It is said to wander along watercourses, through forests and graveyards, and to attempt to kill those who ride it, either by drowning them or throwing them into an abyss.

Several legends are attached to it, one of which makes it the mount of the medieval lord Amauri III de Joux.

Perhaps the result of a goblin's transformation (a hobgoblin), he joins a large number of legendary Jura horses.

The Gauvin horse bears the same name as a famous knight of the Round Table, nephew of King Arthur.

[1] Two forms exist: "Gauvin" is the most common, "Gauvain", which may also the animal's actual name, may also appear occasionally.