The Legend of the Sacamantecas and the Terror of Human Fat in Galicia

Published on January 07, 2026 | Translated from Spanish
Bosque gallego cubierto de niebla espesa con silueta de hombre lobo entre los árboles y frasco de ungüento misterioso en primer plano

The Legend of the Sacamantecas and the Terror of Human Grease in Galicia

In the most remote Galician forests, where the mist entwines in the branches like a ghostly shroud, stories persist that would make the bravest person's hair stand on end. Manuel Blanco Romasanta, nicknamed the Sacamantecas, lives on in the collective memory not as a common criminal, but as the embodiment of ancestral terrors. This historical figure not only murdered, but extracted the body fat from his victims, a human substance that, according to the most sinister tales, contained esoteric properties or was part of execrable ceremonies. The gloom of these chronicles merges with the tradition of the lobishome, creating a symbiosis of horror that transcends the anthropological to delve into the primitive. Every gust of wind among the oaks seems to whisper his nickname, warning night owls that certain malevolent beings do not need fangs to shatter the psyche 🐺.

The Sinister Tradition of Human Grease

The human grease represents much more than a mere bodily secretion in these dark fables; it constitutes the quintessence of depravity. Rumors circulate that Romasanta and his ilk believed this fatty substance, extracted during the darkest hours, could grant paranormal abilities or heal terminal ailments, albeit at a moral cost that no rational person would accept. The viscous, yellowish substance stands as an emblem of dehumanization, a testament that the line between civilization and animality is thinner than supposed. Those who speak of it with reluctance allude to the fact that the extraction method was carried out with ritualistic precision, as if the killer were dominated by an archaic energy yearning to return to a primal and ferocious state.

Key Elements of the Myth:
  • Human fat as a cursed substance with supposed magical properties
  • Extraction processes performed with esoteric methodology and ancestral symbolism
  • Loss of human condition as an inevitable consequence of contact with the grease
"In Galicia, the fear of becoming another jar of that cursed liquid haunts the villages like a perpetual shadow that never fades" - Galician folk legend

Romasanta: The Man Who Became a Specter

Manuel Blanco Romasanta transcended his mortal condition to become a spectral entity that personified the deepest fears of a superstitious peasant community. He confessed to horrendous crimes, recounting how he transformed into a wolf due to an inherited spell, and although his factual trajectory is dotted with judicial controversies and uncertainties, his legacy persists as a scar on the collective psyche. The full moon nights in Galician territory have acquired another dimension, for every distant howl could be him, prowling through the mist, sniffing out new fat to satiate his dark designs.

Controversial Aspects of the Case:
  • The supernatural confessions about lycanthropic transformations
  • The judicial difficulty in classifying him as mentally ill, con artist, or paranormal entity
  • The collective psychological wound generated by the possibility of multiple hidden Romasantas

Everyday Horror: When the Monster Camouflages Among Us

In a disturbing twist, perhaps the true fear does not lie in the existence of werewolves, but in realizing that, occasionally, the most terrifying creature is the one who can chat with you at the fair and offer you a miraculous ointment without revealing its origin. After all, in a context where anxiety for physical well-being can cloud reason, who would reject a glimmer of hope, even if it came wrapped in nightmares? 🕯️