Talk:Unicorn

Medieval times

In medieval times, entrepreneurs would occasionally manufacture a unicorn by surgery on a goat kid: they would remove one horn bud and relocate the other to the centre of the forehead. (This technique continued to as recently as the 20th century, for circus displays.)

I deleted this text. It is a fantasy based on unfamiliarity with medieval surgery. Wetman 20:06, 14 Mar 2004 (UTC)

While I agree on deletion of a potentially suspicious passage given without a reference, I'd rather not underestimate the ancient surgery; see, e.g., Trepanation. Mikkalai 20:17, 14 Mar 2004 (UTC)

The actual procedure is much simpler and well within the bounds of medieval surgery: the two horn buds are incised at the points where they face each other, and then bound together so that they fuse as they grow into a single horn with two "roots". Neither is either removed or relocated.Rosencomet (talk) 18:35, 27 November 2007 (UTC)

In reality, unicorns do not look like horses, as they do in books and such, they are actually goats or rams which have one horn on their head due to birth defects. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.214.39.92 (talk) 01:51, 1 December 2009 (UTC)

Virgin Girls

The unicorn is known to be attracted to virgin girls. When he finds one wandering alone in the woods, he "lays down" with her, and "puts his head in her lap". In Old English, this is an obvious metaphor for rape. In modern times, the unicorn has been romanticised as a creature of grace and beauty, and its origin as a cautionary tale for young girls has been lost. Just because it's legendary, doesn't mean we can simply invent anything. Notice the passive voice in the first sentence. Wetman 16:36, 5 May 2004 (UTC)

(moved from User Talk:Wetman) Hey, regarding "unicorn": If I'm using bad grammar, go ahead and fix it. If you feel I need to site my sources, go ahead and let me know. Don't assume I'm making things up. In the language analysis department, I suggest you go back to your Shakespeare. Compare the unabridged to the abridged editions of Macbeth, especially the scene with the play. The particular methods of capturing the unicorn have been recounted in every story involving unicorn lore that I've ever read- try "The Unicorn in Myth and Legend".thanks, Pat User:Patterson

If the unicorn imagery in William Shakespeare and his contemporaries is the subject, Patterson should state it. There's already a relevent subsection that could be expanded. What the image meant to Shakespeare (interesting addition to genuine history of the legend) probably does not include an Old English metaphor for rape, however. Find the relevent Shakespeare quotes and use them. Draw some conclusions.Question: is the unicorn a metaphor of unbridled passion in animal nature. Is Nature tamed by the Virgin? As for rape, Shakespeare wrote a whole poem in his early days: The Rape of lucrece. That's a place to look for Shakespeare's feelings about rape. A discussion of Rüdiger Robert Beer, Unicorn: myth and reality 1977 would be useful here too. Wetman 23:00, 5 May 2004 (UTC)

Troubling aspects of the phallus/virgin relationship are undeniable in the unicorn legend (and strangely overlooked in Shepard's otherwise exhaustive "The Lore of the Unicorn"), however w/r/t presenting the unicorn as rapist i think it's worth noting that in a great deal of the virgin/unicorn legends, the virgin is a willing participant in The Hunt, in which invariably the unicorn ends up dead. Usually while still in the virgin's lap. So while i think there's obviously some phallo-dominion stuff to consider here, it's pretty far from a simple rapist/victim story. --doc ocelot 20060619

Invisible Pink Unicorn

"The Invisible Pink Unicorn is an internet created fictional deity as a satire of religions." Does this belong at Satire? It doesn't belong at Pink does it? Or Religion? Can Wikipedia plug just every vacuous burlesque of everything? Wetman 23:15, 19 May 2004 (UTC)

I'm not sure what you mean by asking where this article "belongs". It has its own page, so it doesn't need to belong to any other article in particular. Bryan 03:32, 17 Jul 2004 (UTC)

Reem

Should discuss the "reem" of the Bible. --Daniel C. Boyer 17:52, 24 Oct 2004 (UTC)

OK; I've written a bit. It could stand some expansion, though. --Ben Standeven

Circus

Should discuss 1980s circus appearance of unicorn colt. --Daniel C. Boyer 17:56, 24 Oct 2004 (UTC)

Unicorn skeleton

I removed the following passage because it makes no sense: how did Leibniz, who died in 1716, manage to study a skeleton discovered in the 1760s? More information is needed before this can be put in the article. The Singing Badger 21:12, 24 Oct 2004 (UTC)

Allegedly, however, the skull, with a seven-foot-long horn, survived. One hundred years later [i.e. one hundred years after 1663], a similar skeleton was unearthed at Einhornloch; both skeletons were examined by Liebniz, who, after having doubted the existence of the creature, claimed to have been converted by this evidence.

COLLECTIVE NOUN - A Rainbow of .., OR: A Glory of .., OR: A Blessing of Unicorns

This was just added by an anon to the fiction section:

A group of unicorns is sometimes referred to as a "Rainbow of Unicorns."

Anyone know which fictional setting is this referring to? It should be attributed. Bryan 07:54, 16 Apr 2005 (UTC)

It's been changed to "glory of unicorns" now, which apparently comes from a book by Bruce Coville. The funny thing is that unicorns are usually imagined as solitary creatures. —Charles P. (Mirv) 03:18, 10 May 2005 (UTC)

Exactly true. I've removed the bit, partly because it's misleading. "Unicorns come in collectible sets boxed with cellophane windows. Unicoprns lose resale value when removed from the box." --Wetman 03:53, 10 May 2005 (UTC)

A blessing of unicorns - Under 'Blessing' in Wikipedia, one reference is [quote] Blessing is the collective noun for a group of Unicorns [unquote]. Should that literary whimsy of the English language be included somewhere in this item?

203.129.39.106 12:08, 27 May 2007 (UTC)JayD203.129.39.106 12:08, 27 May 2007 (UTC)

It's already mentioned at the end of the second paragraph under "Medieval unicorns." However, most of those collective terms that show up in lists ("exaltation of larks" and such) have never actually enjoyed any usage in the English language outside of the lists themselves. I'd be inclined to remove the factoid both here and in Blessing. What do others think? Deor (talk) 13:39, 17 August 2009 (UTC)

Agree. It is not in common usage, in fact all references probably go back to just one inventive coinage. Dbfirs 10:12, 22 August 2009 (UTC)

lascaux painting

Does anyone seriously think that this painting depicts a unicorn? It's called "the Unicorn", sure, but it clearly has two horns. —Charles P. ^(Mirv) 14:09, 9 May 2005 (UTC)

I agree with you. I think the reason why it is called the unicorn is that no one knows what kind of animal it is.--Wiglaf 19:22, 9 May 2005 (UTC)

Again, if you guys had done your Art History homework, you would have known that the only reason that the Lascaux cave painting is considered to be a unicorn, is because it bears a striking resemblance to the unicorns depicted on several signant rings if the Indus Valley.

And no, these are not just poor drawings of bulls because at the same time there also exists signant rings with very carefully drawn pictures of bulls on them.

The Lascaux painting is important because it shows that other persons in other parts of the world, besides the Indus Valley, had actually seen the same animals.

Also, the "poor drawing" argument doesn't hold water here either since there is an entire cave full of carefully drawn depictions of bulls at Lascaux; each one being exact down to the last detail.

What you're proposing to say is that on this one particular occassion an inexperienced artist was allowed to mar the surface of this sacred cave without any corrections by another artist?

That does not compute Dr Smith.

Further, the Bible that you speak of in the Book of Job states: does not the unicorn roam in the plains of Uz? [pronounced: "ooz"; present day India]

Also, it is jurisprudent, if you will, among art historians – especially among those who are atheist – to accept the actuality of the the "unknown creature" phenominum at Lascaux, as opposed to continued, "bull-headed" arguments to replace what their eye sees with something more "comfortable" – whatever that could be.

WB2 06:01, 18 December 2005 (UTC)

Unicorn in heraldry

AFAIK, the famous German poet Schiller had a unicorn in his coat of arms. Is anybody able to verify this?

Granted to Schiller personally, and selected by him? --Wetman 18:16, 10 May 2005 (UTC)(flaig@sanctacaris.net)

Despite it being the heraldic supporter for the Scottish royal arms, there is a remarkable dearth of Gaelic translational distionary information on the Unicorn. This is because Buabhall sounds very rude to the Anglophone if properly pronounced and is a secret pun. 211.26.158.138 (talk) 13:31, 13 June 2008 (UTC) Ian Ison

Duplicating "Sources in antiquity"

The following text adds nothing to what is already more specifically treated in "Sources in antiquity":

Although unicorns are mythical creatures, many scholars have wondered whether the myth might be distantly based on a real animal.

The latin name for unicorn (c.f. Kirchner, Athanasius -- Arca Noee) differs by only one letter from the latin name for rhinocerous, leading some to speculate that the modern unicorn was a myth spawned by stories of the rhino related by Europeans who had returned from the crusades.

Some editor seems unaware of unicorns in antiquity at all. Is there anything here to return, in better more specific condition, to the article? --Wetman 20:18, 22 Jun 2005 (UTC)

Unicorn in Popular Culture

One very frequently (including Simpsons and an Irish Rovers song) hears references to unicorns being gone because they 'missed the Ark'.. someone could work that in, as well as sightings of that reference.

There was a Charles Addams cartoon depicting a scene where the ark is drifting away. In the foreground there stands, perched on a disapparing mountian peak, two unicorns. I have a copy of the cartoon in hardcopy. I have not been able to locate one in softcopy to reference here. Throckmorton Guildersleeve (talk) 14:14, 3 January 2008 (UTC)

peter pan records produced "all-time children's hits vol. 2" performed by the "puff 'n' toot singers and orchestra." i can find no copyright date. it has a song called "the unicorn" that tells the whole story of the ark and, specifically, how the unicorns were too busy playing to get on the boat. chorus goes "green aligators and long neck geese, hump back camels and chimpanzes, cats and rats and elephants but sure as you're born, you're never gonna see no unicorn." i loved this song when i was little, and have encountered very churchy people who surprisingly never heard it at all.76.217.120.251 14:55, 29 August 2007 (UTC)

it's me again, the lyrics are attributed to shel silverstien on this site http://www.thebards.net/music/lyrics/The_Unicorn_Song.shtml but the aforementioned puff n' toot orchestra streamlined it a little. 76.217.120.251 15:05, 29 August 2007 (UTC)

Hebrew "unicorn" in Job

Some anonymous passer-by thinks the following passage documents a domesticated unicorn contemporary with Job""!

The translators of the King James Version of the Bible (1611) employed unicorn to translate [missing Hebrew word] in Book of Job 39:9-12, providing an animal that was proverbial for its untamable nature for the unanswerable rhetorical questions:

"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?"

Surely these rhetorical questions are clear enough as the section stands. Or is it not? Can one of us provide the missing Hebrew word that the KJV scholars translated "unicorn"? Thanks. --Wetman 03:16, 31 July 2005 (UTC)

Apparently other translations translate the word to be "wild ox."

"An animal called the re'em is mentioned in several places in the Bible, often as a metaphor representing strength." Since it is "often" used as a metaphor representing strength what is it used to represent when not representing strength? Also, how do we know for a fact that it is indeed a metaphor and not meant to be taken litteraly? Some one help me on this one please. Typhoid Orchid 22:50, 12 September 2006 (UTC)

• Ironically, it was often a featured item at Jerusalem delis: Unicorned beef. Wahkeenah 22:57, 12 September 2006 (UTC)

You again! Totnesmartin 23:07, 22 November 2006 (UTC)

You again! :) Wahkeenah 00:19, 23 November 2006 (UTC)

• r'em reh-ame' or rieym reh-ame';

or reym rame;

or rem rame;

from ra'am raw-am' a primitive root; to rise:--be lifted up.;

a wild bull (from its conspicuousness):--unicorn

- http://strongsnumbers.com/hebrew/7214.htm - http://www.recyclethebible.com/hebrew_lex.php?num=7214 —Preceding unsigned comment added by 80.203.38.160 (talk) 07:09, 13 December 2007 (UTC)

"Bicorn" of "Celtic Mythology"

Is there anything to the following text? Where does the "bicorn" appear "in Celtic Mythology"? What is the connection with the Unicorn? Wouldn't a "See also" fully cover this-- if there actually were an entry Bicorn? --Wetman 01:12, 11 August 2005 (UTC)

"There is also a creature in Celtic Mythology called bicorn, though who is dark blue or black instead of white and with two large bowed horns instead of just one. While the unicorn is benevolent, the bicorn is entirely malevolent, and attack anything it doesn't care for."

My Dear celtic theme query encyclope_: Classic Unicorn has little to do with celtic tradition.Gajus Julius Ceasar in his Bellum Gallicum feeds the fiction of a real horse category which has the "differentia specifica" of one "corn". Caesar writes that this "kind" of horse in the French forests can sleep upwards because this horse uses that "corn" as a leverage and sleeping tree bar. (Source:My Kitchen Latin reading of "De Bellum Gallicum", Caesar, G.J. )

PostSkriptum: Take note that I was forced as a very young man to read such logical blunder and today see it as what it always was.

There is such a thing as a bicorne or bicorn in mythology. However, it's of medieval European origin, not Celtic mythology. Also, it (at least from my experience) has never been described as blue/black and "entirely malevolent". It was mentioned in the Canterbury Tales and said to be fat from eating hen-pecked, obedient husbands. Har, har. Classic medieval humor. I may have heard of it being described as a type of panther, with no mention of horns. See Carol Rose's Giants, Dragons, Monsters: An Encyclopedia for reference. 67.167.26.239 03:07, 22 January 2007 (UTC) Chris G.

rigorous application of NPOV

can produce real silliness sometimes.

Most people currently maintain, based in part on the claims of Danish zoologist Ole Worm, [1] that narwhal tusks provided the main source of "unicorn" horns in medieval times; however, there was concern about false horns being passed off as the real thing, and various "tests" were developed supposedly enabling one to tell the difference between the fake and authentic horns.

Most people currently maintain that what were thought to be unicorn horns are actually something else. (Most people currently maintain that Santa Claus does not deliver presents in a sleigh drawn by reindeer.) A naturalist's comparison of supposed unicorn horns with narwhal tusks is just a "claim", and of course there were tests to distinguish fake unicorn horns from the real thing! Tests, I tell you! Who writes this stuff? —Charles P. (Mirv) 09:47, 10 November 2005 (UTC)

Made-up symbolism?

I removed this here: "The unicorn also served as a common symbol of indomitable pride and purity and of Jesus." Anyone who can find the unicorn used to symbolize any of these traits should quote a source and work it into the article. Indomitable pride and Jesus! --Wetman 05:57, 11 December 2005 (UTC)

absolutely to the contrary! the unicorn was widely regarded as a symbol of Jesus throughout the middle ages. Pride and Purity i think go without needing sources. Quothe Shepard quoting the Physiologus: In its simpler versions this interpretation likens the unicorn directly to Christ: its one horn is said to signify the unity of Christ and the Father; its fierceness and defiance of the hunter are to remind us that neither Principalities nor Powers not Thrones were able control the Messiah against His will; its small stature is a symbol of Christ's humility and its lieness to a kid of His association with sinfull men. The virgin is help to represent the Virgin Mary and the huntsman is the Holy Spirit acting through the Angel Gabriel. Taken as a whole, then, the story of the unicorn's capture typifies the Incarnation of Christ. - Odell Shepard, "the lore of the unicorn", 1930. i'm somewhat new to wikipedia and thus shy of editing the original article, so if someone feels like doing that, please. -- doc ocelot 20060619

Nelneskai?

I recently heard about a story of a Druidic or Celtic Unicorn, named Nelneskai, or something to similiar spelling. It said something about a young man finding and taming a unicorn, and it protecting him from demons and devils. I haven't found any information, but I have had a similiar dream to the story, and have found a fascinating Unicorn figurine after a dream, so vivid. I woke up to see a Unicorn figurine that shimmers upon looking upon it. I have only heard stories. Maybe someone could identify this for me.

Thank you.

- I think dreams would be classified as original research 71.231.143.65 (talk) 06:56, 29 May 2008 (UTC)

KIDNEY?

P.T. Barnum once exhibited a unicorn skeleton that was exposed as a hoax. It turned out to be a plot to steal kidneys.

What does this mean? I'm deleting it. If someone can explain how this isn't vandalism, please re-edit and cite your sources.

Too many cartoons?

Unicorn hunt: "Another involved angering a unicorn, fleeing from it toward a tree when it charged, and diving out of the way just before the tree, causing the unicorn to strike the tree, rendering it dead, unconscious, or stuck, held by its horn in the wood." Right! Accompanied by the sound spron-n-ng no doubt. I removed this schtick here. --Wetman 21:47, 12 May 2006 (UTC)

Unicorn = Homosexuality???

I read a news item this week about some military outfit in Afghanistan that named itself after the unicorn but changed it when they "discovered" it was some sort of euphemism for gayness. I've never heard this before, and there's nothing on Wikipedia about it either. Does anyone have any idea what this supposed connection between the word "unicorn" and homosexuality is all about? JackofOz 13:31, 17 May 2006 (UTC)

--Unfortunate as it is, it's very simple. Just that the "macho" types think that guys who like unicorns must be gay. That's all there is to it. (Yoshiaki Abe 21:05EST 09/01/07) —Preceding unsigned comment added by Yoshiaki Abe (talk • contribs) 01:05, 2 September 2007 (UTC)

--There is also the Eunuch Horn symbolism I came across when I sent a Xmas card with a unicorn to a guy who'd had a vasectomy who took umbrage at the implied insult (of which I was completely innocent). 211.26.158.138 (talk) 13:22, 13 June 2008 (UTC) Ian Ison

Shepard's The Lore of the Unicorn

Very, very many of the historical issues on this discussion page are admirably cleared up by Odell Shepard's 1930 "the lore of the unicorn". He covers the prehistorical, ancient, medieval, renaissance, and modern history of the unicorn, is replete with sources, etc. The only thing i feel he's lacking as a serious treatment of the unicorn legend is any consideration at all of phallic imagery. Possibly i'm still in 7th grade at heart, but i think it demands at least a little historical attention. -- doc ocelot 20060620 The unicorn predates Freud. Is a tree phallic or is a phallus tree-like? Let's not force revisionist interpretations where there is no evidence. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 173.70.245.205 (talk) 17:43, 31 August 2009 (UTC)

Latin name?

Has the uncicorn ever had a scientific name? Like Monoceridos monoceros or something similar? Shandris^{the azylean} 06:28, 13 July 2006 (UTC)

Though one scientific paper that I've seen proposes a latin name, that paper was in jest and merely written as an example of how to create spatial distribution models and use sampling to determine populations. It does use monoceros for the species though, and montanus as the second name to denote unicorns found mostly in montana. Perhaps that is the first, official, citable publication with the latin name though? Owlmonkey 15:53, 29 October 2007 (UTC)

Unicorn is of course latin for one horn. It features in the Latin for the rhino-rhinoceros unicorn. 78.148.48.250 (talk) 19:30, 13 January 2010 (UTC)

Some assertions from modern fantasy

The following quirky assertions seem to be personal ones, perhaps drawn from the television (Wetman 04:40, 20 July 2006 (UTC)):

• It has often been suggested or shown that it is the females that are pure white. Males have been described as jet black with an orange mane and tail. [Representations in the visual arts since the fifteenth century show that this is just not so.]
• Although they are generally thought of as legendary, there have been various unicorn spottings in many regions of Brazil. [A unicorn spotted in Brazil would make headlines, and perhaps a Discovery Channel special. Hasn't been reported.]
• Seen as a symbol of immortality, grace, purity, love and the magic of working miracles, the unicorn is oftentimes used as a metaphor for Christ, many times playing opposite the red bull, a common representation of Satan. [Unicorn as a symbol of Christ is sourced and mentioned. Does any visual representation ever make this supposed contrast of unicorn and bull, or is this a will o' the wisp?]

The white unicorn vs. the red bull is from Peter S. Beagle's The Last Unicorn. In the movie Legend, the Devil character was bright red and had horns of a steer--which may be where the unicorn as Christ and red bull as Satan comes from. 67.167.26.239 22:07, 22 January 2007 (UTC) Chris G.

Biblical Tachash

The bible reports the use of skins from the TACHASH for Tabernacle drapery. The Talmud reports that it has one horn. KJV mistakenly translates tachash as badger, however, that is a mistake from the Latin taxus. Does anyone have information regarding the possible connection between the Talmudic account of the tachash and the unicorn?

Garbled link

Can anyone make out this link, which doesn't Google or appear at Amazon.com: "Zárate, Mario E. [Unicorn Live] Lima-Perú: [2006]" Is this a vanity link from www.mariozarate.com? --Wetman 21:32, 2 September 2006 (UTC)

"Made up"

The following phrases were added, twice, by 72.130.226.105:

Long Ago, Native Americans strapped corn to their horses heads in attempts to fight off the Vegetable spirits and bring good crops and keep diseases and pests from their fields.

When settlers from Indonesia arrived they say this weird ritual and depicted the creatures as horses with one [uni] horn on their head. Keeping with the originality of it being corn called them Unicorns.

[made.up.]

I find this comment very hard to believe, not just because of the last phrase! I'd appreciate a source for this comment.

Chip Unicorn 17:39, 20 September 2006 (UTC)

Alicorn

In the text the alicorn is depicted as the unicorn's horn, however in Cantabria's mythology it is a winged unicorn.

There is more information in http://tuscriaturas.blogia.com/2004/junio.php and http://personales.mundivia.es/llera/mitologia.htm.

Please if you can correct and add information about the alicorn.

—Claunia 09:32, 26 October 2006 (UTC)

Claunia - an alicorn is definitely the correct term to refer to a unicorn's horn. see Lore of the Unicorn, by Odell Shepard. in popular usage, the term for a winged unicorn is a "pegicorn". (pegasus + unicorn) —Preceding unsigned comment added by 76.235.158.0 (talk) 16:03, 1 February 2009 (UTC)

But pegicorn is not correct, it's absurd word! The correct information for winged unicorn from Cantabria's mythology is the second web (http://personales.mundivia.es/llera/mitologia.htm) and the first was a fanfic and has no mythological information (I'm the webmaster of the page) see this (http://tuscriaturas.blogia.com/2008/112301-introduccion-a-el-bestiario-del-hypogripho-dorado.php) where is mention that all in this page haven't got veridical equivalent in mythology. (i'm sorry about my english). I hope I have helped--Jakeukalane (talk) 18:39, 24 August 2009 (UTC)

Poison versus absinthe

An anonymous user changed what the alicorn cured from poison to absinthe. I have reverted it to the general "poison", based on sources like "http://www.izea.net/education/journal39.pdf". Of course, if someone has the original Greek written by Ctesias, that would be much better! Chip Unicorn 05:25, 13 December 2006 (UTC)

this was subtle vandalism - see his other "contributions". i had reported him to an anti-vandal specialistJohnbod 15:57, 13 December 2006 (UTC)

Can we delete the whole "Prehistory" section?

This whole section is unsubstantiated.

• The Lascaux "unicorn" cleary has two horns. The use of Unicorn as a name to use when referring to the picture does not mean anyone thinks it's actually a unicorn. (Just like NASA scientists might refer to the Face on Mars as a descriptive term without believing it's an alien artifact.)
• The reference from Richard Leaky is irrelevent since it clearly says that he doesn't think it represents a unicorn.
• The use of "unconfirmed reports" to describe the next paragraph pretty much sums it up. If you read the reference you'll see that the unicorn pictures were made in recent times and thus can't depict prehistoric creatures. And while this was reported in the journal Nature, they obviously had looser standards in 1872.
• The last reference is a second-hand account that some random scientist in South America believes unicorns roamed the Amazon in the Late Pleistocene.

None of these are any indication that prehistoric peoples believed in or drew pictures of unicorns. Tocharianne 21:20, 23 December 2006 (UTC)

• Sounds sensible to me Johnbod 21:44, 23 December 2006 (UTC)
• I'll go along with that: there's no connection to the unicorn myth. --Wetman 21:49, 23 December 2006 (UTC)

Done. I'll try to find the Lascaux Unicorn a good home over at Lascaux. Tocharianne 17:35, 26 December 2006 (UTC)

Oops, forgot to mention: as part of a general cleanup I did of the article I removed the following "In almost every folklore, there can never be more than one unicorn existing at any point in time." from the "Unicorn in culture" section. It should be put somewhere in the body of the article (if it's true), but I don't know where. Tocharianne 17:37, 26 December 2006 (UTC)

I think it is at the least an overstatement Johnbod 17:46, 26 December 2006 (UTC)

Naive text

The following, which I've not deleted, is unworthy of Wikipedia: "It is a common miconception that unicorns cannot fly. This however is false. It has been said that unicorns are able to achieve flight through their magical properties, that apparently stem from the animals horn. This is the reason they are sometimes confused with the similar animal Pegasus, however the difference is that Pegasus is supposedly stemmed from horses, while unicorns have been created from goats. ". What unicorns are and what they do, depends of what you're reading: is this from kiddy cartoon shows like Dragon Tales?--Wetman 05:22, 19 January 2007 (UTC)

I've removed it for you. No idea where this information comes from, but it's the sort of thing that doesn't get my benefit of the doubt without a reference of some sort. Bryan 05:46, 19 January 2007 (UTC)

Split out "Unicorns in popular culture" section

I've nominated the Unicorn article to have pop culture "sightings" and references in their own article. If someone wants to add a bit about unicorns that they heard on Charmed or some cartoon show, they can play with the Unicorns in popular culture article. 67.167.26.239 03:17, 22 January 2007 (UTC) Chris G.

• support split since that section is getting huge. Tocharianne 22:14, 24 January 2007 (UTC)

No discussion needed. 69.3.212.81 08:11, 24 February 2007 (UTC)

Well, deleting the whole section just encouraged someone to re-add it so I created the Unicorns in popular culture page. Tocharianne 02:40, 17 April 2007 (UTC)

Vandalised state

The article is currently in a vandalised state, as was this version a couple of days ago. Should it be semi-protected? Andjam 04:39, 24 February 2007 (UTC)

Uses of Unicorn's Horns

The unicorn horn was used mostly by the trolls as a stir stick. They believed the unicorn's magic...

Is it just me, or is this worded a bit too factually, as if the existance of trolls, goblins, etc all existed. Further, calling it a `poor unicorn`, and `hideous method` other such phrases are not NPOV Tdinkar 19:42, 28 March 2007 (UTC)

The heading is wrong - by definition a Unicorn does not have HornS. 203.129.60.195 12:00, 5 June 2007 (UTC)

charlie

we should mention how kewl charlie the unicorn is on youtube. —The preceding unsigned comment was added by 74.170.44.145 (talk) 00:33, 5 May 2007 (UTC).

A blessing of unicorns

Under 'Blessing', one reference is [quote] Blessing is the collective noun for a group of Unicorns [unquote] in English, I infer. Should that literary whimsy be included somewhere in this item?

203.129.39.106 12:08, 27 May 2007 (UTC)JayD203.129.39.106 12:08, 27 May 2007 (UTC)

No, leave it out! Unicorns are (were?) solitary! Dbfirs 10:15, 22 August 2009 (UTC)

Marianna Mayer quote

Marianna Mayer has observed, "The unicorn is the only fabulous beast that does not seem to have been conceived out of human fears..."

Is this even remotely truthful? What about mermaids and winged horses?

Labcoat 22:36, 14 June 2007 (UTC)

It's not true, nor is Mayer a credible or relevant source. She's simply children's book author. However, no one is willing to delete it because they are biased towards how she elevates the unicorn. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 173.70.245.205 (talk) 17:50, 31 August 2009 (UTC)

The Term Unicorn

I have always known that the term uni means two or more, but when it come to unicorn why does it mean one. Shouldn't it be called monocorn as mono means one and as "unicorns" have only one horn. It just seems more right to call it monocorn then unicorn.

Someone else must agree with me.

"Uni" does mean one. It's Latin. "Mono" is Greek, but means the same thing. Link from Dictionary.com - Shrensh 06:13, 8 July 2007 (UTC)

How many wheels does YOUR unicycle have?! 194.200.145.5 13:00, 23 July 2007 (UTC)

Actually the Unicorn "reconstruction" made from bones from the Einhornhoehle Scharzfeld _does_ have a wheel. They made it from a bone that belonged to a mamoth. Nowadays we think that's funny, people back then must have believed it I guess. I can recommend to visit that cave btw., it's am interesting place, not fully explored yet, in a great landscape. (edit : added link to "wheel" reference) -- 78.34.15.208 (talk) 18:42, 31 August 2008 (UTC)

A Real Photograph of the Unicorn

I am a rock art researcher working with unique artifacts I have termed 'Petro Photoglyphs'. Though the image of the unicorn has been found in rock art dating to the dawn of humanity, I believe that the photographic images developed from 'The Unicorn Petroglyph' could be the most detailed and perhaps significant ever discovered:

The Unicorn Petroglyph

Photographic Images of The Unicorn and Leviathan From a Scribed Artifact

Photographic Reflections of a Modern Deity and The Unicorn/Leviathan

Laserles 14:27, 4 August 2007 (UTC)Laser Les 07.04.2007

Inspires me to go out and scribe me an artifact. --Wetman 21:09, 4 August 2007 (UTC)

• The photographic reflections of The Unicorn from the petroglyph appear to have been scribed by a process called photo lithography. The image reflection appears as a hologram, the result of scribed 3-dimensional stone surfaces with precision and calculated patterns of cuts, contusions and perturbations. The technology to inscribe this artifact is quite advanced and appears to be beyond current capabilities.

Laserles 15:22, 5 August 2007 (UTC)Laser Les 08.05.07

The UNICORN...A Hologram Projected from a Stone —Preceding unsigned comment added by Laserles (talk • contribs) 14:35, 28 March 2009 (UTC)

2007 Unicorn SIGHTING!

For those that may be interested, a German couple holidaying in Switzerland not only claimed to have seen a Unicorn recently they have captured the beast on video! Perhaps this could be added to the article (if not already there sorry I haven't read through everything). Is it real? Perhaps...perhaps not but so far it hasn't been proven a fake! YourPTR! (talk) 19:52, 10 December 2007 (UTC)

Here is the link! Unicorn captured on film! YourPTR! (talk) 19:55, 10 December 2007 (UTC)

Two images

I placed two images in the lead as a test. I preferred the Tapestry, however I have moved it in respect to other views. Its really not a big deal. Modernist (talk) 03:35, 7 February 2008 (UTC)

In popular culture

What does everyone think of removing the 'in popular culture' section? In my opinion it is nothing but an indiscriminate list of irrelevant trivia that will never be worked into the article. It will likely never be complete as unicorns are so pervasive in popular culture and really doesn't do anything to further the reader's understanding of what a unicorn actually is. Cheers, faithless (^speak) 04:37, 16 April 2008 (UTC)

No opinions? In that case I can only assume that no one objects - I'll give it a few more days and, if there is no objection, I'll remove the section. Cheers, faithless (^speak) 02:53, 21 April 2008 (UTC)

I've moved the list here, in case this apparent trash heap is really a virtual Oxyrhynchus. Wetman (talk) 03:35, 21 April 2008 (UTC)

• New Braunfels High School in New Braunfels, Texas is the only school in Texas that uses the Unicorn as a mascot.
• Shel Silverstein's poem, The Unicorn, describes how the unicorns' playful nature led to the species' extinction.
• Unicorns are shown in the Disney film Fantasia, in the segment of Ludwig van Beethoven's Sixth Symphony.
• Unicorns are featured prominently in the 1985 film Legend, in which the creatures are hunted by the Lord of Darkness, the film's antagonist, in his attempt to obtain their magical alicorns and submerge the world in eternal darkness.
• In the episode entitled Sing For The Unicorn of The Legend of Zelda, a flying unicorn was stolen by Ganon from a Sheikah girl named Sing.
• Unicorns appear in the book (and film) Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone and in the book (and film) Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix.
• In the last Narnia book The Last Battle, the king's best friend is a unicorn named Jewel.
• In Haruki Murakami's, Hard Boiled Wonderland and the End of the World unicorns and in particular unicorn skulls play an important role.
• A singular unicorn is the subject of The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle
• In the movie Blade Runner (Director's Cut and Final Cut), the character, Deckard, has a dream involving a unicorn. At the very end of the movie the characters, Rachel and Deckard, are seen leaving his apartment. As they leave, Deckard finds an origami unicorn calling card left by Gaff and they depart towards an uncertain future together.
• In the song The Unicorn performed by French electro producer Electrosexual and German singer Dorian E the unicorn is used as a metaphor for vulnerability and mystery. The theremin sound during the ending of the song embodies the tears of the dying animal.
• A devious unicorn named Yunihiko is featured in the Japanese anime series Damekko Dōbutsu.
• In She-Ra, Princess Adora's horse, Spirit, turned into a flying unicorn (name becomes Swift Wind) during their transformation.
• The Last Unicorn book and animated movie adaptation The Last Unicorn.
• In the Disney story Trail of the Unicorn by Carl Barks, a unicorn is to be captured for Uncle Scrooge's zoo.
• A little unicorn named Unico, who possess the power to grant wishes, is the star of the Anime series Unico.
• The Pokemon Rapidash is based on a (fiery) unicorn.
• In the 2005 film The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe, Peter Pevensie rode a unicorn on the First Battle of Beruna.
• In the game Viva Piñata the Chewnicorn is based on the unicorn.
• In the game "The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion," a single unicorn is available for the character to ride or kill for its horn.
• In the popular internet video, "Charlie the Unicorn" or "Charlie goes to Candy Mountain", Charlie, portrayed as a "normal" unicorn is dragged by his two eccentric friends on a journey to "candy mountain". Along the way they pass things such as liopleuridons and "magical" bridges, when they finally arrive at candy mountain, Charlie goes into a cave and is knocked out, upon awakening he realizes his kidney is gone.

Japanese Kirin?

I believe this should be changed to the more general "East Asian Qilin." First of all, the link redirects to a page titled Qilin (not the alternative speilling Kirin), where it appropriately has a second that lists the name in other languages, including Japanese. Second of all, the origins of the Qilin are Chinese, not Japanese, but in any case various East Asian cultures recognize a variant of it and it would be incorrect to attribute it to a single culture. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Bloodredrosez (talk • contribs) 07:49, 27 May 2008 (UTC)

Actual unicorn in the news

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/jun/11/italy1

http://news.google.com/news?hl=en&um=1&tab=wn&q=%22Gilberto+Tozzi%22+unicorn&btnG=Search+News —Preceding unsigned comment added by 189.27.49.74 (talk) 20:23, 11 June 2008 (UTC)

Heh... Calling a young deer with a messed up set of antlers a "unicorn" is a bit of a stretch :) I'd be inclined to leave this out of the article. --Jaysweet (talk) 20:25, 11 June 2008 (UTC)

I disagree. I believe that this article should be linked to and referenced along with the other possibilities for the origin of the unicorn. It is as plausible and legitimate as narwhals and deformed goats. Here's the MSN article I found: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/25097986/from/ET/wid/18298287/&GT1=43001Vitajex (talk) 20:42, 11 June 2008 (UTC)

Unicorn is in the Bible

The unicorn is mentioned 9 times in the Bible (Numbers 23:22; 24:8; Deuteronomy 33:17; Job 39:9, 10; Psalm 22:21; 29:6; 92:10; Isaiah 34:7). Most modern versions of the Bible identify the unicorn as a wild ox. However, the biblical descriptions do not fit a wild ox. The characteristics of the unicorn are as follows:

The strength of the unicorn is a major theme of the Bible record about unicorns (Numbers 23:22; 24:8; Job 39:11) The unicorn is wild and cannot be tamed (Job 39:9-12) The unicorn is a dangerous animal (Psalm 22:21) The name unicorn means one-horned, although this could possibly refer to one prominent horn. The Bible is clearly not speaking of a wild ox. However, there is more than one possibility as to its identity.

First, there is the possibility that the mythical tales of a horse with a prominent forward horn are not completely mythical. Perhaps the unicorn is yet to be discovered. This is not to say that the Bible is teaching a myth. It is not. And, as the biblical description demonstrates, the unicorn in the Bible is not the unicorn of mythology in any way. Second, this could be a rare species of rhinoceros that has only one horn. There is actually such a species known to zoologists today. Perhaps it was much more common at one time. Julius Caesar (according to Unger's Bible Dictionary) described a unicorn that was immense in size, of great strength and speed, ferocious, and untamable. This perfectly matches the biblical description of the unicorn. Third, the name, unicorn, could refer to the prominent horn of the more common rhinoceros. Deuteronomy 33:17 compares the horns of Joseph to the horns of unicorns. With them (the horns) he pushes the people together. They (the horns) are compared to the ten thousands of Ephraim and the thousands of Manasseh. Ephraim and Manasseh are the two tribes that come from the two sons of Joseph. The younger son (Ephraim) was given the greater blessing by Jacob (Genesis 48:17-20). This may be portrayed in Deuteronomy 33:17 by ascribing ten thousands to Ephraim but only thousands to Manasseh. How better to picture these two disproportionate tribes than with an animal that had one prominent horn (the unicorn) but also had a second much lesser horn. As further evidence, Psalm 92:10 refers to the horn of the unicorn as being exalted. This sounds like a forward pointing horn that naturally points upward—or is exalted--as the prominent horn of the rhinoceros. These passages are not absolute proof, but they strongly point to the rhinoceros as the animal that matches the unicorn in the Bible. At least until another unicorn is discovered, the rhinoceros is the most probable identity of the unicorn. The Bible description matches this animal very well.

http://www.learnthebible.org/q-a-identity-of-the-unicorn.htm  —Preceding unsigned comment added by 204.99.19.150 (talk) 18:18, 7 November 2008 (UTC) 

The apology justifying "unicorn" as a translation chases its own tail: "Learn-the-bible" indeed. To clear the fog, begin with Jewish Encyclopedia, article "Unicorn". "Unicorn" was an attempt by the early 17th-century English translators to find an equivalent for re'em, an unidentified animal in the original Hebrew text. Indeed "the name unicorn means one-horned", but that is not a character of re'em specified in the Scripture. The self-confident assertion "The Bible is clearly not speaking of a wild ox" is unwarranted: compare aurochs to the nine appearances of re'em. --Wetman (talk) 18:39, 7 November 2008 (UTC)

Scottish?? statue of unicorn

Query the label attached to third image in Unicorn article, said to be 'An old Scottish statue of a unicorn'. Suspiciously the place in Scotland is unnamed. This is almost certainly an image of one of the splendid unicorns topping Bristol's Council House (C20th). Just google Bristol unicorn to get e.g. flickr.com/photos/80739320@N00/229041166/

The unicorn appears in Bristol's coat of arms. I suggest amending label to 'Statue of a unicorn on Bristol's Council House'. Joandarc (talk) 22:00, 4 May 2009 (UTC)Joandarc 4 May 2009

I've rewritten the caption accordingly; the description on the image's page, File:Wesh unicorn statue.jpg, specifically states "Unicorn on top of the Bristol City Council Buildings, UK." (Oddly, if the "Wesh" in the image's filename is a typo for "Welsh," the uploader seems to have been mistaken about where Bristol is.) Deor (talk) 22:48, 4 May 2009 (UTC)

Angel as unicorn

I remember reading about an angel in the shape of a unicorn, who was a friend of the archangel Michael. He is reportedly of the same shape as the demon Amdusias, except he is an angel and not a demon, even though some people may confuse the two. ADM (talk) 03:06, 5 August 2009 (UTC)

No doubt they may. I'm sure I would. Do you really mean reading?--Wetman (talk) 21:23, 24 August 2009 (UTC)

Speculation

I've removed the following lines:

"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."

This is clearly both speculation rather than encyclopaedic fact, and original research
~dom Kaos~ (talk) 13:02, 21 August 2009 (UTC)

Bogus "blessing of unicorns"

Bogus "blessing of unicorns": The following has been deleted from the text and moved here:

Interestingly enough, the collective term for a grouping of unicorns has been suggested as "a blessing of unicorns".

No, it hasn't, interestingly enough. Googling the phrase "blessing of unicorns" (within the quotation marks) brings up zero hits. At JSTOR, which indexes a wide range of professional periodical literature, the phrase "blessing of unicorns" brings up zero hits. Unicorn is plagued with vandalism and scribbles: this is just someone's game. A "blessing of unicorns" will be removed from the list at List of collective nouns by subject I-Z.--Wetman (talk) 17:13, 22 September 2009 (UTC)

Could someone please update the page (as it has been locked) with the following: (thanks in advance)

"A Eunuch should not be confused with a Unicorn. A Unicorn is a noble beast with a fully functioning set of male genitalia, and an additional and permanently erected male appendage attached to the forehead." —Preceding unsigned comment added by 82.45.214.76 (talk) 10:53, 10 October 2009 (UTC)

The Chosen One

Unicorns can kill you if you charge at them. Only pet them if you are the chosen one. If you are the chosen one they will come around you and begin to talk to you. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 97.106.124.234 (talk) 23:49, 20 October 2009 (UTC)

Reference tag

check it over but it looks well-referenced to me.--Hunter of laughing female hyenas (talk) 21:52, 21 January 2010 (UTC)

Dubious

I've tagged a paragraph as dubious which seems to imply there aren't rhinos in India, and that African Rhinos have a single horn. When according to rhinoceros, both African species and the Sumatran Rhinoceros have two horns, while the Indian and Javan Rhinoceros have a single horn. PhilKnight (talk) 20:51, 7 March 2010 (UTC)

I've removed the statement. PhilKnight (talk) 22:01, 14 March 2010 (UTC)

Artwork and Rainbows

Is there any details on the origins of the detailed Unicorn artwork there is? These usually contain rainbows. Also any information on why Unicorns are associated with rainbows?