The Sombrerón is one of the most romantic, sad, and obsessive legends in Latin America. Also known as Tzitzimite in some areas, he is a character who walks the thin line between a mischievous goblin and a spectral stalker. Unlike monsters that seek blood or flesh, the Sombrerón seeks souls through music and hair.
He is described as a very short man, almost a dwarf, who invariably dresses in black (or dark gray). He wears highly polished boots with silver or gold spurs, a thick belt with a shiny buckle, and, most importantly, a wide-brimmed, gigantic hat that covers almost his entire body and hides his face. He is always accompanied by four black mules and carries a mother-of-pearl or silver guitar that sounds with a celestial melody, sweeter than any human music.
The Sombrerón is a wandering spirit that becomes obsessed with young women with long hair and big eyes. When he chooses a victim, he does not attack her physically; instead, he begins a supernatural courtship. He appears at night under her window, tying his mules to the fence, and begins to play the guitar and sing serenades with a hypnotic voice. The songs are ancient verses, love and pain couplets that bewitch the girl, preventing her from sleeping or eating.
The Sombrerón's distinctive mark, his signature of terror, appears when he manages to enter the girl's room (since he can walk through walls or become invisible). While the girl sleeps or is in a trance, the Sombrerón braids her hair. He makes small, tight, and complex braids that are impossible to undo, which often smell like earth or cemetery flowers. He also braids the manes of the horses and the tails of the dogs in the house, leaving them nervous and exhausted.
The Sombrerón's victim consumes herself. She stops eating because food tastes like earth to her (it is said that the Sombrerón invisibly puts earth on her plate). The girl dies slowly of sadness and weakness, trapped in the specter's love spell. The Sombrerón does not want to kill her out of hatred, but to take her with him to his dimension so that she can listen to him sing eternally.
To save a woman 'won' by the Sombrerón, the cure is drastic: her hair must be cut. By shaving her head, the Sombrerón loses interest, since long hair is his fetish and magical connection. It is said that the specter cries and shouts curses when he sees his beloved without hair, and finally leaves to find another victim. Anthropologically, the Sombrerón is a warning about the dangers of premature romance and obsession. In a conservative society, he represented the fear that a stranger (a musician, a bohemian) would seduce daughters with 'nice words' and take them away from their duty and health. He is the ghost of the eternal serenade, reminding us that love, when it becomes obsession, is as deadly as any disease.