Penanggalan

The penanggalan or penanggal is a nocturnal vampiric entity from Malay ghost myths. It takes the form of a floating disembodied woman's head, with its organs and entrails trailing from its neck. The name penanggalan derives from the word tanggal, meaning "to remove or take off", because its form is that of a floating disembodied woman's head, with its organs and entrails trailing from its neck. The penanggalan's victims are traditionally pregnant women and young children, men are usually avoided by the penanggalan and spy on them throughout the night as a way to protect the expectant mother or newborn. As traditional Malay dwellings were stilt-houses, the penanggal would hide under the stilts of the house and use its long tongue to lap up the blood of the new mother. Those whose blood the penanggalan feeds on contract a wasting disease that is almost inescapably fatal.

This was done for our Hellfire sculpting club