said to give inspiration to poets and musicians – but at the price of their lives
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The kelpie is a Celtic seahorse monster that lures women and children to ride on them in order to take them back to their lair and eat them
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Balor is the demonic God of Death in Celtic mythology. The one-eyed evil, giant demon was killed by his son, Lug
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Dearg-due, an Irish name meaning “red blood sucker,” is a female demon that seduces men and then drains them of their blood
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The Banshee is a female spirit whose wail, if heard outside of a house, foretells the death of one of its inhabitants
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The Celtic myth of the Sluagh, dead Irish sinners who roam the earth in packs looking to steal souls, is based on the Wild Hunt (pictured here), a European folktale about ghostly hounds or spirits traveling around in packs foretelling of death and disaster
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The Dullahan, an evil foreteller of death, is the Irish version of the headless horseman
The ancient Celts had hundreds of deities, but as with most cultures, they had their demons as well. Here are some of the most frightening of these monsters. ;
Published
October 29, 2009
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