Unicorn is a legendary, one-horned animal described in ancient and medieval literature. Although there is no evidence that such an animal ever lived, many people believed in unicorns.
About 2,400 years ago, a Greek physician named Ctesias wrote about a strange animal said to live in India. This animal resembled a wild horse and had a white body, blue eyes, and a single horn on its forehead.
In early Christian legends, the unicorn was as small as a goat but so fierce that no hunter could capture him by force. The only way to catch a unicorn was to send a maiden alone into the forest. When the unicorn found the maiden, he would rest his head in her lap and fall asleep.
During the Middle Ages, stories about unicorns became increasingly popular. Many medieval paintings and tapestries featured images of these animals. Nobles purchased objects believed to be unicorn horns for extremely high prices. Most of these objects were the tusks of walruses or of unusual whales called narwhals. Today, the unicorn remains a popular character in fantasy literature.
Home|Wizards|Dragons|Castles|Knights|Magic
