UNICORN: What it is, meaning, legend and much more

Many legends of the Middle Ages have the unicorn as their main figure, a mythical pure and powerful being, who can warn and cancel the effect of powerful poisons.

Its beauty and mystery has conquered many generations, making it a popular creature, not only in medieval times where it appears in poems, paintings and tapestries, but also today, inspiring fashions, accessories, outfits, children’s stories, etc. .

If you want to know more about the fabulous unicorn, we invite you to read this article.

What is a unicorn?

The unicorn is an unreal and imaginary animal that is represented with the appearance of a horse, usually white and has a thin, long, straight and slightly twisted horn on its forehead. (See article: The Phoenix Bird)

This fantastic creature has legs similar to those of an antelope, a beard like that of a goat, and the tail of a lion.

Surrounded by many legends and stories, this creature generally symbolizes purity and is said to only be ridden by a virgin.

The unicorn is very fast and indomitable, making it impossible to hunt or dominate it, as it flees from those who try. However, his weakness is a virgin maiden, whom he recognizes by her fragrance and lets them ride him.

The unicorn surrenders to her charm and is able to defend the lady with his own life.

It has healing powers, many report that its horn could be used as a drug to cure diseases and illnesses, in addition to protecting against the effects of poisons.

His life is linked to the magical horn that he displays on his forehead. If for some reason the unicorn loses its precious horn, it cannot survive and will die within a few minutes.

Skills

The unicorn is a very special being, with incredible qualities and powers, among which are known:

It cleans and purifies water if you touch it with the horn. It can give life and eternal youth. He has the power to summon and open portals to other worlds. It has the gift of healing any illness, disease or wound. It can illuminate with its horn, since it produces light.

Meaning and symbolism

Since ancient times, animals that display a single horn have represented power, superiority and sovereignty.

It is also associated with purity, since it was related at some point to the Virgin Mary, coupled with this her gift of neutralizing poisons and purifying poisoned waters.

Many stories indicate that it is an animal that lives alone and on many occasions it was taken as a symbol of chastity and the monastic lifestyle, that is, typical of monks.

It is closely linked to the magical world and medicine, due to the supposed powers and virtues associated with healing. It is for this reason that for a time his image was the symbol of many pharmacies.

It is associated with courage, strength, freedom, dreams and independence, which is why its image is present on some coats of arms.

in mythology

This mythological creature, commonly represented as a white horse with a horn on its forehead, is the protagonist of hundreds of stories throughout all ages.

However, it is difficult to specify when and where the legend of this magnificent being originated. The truth is that this creature was the protagonist of many stories in ancient Greece.

The first appearances of this character can be located in the year 400 BC, in a book about India, written by the historian of Greek origin known as Ctesias,

In the work he describes the unicorn as a wild animal from Indian lands, similar to a horse, with a white body, a purple head and very intense blue eyes.

It had a black horn, except for the tip, which was red and the base was white. It specifies that this horn is healing, healing stomach ailments, poisoning and serious illnesses such as epilepsy.

Later, as the years went by, its appearance changed, until it became beautiful, white and magnificent. (See article: God Ares)

Numerous stories of the unicorn spread throughout European lands, making this animal a trophy coveted by nobles and wealthy people, who sent their servants to capture it.

Regarding the arrival of the myth to the entire European continent, they establish three possible hypotheses:

1-The explorations carried out by the Greeks, Romans and Macedonians across the Asian continent, to Thailand.

During these expeditions they were able to observe hundreds of wonders, including animals, so some could have described any other species observed on the journey, with the characteristics of the unicorn.

This statement is not far-fetched, since among the animals observed and described by travelers is the hippopotamus, which they called the river horse.

Perhaps the unicorn that we represent in such a stylized and elegant way was an Indian rhinoceros.

2-The Viking peoples who traded different products, including the narwhal tusk, known as the sea unicorn.

It is presumed that these skilled Nordic merchants used the story of the unicorn from distant lands to sell their merchandise, which gained popularity for its supposed healing properties.

3- There is a species known as roe deer, belonging to the deer family, this species exhibits two horns on its head. However, in 2008 in Tuscany, Italy, one was documented with a single horn in the center of its forehead.

It is presumed that at some point throughout history a peculiarity of this type has been seen, and a poorly made appreciation of an animal that was unknown at that time gave rise to the myth of the unicorn.

The truth is that in the Middle Ages the myth of the unicorn was very popular and its figure was present in coats of arms, banners, stories and poems.

Many became rich selling unicorn horn relics, and others were scammed in search of the benefits attributed to this magnificent being.

legend of the unicorn

There are hundreds of legends and stories about the unicorn, however, as is normal, some are more popular than others.

One of the best known in Medieval Europe is the legend of the King’s Forest:

They said that a very powerful and extremely ambitious nobleman wanted to possess the horn of a Unicorn, and benefit from the magical powers it held.

It was well known that unicorns were attracted to young maidens, and that weakness was used by the ambitious noble to devise the plan.

The man looked for a very beautiful young maiden and made her sit under a tree in the forest, which people later called “The King’s Forest.” (See article: Kraken)

After a while the magnificent being appeared, who confidently approached the young woman, the soldiers surrounded him and captured him, taking him to the nobleman’s castle, where they took his horn and therefore his life.

There are many stories from the Middle Ages where powerful nobles and wealthy men offered large amounts for the horn of this animal, however, and as expected, the hunters always delivered the horn of another species and received their reward.

His blood

It is also referred to in other stories and stories that its thick, silvery blood can keep a person alive, even in the most serious condition.

«Only he who has nothing to lose and much to gain, would be capable of committing a crime like this.

The blood of a unicorn will keep you alive, even if you are an inch from death, but at a terrible price.

You have killed something pure and defenseless to save yourself and for that you will have half a cursed life, from the moment the blood touches your lips. Firenze to Harry Potter

golden unicorn

It is considered a very special type of unicorn, as it has a golden horn. Obviously this species was highly sought after by nomadic hunters in northern Galicia, which is one of the places where its legend became most popular, during the settlement of the Celtic tribes in this territory, currently Spanish.

Some explanations and clarifications indicate that there is no such golden unicorn and that they were white horses that had melanin concentrated in a point on their head, which from a distance gave the impression of being a horn.

Today this unicorn represents wealth, good fortune and prosperity.

Unicorn and fairies

Fairies are fantastic beings, represented as a young and beautiful woman, with butterfly wings that allow her to fly, they are very subtle and charming.

They usually live in forests and near lakes and lagoons, they are protectors of nature and have a lot of knowledge about it.

They are close and affectionate with unicorns, they are considered their best friends. They are quite close as they usually live in the same places and both have magical powers.

Unicorn and Pegasus

They are two very different mythological creatures, even though both greatly resemble the horse.

The unicorn with very valuable powers and attributes lacks wings, can heal living beings with its horn and likes to live alone.

The pegasus is the son of Poseidon, the god of the sea, and the gorgon Medusa, who was beheaded by Perseus while pregnant.

Once Medusa was dead, the son of the god who could not stop being born came out through the open neck.

Pegasus, leaving his mother’s body, ascended to the domain of Zeus, bringing him lightning and thunder. From that moment this god gave him protection.

This creature is black and white in color, has strong, wingless wings, is usually very fast and had the gift of making water flow from the ground with the beat of its hooves.

To approach or have contact with Pegasus, the person had to have a clean heart, because he could see their intentions.

The unicorn and the rainbow

The relationship between Unicorns and rainbows is not very clear, however this attraction may be due to the love that the unicorn may feel for its environment, and which therefore includes other wonders of nature such as the rainbow.

Remember that both are surrounded by mystery and magic since ancient times, and therefore it was not surprising that both figures are associated in countless images and stories.

As a lover of purity and beauty, the unicorn is always represented in an environment surrounded by natural wonders, flowers, trees, crystal clear waters, clear days and of course, the rainbow.

We can also highlight that even though the figure of the unicorn is frequently represented in white, there are many stories or stories where this magnificent creature also wears other colors, I suppose depending on the role it plays in said story and the creativity of the person who created it. relates.

The unicorn and the rainbow is very present in children’s stories, toys and accessories, since for many it represents imagination and creativity.

It is also widely used by the LGBT community, as the rainbow unicorn is considered to represent the inclusion and union of everything that is different, but together they form something new, unique and wonderful.

They associate it with the diversity of human feelings and emotions, somehow promoting empathy.

In the Bible

Although it may sound a little strange, the unicorn is also named in the Bible, although there are certain discrepancies about it.

The different…