Unicorn 43236 226183551 2008-07-17T05:43:55Z Someguy1221 3315180 Reverted edits by [[Special:Contributions/68.192.172.16|68.192.172.16]] to last version by Sephiroth BCR (using [[WP:HG|Huggle]]) [[Image:DomenichinounicornPalFarnese.jpg|thumb|right|''The gentle and pensive maiden has the power to tame the unicorn,'' fresco, [[Palazzo Farnese, Rome]], probably by [[Domenico Zampieri]], ca 1602]] {{other}} A '''unicorn''' (from [[Latin]] ''unus'' 'one' and ''cornu'' 'horn') is a [[mythological creature]] often used in fantasy stories, picture book, and novels.<!--we don't make edits to quoted text--> Though the modern popular image of the unicorn is sometimes that of a [[horse]] differing only in the [[Horn (anatomy)|horn]] on its forehead, the traditional unicorn has a [[Goat|billy-goat]] beard, a [[lion]]'s tail, and [[Cloven hoof|cloven hooves]]&mdash;these distinguish it from a horse.<ref> Coincidentally, these modifications make the horned ungulate more realistic, since only cloven-hoofed animals have horns.</ref> Marianna Mayer has observed (''The Unicorn and the Lake''), "The unicorn is the only fabulous beast that does not seem to have been conceived out of human fears. In even the earliest references he is fierce yet good, selfless yet solitary, but always mysteriously beautiful. He could be captured only by unfair means, and his single horn was said to neutralize poison." == Unicorns in antiquity == A one-horned animal (which may be just a [[Cattle|bull]] in profile) is found on some [[seal (device)|seals]] from the [[Indus Valley Civilization]].<ref>[http://www.geocities.com/pak_history/Harappan.html Discussion of the Indus Valley Civilization with mention of unicorn seals]</ref> Seals with such a design are thought to be a mark of high [[social rank]].<ref>[http://www.harappa.com/seal/seal1.html Site with slide show about unicorn seal]</ref> [[Image:Ur-painting.jpg|right|thumb|The aurochs]] An animal called the ''[[Re’em]]'' ([[Hebrew language|Hebrew]]: רְאֵם) is mentioned in several places in the [[Hebrew Bible]], often as a metaphor representing strength. "The allusions to the ''re'em'' as a wild, un-tamable animal of great strength and agility, with mighty horn or horns ({{bibleverse||Job|39:9-12}}, {{bibleverse||Ps|22:21}}, {{bibleverse-nb||Ps|29:6}}, {{bibleverse||Num|23:22}}, {{bibleverse-nb||Num|24:8}}, {{bibleverse||Deut|33:17}} comp. {{bibleverse||Ps|92:11}}), best fit the [[aurochs]] (''Bos primigenius''). This view is supported by the Assyrian ''rimu,'' which is often used as a metaphor of strength, and is depicted as a powerful, fierce, wild mountain bull with large horns."<ref>[http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=27&letter=U ''Jewish Encyclopedia'']</ref> This animal was often depicted in ancient [[Mesopotamia]]n art in profile, with only one horn visible. The translators of the [[Authorized King James Version]] of the [[Bible]] (1611) employed ''unicorn'' to translate ''re'em'', providing a recognizable animal that was proverbial for its un-tamable nature. : {{bibleverse||Job|39:9-12}}: ''Will the '''unicorn''' be willing to serve thee, or abide by thy crib? Canst thou bind the '''unicorn''' with band in the furrow? or will he harrow the valleys after thee? Wilt thou trust him, because his strength is great? or wilt thou leave thy labour to him? Wilt thou believe him, that he will bring home thy seed, and gather it into thy barn?'' : {{bibleverse||Psalms|29:6}}: ''He maketh them also to skip like a calf; Lebanon and Sirion like a young '''unicorn'''.'' : {{bibleverse||Numbers|24:8}}: ''...he hath as it were the strength of a '''unicorn''''' [[Image:wesh unicorn statue.jpg|thumb|right|An old [[Wales|Welsh]] statue of a unicorn]] Unicorns are not found in [[Greek mythology]], but rather in accounts of [[natural history]], for Greek writers of natural history were convinced of the reality of the unicorn, which they located in [[India]], a distant and fabulous realm for them. The earliest description is from [[Ctesias]] who described them as wild asses, fleet of foot, having a horn a [[cubit]] and a half in length and colored white, red and black.<ref name="Ctesias">{{cite book | last =Ctesias | authorlink =Ctesias | title =Indica | date =390 BC | chapter =45 | url = http://www.livius.org/ct-cz/ctesias/photius_indica.html}} (quoted by [[Photius]])</ref> [[Aristotle]] must be following Ctesias when he mentions two one-horned animals, the [[oryx]] (a kind of antelope) and the so-called "Indian ass".<ref>{{cite book | last = Aristotle | authorlink = Aristotle | others= trans. William Ogle | title = On the Parts of Animals | date = c.350 BC | chapter = Book 3. Chapter 2. | url = http://etext.library.adelaide.edu.au/a/aristotle/parts/ }}</ref><ref>{{cite book | last = Aristotle | authorlink = Aristotle | others= trans. [[D’Arcy Wentworth Thompson]] | title = History of Animals | date = c.343 BC | chapter = Book 2. Chapter 1. | url = http://etext.library.adelaide.edu.au/a/aristotle/history/ }}</ref> [[Strabo]] says that in the [[Caucasus]] there were one-horned horses with stag-like heads.<ref>{{cite book | last = Strabo | authorlink = Strabo | title = Geography | date = before 24 AD | chapter = Book 15. Chapter 1. Section 56. | url = http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Strabo/15A3*.html }}</ref> [[Pliny the Elder]] mentions the oryx and an Indian [[ox]] (perhaps a [[rhinoceros]]) as one-horned beasts, as well as "a very fierce animal called the monoceros which has the head of the [[Deer|stag]], the feet of the [[elephant]], and the tail of the [[boar]], while the rest of the body is like that of the horse; it makes a deep lowing noise, and has a single black horn, which projects from the middle of its forehead, two cubits in length."<ref>{{cite book | last =Pliny | authorlink = Pliny the Elder | others=trans. John Bostock | title = Natural History | date = 77 AD | chapter = Book 8. Chapter 31. | url = http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin//ptext?lookup=Plin.+Nat.+8.31}} Also [http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin//ptext?lookup=Plin.+Nat.+8.30 Book 8. Chapter 30.] and [http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/cgi-bin///ptext?lookup=Plin.+Nat.+11.106 Book 11. Chapter 106.]</ref> In ''De natura animalium'', [[Claudius Aelianus|Aelian]], quoting Ctesias, adds that India produces also a one-horned horse (iii. 41; iv. 52), and says (xvi. 20) that the ''monoceros'' was sometimes called ''cartazonon'', which may be a form of the Arabic ''[[karkadann]]'', meaning "rhinoceros". Though the ''[[qilin]]'' ({{zh-c|c=麒麟}}), a creature in [[Chinese mythology]], is sometimes called "the Chinese unicorn", it is a [[Hybrid (biology)#Interspecific hybrids|hybrid animal]] that looks less unicorn than [[chimera (mythology)|chimera]], with the body of a deer, the head of a lion, green [[Scale (zoology)|scales]] and a long forwardly-curved horn. The [[Japanese mythology|Japanese]] version (''kirin'') more closely resembles the Western unicorn, even though it is based on the Chinese ''qilin''. The Quẻ Ly of [[Vietnam]]ese myth, similarly sometimes mistranslated "unicorn" is a symbol of wealth and prosperity that made its first appearance during the Duong Dynasty, about 600 CE, to Emperor Duong Cao To, after a military victory which resulted in his conquest of [[Tây Nguyên]]. == Medieval unicorns == [[Image:Wildweibchen mit Einhorn.jpg|thumb|left|''Wild Women with Unicorn,'' c.1500-1510, Basel, Historisches Museum]] [[Image:Riding goats Abbatiale Mozac 2007 06 30 n2.jpg|thumb|Youths riding goats (a [[Dionysus|Dionysiac motif]] in Antiquity) on 12th-century capitals from the [[Mozac Abbey|abbey of Mozac]] in the [[Auvergne (region)|Auvergne]]: the goats are indistinguishable from unicorns]] [[Middle Ages|Medieval]] knowledge of the fabulous beast stemmed from [[Re’em|biblical]] and ancient sources, and the creature was variously represented as a kind of wild ass, goat, or horse. The predecessor of the medieval [[bestiary]], compiled in [[Late Antiquity]] and known as ''[[Physiologus]]'', popularized an elaborate [[allegory]] in which a unicorn, trapped by a maiden (representing the [[Mary (mother of Jesus)|Virgin Mary]]), stood for the [[Incarnation]]. As soon as the unicorn sees her, it lays its head on her lap and falls asleep. This became a basic emblematic tag that underlies medieval notions of the unicorn, justifying its appearance in every form of [[Sacred art|religious art.]] The two major interpretations of the unicorn symbol hinge on [[Paganism|pagan]] and [[Catholic]] symbolism. The pagan interpretation focuses on the medieval lore of beguiled lovers, whereas some Catholic writings interpret the unicorn and its death as the [[Passion (Christianity)|Passion of Christ]]. The unicorn has long been identified as a symbol of [[Jesus|Christ]] by Catholic writers, allowing the traditionally pagan symbolism of the unicorn to become acceptable within religious [[doctrine]]. The original myths refer to a beast with one horn that can only be tamed by a [[Virginity|virgin]] maiden; subsequently, some Catholic scholars translated this into an allegory for Christ's relationship with the Virgin Mary. Interestingly enough, the [[List of collective nouns by subject I-Z|collective term]] for a grouping of unicorns is called a "blessing of unicorns". The unicorn also figured in [[courtly love|courtly terms]]: for some 13th century [[France|French]] authors such as [[Theobald I of Navarre|Thibaut of Champagne]] and [[Richard de Fournival]], the lover is attracted to his lady as the unicorn is to the virgin. With the rise of [[Renaissance humanism|humanism]], the unicorn also acquired more orthodox secular meanings, emblematic of chaste love and faithful marriage. It plays this role in [[Petrarch]]'s ''Triumph of Chastity''. The royal throne of [[Denmark]] was made of "unicorn horns". The same material was used for ceremonial cups because the unicorn's horn continued to be believed to neutralize poison, following classical authors. [[Image:Pisanello Medal of Cecilia Gonzaga.jpg|thumb|left|Medal of Cecilia Gonzaga by [[Pisanello]], 1447]] The unicorn, tamable only by a virgin woman, was well established in medieval lore by the time [[Marco Polo]] described them as: :''scarcely smaller than elephants. They have the hair of a buffalo and feet like an elephant's. They have a single large black horn in the middle of the forehead... They have a head like a wild boar's… They spend their time by preference wallowing in [[mud]] and slime. They are very ugly brutes to look at. They are not at all such as we describe them when we relate that they let themselves be captured by virgins, but clean contrary to our notions.'' It is clear that Marco Polo was describing a rhinoceros. In [[German language|German]], since the 16th century, ''Einhorn'' ("one-horn") has become a descriptor of the various species of rhinoceros. The ancient [[Norway|Norwegians]] were said to believe the [[narwhal]] to have affirmed the existence of the unicorn. The unicorn horn was believed to stem from the narwhal tooth, which grows outward and projects from its upper jaw. In popular belief, examined wittily and at length in the seventeenth century by Sir [[Thomas Browne]] in his ''[[Pseudodoxia Epidemica]]'', unicorn horns could neutralize poisons.<ref> {{cite book | last =Browne | first =Thomas | authorlink = Thomas Browne | title = Pseudodoxia Epidemica | date =1646 | chapter = Book 3. Chapter 23. | url = http://penelope.uchicago.edu/pseudodoxia/pseudo323.html}}</ref> Therefore, people who feared poisoning sometimes drank from goblets made of "unicorn horn". Alleged [[aphrodisiac]] qualities and other purported medicinal virtues also drove up the cost of "unicorn" products such as [[milk]], [[Rawhide|hide]], and [[offal]]. Unicorns were also said to be able to determine whether or not a woman was a virgin; in some tales, they could only be mounted by virgins. == The hunt of the unicorn == [[Image:Französischer Tapisseur (15. Jahrhundert) 001.jpg|thumb|right|Tapestry, Maiden with Unicorn, 15th century,([[Musée de Cluny]], [[Paris]])]] [[Image:The Hunt of the Unicorn Tapestry 7.jpg|thumb|left|'''''The Unicorn is Penned,''''' the ''Unicorn Tapestries, [[circa]] 1495–1505, [[the Cloisters]], [[Metropolitan Museum of Art]], [[New York City]]]] One traditional method of hunting unicorns involved entrapment by a virgin. In one of his notebooks [[Leonardo da Vinci]] wrote: :''"The unicorn, through its intemperance and not knowing how to control itself, for the love it bears to fair maidens forgets its ferocity and wildness; and laying aside all fear it will go up to a seated damsel and go to sleep in her lap, and thus the hunters take it."''<ref>[http://www.universalleonardo.org/work.php?id=438 (Ashmolean Museum) "Young woman seated in a landscape with a unicorn", Leonardo, Late 1470s]</ref> The famous late [[Gothic art|Gothic]] series of seven [[tapestry]] hangings, ''[[The Hunt of the Unicorn]]'' are a high point in [[Europe]]an tapestry manufacture, combining both secular and religious themes. The tapestries now hang in [[the Cloisters]] division of the [[Metropolitan Museum of Art]] in [[New York City]]. In the series, richly dressed [[Nobility|noblemen]], accompanied by huntsmen and hounds, pursue a unicorn against ''[[mille-fleur]]'' backgrounds or settings of buildings and gardens. They bring the animal to bay with the help of a maiden who traps it with her charms, appear to kill it, and bring it back to a castle; in the last and most famous panel, "The Unicorn in Captivity," the unicorn is shown alive again and happy, chained to a [[pomegranate]] tree surrounded by a fence, in a field of flowers. Scholars conjecture that the red stains on its flanks are not blood but rather the juice from pomegranates, which were a symbol of fertility. However, the true meaning of the mysterious resurrected Unicorn in the last panel is unclear. The series was woven about 1500 in the [[Low Countries]], probably [[Brussels]] or [[Liège (city)|Liège]], for an unknown patron. A set of six [[engraving]]s on the same theme, treated rather differently, were engraved by the French artist [[Jean Duvet]] in the 1540s. Another famous set of six tapestries of ''[[The Lady and the Unicorn|Dame à la licorne]]'' ("Lady with the unicorn") in the [[Musée de Cluny]], [[Paris]], were also woven in the [[Southern Netherlands]] before 1500, and show the five senses (the gateways to temptation) and finally Love ("A mon seul desir" the legend reads), with unicorns featured in each piece. Facsimiles of the unicorn tapestries are currently being woven for permanent display in [[Stirling Castle]], [[Scotland]], to take the place of a set recorded in the castle in the 16th century. == Heraldry == [[Image:Old State House Unicorn zoom.jpg|thumb|right|Oblique view of the [[Old State House (Boston)|Old State House]] in Boston, Massachusetts, the seat of British colonial government from 1713 to 1776, showing the lion and the unicorn, the supporters of the [[Coat of arms of the United Kingdom]]]] In [[heraldry]], a unicorn is depicted as a horse with a goat's cloven hooves and beard, a lion's tail, and a slender, spiral horn on its forehead.<ref name="friar">{{cite book |last=Friar |first=Stephen |authorlink=Stephen Friar |title=A New Dictionary of Heraldry |year=1987 |pages= p 353-354 |publisher=Alphabooks/[[A & C Black]] |location=London |isbn=0906670446 |}}</ref> Whether because it was an emblem of the Incarnation or of the fearsome animal passions of raw nature, the unicorn was not widely used in early heraldry, but became popular from the 15th century.<ref name="friar" /> Though sometimes shown collared, which may perhaps be taken in some cases as an indication that it has been tamed or tempered, it is more usually shown collared with a broken chain attached, showing that it has broken free from its bondage and cannot be taken again. It is probably best known from the royal [[coat of arms]] of Scotland and the [[United Kingdom]]: two unicorns [[supporters|support]] the [[Royal coat of arms of Scotland|Scottish arms]]; a lion and a unicorn support the [[Coat of arms of the United Kingdom|UK arms]]. The arms of the [[Worshipful Society of Apothecaries]] in [[London]] has two golden unicorn supporters (although, as emblazoned on its [http://www.apothecaries.org.uk/ homepage], they have horses', not lions', tails). <ref name="friar" /> <gallery> Image:Licorne Edimbourg Scotland.JPG|<center>Unicorn supporter of the [[Royal coat of arms of Scotland|arms of Scotland]] Image:Blason_ville_fr_SaintLo_(Manche).svg|<center>Arms of [[Saint-Lô]], [[France]] Image:Líšnice.svg|Arms of [[Lišnice]], [[Czech Republic]] Image:Ramosch wappen.svg|<center>Arms of [[Ramosch]], [[Switzerland]] </gallery> == Possible origins == Hunts for an actual animal as the basis of the unicorn myth, accepting the conception of writers in Antiquity that it really existed somewhere at the edge of the known earth, have added a further layer of [[Mythology|mythologizing]] about the unicorn. These have taken various forms, interpreted in a scientific, rather than a wonder-filled manner, to accord with modern perceptions of reality. === Alleged skeletal evidence === [[Image:Einhorn-Guericke.jpg|thumb|The German unicorn skeleton allegedly discovered in 1663]] Among numerous finds of [[Prehistory|prehistoric]] bones found at [http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Einhornh%C3%B6hle_%28Harz%29 Einhornhöhle] (Unicorn Cave) in [[Germany]]'s [[Harz|Harz Mountains]], some were selected and reconstructed by the mayor of [[Magdeburg]], [[Otto von Guericke]], as a unicorn in 1663. The so-called unicorn had only two legs, and was likely constructed from [[fossil]] bones, perhaps of [[mammoth]]s or other animals. The skeleton was examined by [[Gottfried Leibniz]], who had previously doubted the existence of the unicorn, but was convinced thereby.<ref>[http://nationalzoo.si.edu/Publications/ZooGoer/2006/6/hoaxes.cfm Robin Meadows, "The Unicorn, the Mermaid, and the Centaur" ''Zoogoer, November-December 2006]</ref> [[Georges Cuvier|Baron Georges Cuvier]] maintained that as the unicorn was cloven-hoofed it must therefore have a cloven skull (making the growth of a single horn impossible); to disprove this, Dr. [[W. Franklin Dove]], a [[University of Maine]] professor, artificially fused the horn buds of a [[calf]] together, creating a one-horned bull.<ref> {{cite web | title = Dr Dove's Unicorn Bull | url = http://www.unicorngarden.com/drdove.htm | accessdate = 2007-01-20 }}</ref> [[P. T. Barnum]] once exhibited a unicorn skeleton, which was exposed as a [[hoax]].{{Fact|date=June 2008}} Since the [[rhinoceros]] is the only known extant land animal to possess a single horn, it has often been supposed that the unicorn legend originated from encounters between Europeans and rhinoceroses. The [[Woolly Rhinoceros]] would have been quite familiar to [[ice age]] people, or the legend may have been based on the rhinoceroses of [[Africa]]. Europeans and [[Southwest Asia|West Asians]] have visited [[Sub-Saharan Africa]] for as long as we have records{{Fact|date=June 2008}}. [[Image:http://www.hermetics.org/images/aHarappaSeals.jpg]] The first objects unearthed from Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro were small stone seals inscribed with elegant depictions of animals, including a unicorn-like figure in upper left, and marked with Indus script writing which still baffles scholars. These seals are dated back to 2500 B. C. Source: North Park University, Chicago, Illinois. [[Image:http://www.hermetics.org/images/aHarappaUnicorn.jpg]] This seal is a close-up of the unicorn-like animal found in Mohenjo-daro, measures 29mm (1.14 inches) on each side and is made of heated Steatite. "Steatite is an easily carved soft stone that becomes hard after firing. On the top are four pictographs of an as yet undeciphered Indus script, one of the first writing systems in history." Image source Dept. of Archaeology and Museums, Govt. of Pakistan === Elasmotherium or rhinoceros === One suggestion is that the unicorn is based on the extinct animal ''[[Elasmotherium]]'', a huge [[Eurasia]]n rhinoceros native to the [[steppe]]s, south of the range of the woolly rhinoceros of Ice Age Europe. ''Elasmotherium'' looked little like a horse, but it had a large single horn in its forehead. It became extinct about the same time as the rest of the glacial age [[megafauna]]{{Fact|date=June 2008}}. However, according to the ''[[Nordisk familjebok]] (Nordic Familybook)'' and science writer [[Willy Ley]] the animal may have survived long enough to be remembered in the legends of the [[Evenks|Evenk]] people of [[Russia]] as a huge black bull with a single horn in the forehead. In support of this claim, it has been noted that the 13th century traveller Marco Polo claimed to have seen a unicorn in [[Java]], but his description makes it clear to the modern reader that he actually saw a [[Javan Rhinoceros]]. Perhaps additional supporting evidence can be found in the fact that a rhinoceros' horn reacts with alkaloids by turning a different color{{Fact|date=June 2008}}. A majority of the medieval poisons were made from [[alkaloid]]s{{Fact|date=June 2008}}, which coincides with the myth that unicorn horns change color when a poison in placed within them. === A single-horned goat === The connection that is sometimes made with a single-horned goat derives from the vision of Daniel: :''And as I was considering, behold, a he-goat came from the west over the face of the whole earth, and touched not the ground: and the goat had a notable horn between his eyes.'' {{bibleverse||Daniel|8:5}} In the domestic goat, a rare deformity of the generative tissues can cause the horns to be joined together{{Fact|date=June 2007}}; such an animal could be another possible inspiration for the legend. Antiquities researcher [[Oberon Zell-Ravenheart|Timothy Zell]] also produced artificial unicorns dubbed "the Living Unicorn", remodelling the "horn buds" of goat kids in such a way that their horns grew together into a single one.<ref> {{cite web | title = Man Made Unicorns | url = http://www.lair2000.net/Unicorn_Dreams/Unicorns_Man_Made/unicorns_man_made.html | accessdate = 2007-01-20 }} </ref> Zell theorized that this process might have been used in the past to create court curiosities and natural herd leaders, because the goat was able to use this long straight horn effectively as a weapon and a tool. [[Medieval art]] often depicts unicorns as small, with cloven hooves and beards, sometimes resembling goats more than horses with horns. This process is possible only with animals that naturally have horns. For a time, a few of these unicorns travelled with the [[Ringling Brothers Circus]].<ref>[http://www.ringling.com/explore/history/legend/unicorn.aspx The Living Unicorn!]</ref> === The narwhal === [[Image:Narwhalsk.jpg|thumb|Male [[Narwhal]]]] The unicorn horns often found in [[cabinet of curiosities|cabinets of curiosities]] and other contexts in Medieval and [[Renaissance]] Europe were very often examples of the distinctive straight spiral single tusk of the [[narwhal]] (''Monodon monoceros''), an [[Arctic Ocean|Arctic]] [[cetacea]]n, as [[Denmark|Danish]] zoologist [[Ole Worm]] established in 1638.<ref>{{cite web | title =Unicorn at Ocultopedia | url = http://www.occultopedia.com/u/unicorn.htm | accessdate = 2007-01-20 }}</ref> They were brought south as a very valuable trade, passing the various tests intended to spot fake unicorn horns. The usual depiction of the unicorn horn in art derives from these. [[Elizabeth I of England]] kept a "unicorn horn" in her cabinet of curiosities, brought back by [[Arctic]] explorer [[Martin Frobisher]] on his return from [[Labrador]] in 1577. Furthermore in the 1500s people believed that all land animals had a counterpart in the sea. The discovery of narwhals "proved" that unicorns really existed{{Fact|date=June 2008}}. === The oryx === [[Image:Tempul 009.jpg|right|thumb|The oryx]] The [[oryx]] is an [[antelope]] with two long, thin horns projecting from its forehead. Some have suggested that seen from the side and from a distance, the oryx looks something like a horse with a single horn (although the 'horn' projects backward, not forward as in the classic unicorn). Conceivably, travellers in [[Arabian Peninsula|Arabia]] could have derived the tale of the unicorn from these animals. However, classical authors seem to distinguish clearly between oryxes and unicorns. The ''[[Erhard Reuwich#Peregrinatio in terram sanctam|Peregrinatio in terram sanctam]]'', published in 1486, was the first printed illustrated travel-book, describing a [[pilgrimage]] to [[Jerusalem]], and thence to [[Egypt]] by way of [[Mount Sinai]]. It featured many large [[woodcut]]s by [[Erhard Reuwich]], who went on the trip, mostly detailed and accurate views of cities. The book also contained pictures of animals seen on the journey, including a [[crocodile]], [[camel]], and unicorn - presumably an oryx, which they could easily have seen on their route. === The eland === [[Image:Gazelle.jpg|thumb|left|The eland]] In [[Southern Africa]] the [[Common Eland|eland]] has somewhat mystical or spiritual connotations, perhaps at least partly because this very large antelope will defend itself against lions, and is able to kill these fearsome predators. Eland are very frequently depicted in the [[rock art]] of the region, which implies that they were viewed as having a strong connection to the other world, and in several languages the word for eland and for dance is the same; significant because shamans used dance as their means of drawing power from the other world. Eland fat was used when mixing the pigments for these pictographs, and in the preparation of many medicines. This special regard for the eland may well have been picked up by early travellers. In the area of [[Cape Town]] one horned eland are known to occur naturally, perhaps as the result of a recessive gene, and were noted in the diary of an early governor of the Cape{{Fact|date=February 2007}}. There is also a purported unicorn horn in the castle of the chief of the [[Clan MacLeod]] in Scotland, which has been identified as that of an eland. === Genetic disorders of horned animals === <!-- Image with unknown copyright status removed: [[Image:Italian.Unicorn.Image001.jpg|200px|right|frame|This [[roe deer]] was born in captivity at the Center of Natural Sciences in [[Prato, Italy]], and developed a single horn at the center of its head.<ref name="AP"/>]] --> A new possibility for the inspiration of the unicorn came in [[2008]] with the discovery of a [[roe deer]] in [[Italy]] with a single horn. Single-horned deer aren't unheard of; however, the placement of this horn, in the center of the head, is quite unusual. Fulvio Fraticelli, scientific director of Rome's zoo, has said "Generally, the horn is on one side (of the head) rather than being at the center. This looks like a complex case."<ref name="AP">{{cite web | title=Single-horned 'Unicorn' is deer found in Italy | last=Falconi | first=Marta | url=http://dsc.discovery.com/news/2008/06/11/unicorn-deer-italy.html | date=2008-07-16 | accessdate=2008-06-14 | work=Associated Press }}</ref> Fraticelli also acknowledges that the placement of the horn could have been the result of some type of trauma in the life of the deer.<ref name="AP"/> This unicorn found in [[Prato]], [[Tuscany]] is one of the most concrete living evidence of the legendary unicorn: notice that roe deer have also cloven hooves, like traditional representations. Maybe there were in the past similar morphological anomalies like a single-horn deer or a different animal that has been seen from a certain distance. According to Gilberto Tozzi, director of the Center of Natural Science in Prato, “this single-horn deer is conscious to its uniqueness and does not come out a lot, always hiding.”<ref>{{cite web | title = Single-horned 'Unicorn' deer found in Italy | url = http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080611/ap_on_fe_st/italy_unicorn;_ylt=AuMxc9ordeEPLXLJHlp5JQEuQE4F | accessdate = 2008-06-11}} Larger photo [http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1025793/The-horned-deer-solve-mystery-unicorn.html here]</ref> == See also == * [[Invisible Pink Unicorn]] (a modern satirical religious symbol) * [[Shadhavar]] (a unicorn-like creature in Persian folklore) * [[Honda Unicorn]] * [[Camahueto]] (mythological bull-unicorn) * [[Qilin]] (a unicorn-like chimerical creature in Chinese mythology) == Notes == {{reflist}} == References == {{Refimprove|date=June 2008}} {{citations}} *Beer, Rüdiger Robert, ''Unicorn: Myth and Reality'' ([[1977]]). (Editions: ISBN 0-88405-583-3; ISBN 0-904069-15-X; ISBN 0-442-80583-7.) *''Encyclopaedia Britannica'', 1911: "Unicorn" *Gotfredsen, Lise, ''The Unicorn'' ([[1999]]). (Editions: ISBN 0-7892-0595-5; ISBN 1-86046-267-7.) *Shepard, Odell. ''The Lore of the Unicorn''. (1930) [http://www.sacred-texts.com/etc/lou/index.htm text] *[http://www.lair2000.net/Unicorn_Dreams/Unicorns_Man_Made/unicorns_man_made.html The Living Unicorn] == External links == {{commonscat|Unicorns}} * [http://www.summagallicana.it/unicorno/Zur%20Rezeptionsgeschichte%20des%20Einhorns.pdf Pascal Gratz, ''De Monocerote - Zur Rezeptionsgeschichte des Einhorns''] * [http://faidutti.free.fr/licornes/these/these.html Bruno Faidutti, ''Images et connaissance de la licorne''] * [http://www.allaboutunicorns.com All About Unicorns]: Historical unicorn information, plus a gallery of unicorn pictures * [http://bestiary.ca/beasts/beastbiblio140.htm Medieval bestiary:] unicorn bibliography * [http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=27&letter=U ''Jewish Encyclopedia'':] "Unicorn" * [http://www.newanimal.org/unicorn.htm The Cryptid Zoo: Unicorns in Cryptozoology] * [http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0030-1299%28199008%2958%3A3%3C257%3ASDOTMU%3E2.0.CO%3B2-S&size=LARGE&origin=JSTOR-enlargePage Unicorns used to demonstrate spacial distribution modeling] * [http://www.amnh.org/exhibitions/mythiccreatures/land/unicorns.php American Museum of Natural History: Mythic Creatures Special Exhibition: Background and gallery of unicorns] {{Heraldic creatures}} [[Category:Unicorns| ]] [[Category:Medieval European legendary creatures]] [[Category:Medieval art]] [[Category:Medieval legends]] [[Category:Heraldic beasts]] [[Category:Legendary mammals]] [[Category:Mythological horses]] [[ar:يونيكورن]] [[az:Təkbuynuz]] [[bs:Jednorozi]] [[bg:Еднорог]] [[ca:Unicorn]] [[cs:Jednorožec]] [[da:Enhjørning]] [[de:Einhorn]] [[et:Ükssarvik]] [[el:Μονόκερως]] [[es:Unicornio]] [[eo:Unukornulo]] [[fa:تک‌شاخ]] [[fr:Licorne]] [[gd:Aon-adharcach (each)]] [[ko:유니콘]] [[hr:Jednorog]] [[id:Unicorn]] [[is:Einhyrningur (dýr)]] [[it:Unicorno]] [[he:חד-קרן]] [[la:Unicornis]] [[lv:Vienradzis]] [[hu:Egyszarvú]] [[nl:Eenhoorn (fabeldier)]] [[ja:ユニコーン]] [[no:Enhjørning]] [[pl:Jednorożec]] [[pt:Unicórnio]] [[ru:Единорог]] [[simple:Unicorn]] [[sl:Samorog]] [[sr:Једнорог]] [[fi:Yksisarvinen]] [[sv:Enhörning]] [[ta:யுனிக்கோர்ன்]] [[th:ยูนิคอร์น]] [[tr:Tekboynuz]] [[uk:Єдиноріг]] [[ur:ارنا گھوڑا]] [[zh:独角兽]]