On Wednesday we brought you the story of the internet’s funniest new meme craze, fake Halloween costumes. Now as we inch closer to All Hallow’s Eve, it’s time to bring you something far creepier: Mexico’s Isla de las Muñecas (Island of the Dolls), a remote spit of land covered with thousands of decaying old plastic figures.

#MexicoCity's Island of the Dolls is the creepiest place on earth: https://t.co/5OiLs6kT2N pic.twitter.com/yvJ8W6Dyc5

— Frommer's (@Frommers) October 27, 2022

What in the world is going on here? Who—or what—put these grimy,  spooky dolls in the middle of nowhere, on an isle accessible only by boat? It’s indescribably haunting and weird.

Turns out it’s the work of one strange hermit named Don Julian Santana Barrera who moved to the uninhabited island in the 1950s. The man became haunted by the tale of a young girl who had drowned nearby and started hanging dolls in her memory. Or maybe to scare away demons? Nobody knows.

According to Frommer’s, the site has a long history:

This unsettling Island of Misfit Toys lurks amid the Xochimilco canals in the southern part of the Mexican capital. The network of waterways and artificial islets here was created by the Aztec people and is now recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.

4. Island of the dolls, Mexico pic.twitter.com/pQIj1aN22J

— Mrs M (@Educiting) October 27, 2022

Barerra collected dolls for 50 years, often trading food for more. He would take whatever you had; he didn’t care what condition there were in. Just to make things creepier, they might be missing heads, limbs, eyes, you name it. Over the years, left to the elements, they have degraded into macabre, disturbing creatures that almost seem to be alive.

Island of the Dead Dolls 🇲🇽 pic.twitter.com/XXJ8KsXxW7

— ⚙⛓КИКИ⛓⚙ (@80sBaby90sKid_) July 24, 2022

A YouTube channel called “Facts You Should Know” recently posted a video about the island. The narrator tells us in his Caribbean accent that strange things are rumored to happen when the sun sets:

Dolls on the island are threatening, even in the bright light of midday, but in the dark, they are particularly disturbing…Local legend says that the dolls move their heads, arms and even opened their eyes…

Some witnesses claimed they heard the dolls whispering to each other…

Have a happy and safe Halloween out there, folks. If I’ve given you a little scare, I’m sorry (not sorry). If you’re scared… it’s because you should be.

Planning a vacation, need to know more? Watch the video below: