- Caleuche
The "Caleuche" is a mythical
ghost ship in the local folklore andChilota mythology ofChiloé Island inChile . It is similar to legends from many other maritime cultures.Legend
According to legend, the "Caleuche" is a large phantom ship sailing the seas around Chiloé at night. It appears as a beautiful sailing ship with the sounds of a party onboard, but quickly disappears again. Myths claim it is crewed by the drowned, who are brought to the ship by three Chilote mythological figures, the two sisters the "sirena chilota" (a type of
mermaid ) and thePincoya and their brother the "Pincoy ". Once onboard, the dead can resume an existence as if they were alive again. Some also say that evil "brujo chilote" (a type of sorcerer) like to visit the party, which they can reach by summoning up magical "caballo marino chilote" (water horse ).Some believe the "Caleuche" provides aid to ships in distress; others also say that once yearly, its drowned crew return to their families to help provide for them.
In fiction
In
Alastair Reynolds 's "Chasm City ", "Caleuche" is the name given to a ship trailing behind a flotilla of colony ships that is not supposed to be there and never responds to communication attempts. When the protagonist takes a shuttle to visit the ghost ship he discovers that it is really a space-faring alien creature that has assumed the appearance of one of the flotilla ships and is trying to hide amongst them from its own enemy.References
* Cárdenas , Antonio. "El Triángulo del Pacífico." Imprenta ARCA. 1996. 74 p.
* Mancilla Pérez, Juan. "Magia y brujería en Chiloé. Secretos de Mitología." Medicina Popular. 2006. 74 p.
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