Halloween Headless Horseman 1 oz .999 Silver Bar Jack-o-Lantern

Killed in battle. Buried without his head. Doomed to ride the Earth for eternity in search of his missing head. The Headless Horseman has become associated with Halloween in modern America, but is rooted in both folklore from the Middle Ages in the British Isles and in early-19th century America. 

Highlights:

• Depicts the Headless Horseman on his midnight ride
• Issued in time for Halloween festivals
• Contains 1 Troy oz of .999 pure silver.
• On the obverse side is the Headless Horseman on his nighttime ride.
• The reverse features a blank field.

Folktales speaking of a headless horseman haunting areas or terrorizing villagers date to the Middles Ages in England, Scotland, and Ireland. Irish folklore speaks of a terrorizing figure known as Dullahan who rides headless on a horse with his own head under his arm. He wields a whip made from a human spine and when he calls out a name, that person immediately dies.

Obverse

On the obverse side of the 1 oz Silver Headless Horseman Bars is an image of a Halloween-themed Headless Horseman on his midnight ride. The Headless Horseman is riding as fast as he can on his horse with a Jack-o-Lantern in his right hand as he rides. The moon is featured in the background field with ghoulish text that reads Happy Halloween.

Reverse

The reverse field of 1 oz Silver Headless Horseman Bars is blank. SilverTowne Mint leaves this field blank for custom engraving and these items arrive with that same blank field. There are wreath bundles on either side of the blank design field with an inscription of One Ounce above and .999 Fine Silver. 

History

Tales of headless riders in Ireland, Scotland, and England influenced a later tale from American author Washington Irving. He wrote the short story The Legend of Sleepy Hollow in 1820. Set during the American Revolution, a Hessian rider is decapitated at the Battle of White Plains in 1776 and quickly buried by his comrades, without his head. Legend has it he rises from the dead each year as a malevolent ghost riding around in search of his lost head. He is said to wield a Jack-o-Lantern as a replacement for his missing head or even a weapon. In the modern era, retellings of the story suggest the Headless Horseman rides on Halloween in search of his head. Historically speaking, the Battle of White Plains took place around the same time of year.