unicorn horse

The unicorn is a mythical animal that looks like a noble horse , but has one horn on its head. This is a mythical creature that symbolizes chastity.

References to the unicorn are found in the ancient world. The oldest images of unicorns are more than 4 thousand years old, and they were found in India. Then they began to appear in the legends of West Asia. 

The first mention of the rhinoceros in the West dates back to the fifth century BC. H. Ctesias, who had served as a physician at the Persian court for 17 years, returned to Greece and described wild Indian donkeys of massive build, with one horn on their foreheads, as well as a red head, blue eyes, and torso. According to Ctesias, anyone who drinks water or wine from this animal’s horn will never contract disease. These unusually fast-footed donkeys can only be hunted when they are with their cubs, which they cannot leave. Ctesias’ story gained popularity thanks to the authority of Aristotle, who briefly mentioned the one-horned “Indian donkeys” as “horses” in his History of Animals.

unicorn horse is real

Stories of unicorns have existed for centuries, despite the fact that these animals do not exist in nature. Even such an educated and respected scientist as Leonardo da Vinci was carried away by them and in 1470 painted his own portrait of a unicorn tamed by a young woman, writing: “Because of his impermanence and inability to control himself, before the subject of his sighs, he forgets his ferocity and wildness, and puts His fears aside, he approaches the seated girl and falls asleep on her lap, thus the hunter can catch him.

Roman writer Claudius Elian, born around AD 170. e . , in the book “Motley Tales” talks about three species of unicorns. The first two species are described as resembling Ctesias’ donkeys, and the third, the Khartazon, has a black spiral horn, “as big as a full-grown horse, red in color, has a horse’s mane, and is very fast.” The cartazones are not dangerous animals, but the males are irreconcilable with each other and even attack the females. The mood of the males during estrus softens, but with the birth of the cubs they become angry again.

unicorn horse in real life

There are references to a fantastic animal in many countries: late Egypt, India, Greece, Bulgaria and Britain. There are differences between the eastern and European rhinos. In eastern countries, the animal looks more like a dragon and is no more than a meter tall. The European rhinoceros is a graceful white (rarely black) horse less than 2 meters long.

In Greek mythology, the unicorn was dedicated to Artemis , the virgin goddess. On the other hand, the Jews had the following legend: when Yahweh asked Adam to give names to all the animals, the unicorn was the first to be named and therefore exalted. When Adam and Eve were expelled from paradise, God gave the unicorn a choice: to stay in Eden or leave with the people. He preferred the last rhinoceros and was blessed with compassion for humans.

The unicorn played an important role in medieval legends and fairy tales; Wizards and sorcerers passed it by. He killed everyone he came across. Only a maiden could tame him, and after that he became tame, lay down on the ground and fell asleep. In general, if you can catch a unicorn, you can only keep it with a golden bridle.

unicorn horns for horses

According to legends, the genus of rhinos was on the verge of extinction due to humans, and the animals went to uninhabited lands so that no one would disturb them. But sometimes white horses appeared among people and helped them in difficult times.

The unicorn symbolizes wisdom, selflessness, purity of thoughts and kindness. These legendary horses cannot be captured, they do not live in captivity . But the unicorn can be pacified by the maiden , and the horse can only be temporarily restrained with the help of a golden bridle.

Unicorn horn has great power. It has medicinal properties, in particular, resistance to toxins. In the Middle Ages, unicorn horn was actively traded in Europe and Asia, and a lot of money was demanded for it. Only the rich could buy a piece of horn. It is not surprising that the legends about this mythical animal have lived in people’s memory for a very long time.