If the mention of unicorns conjures up images of radiant white horses with a flowing manes and a single horn in the middle of the forehead, you may be surprised to learn that that is only one version of this mythical creature. The legendary unicorn from some cultures bears little resemblance to the popular fairy-tale version depicted in children’s stories and videos in the U.S.
Unicorns in Chinese Mythology
Montage from the movie Legend 1986 with Tom Cruise. Music is the Unicorn theme song from the soundtrack. In ancient Greek and Roman legend the Unicorn Horse (Hippos Monokeras) was a breed of swift-footed unicorn native to the East. It was a magnificent, snow-white equine with a single, brightly-coloured horn rising from the middle of its forehead. By the 1200s, when unicorn entered the English language, myths about the unicorn as a fantastical creature were becoming well-established. During the Middle Ages and Renaissance, art portrayed the unicorn as the familiar white horse with a single horn—and legend had it that the elusive but fierce beast, whose horn could purify water, could.
The unicorn called Qilin has held a place in ancient Chinese mythology since the time of Confucius. It is believed to be one of the nine mythic monsters who were sons of a dragon with the ability to tell good from evil. This unicorn has the head of a dragon, blue and green scaly skin, cloven hooves and the tail of a bear. This unicorn often had more than one horn. It is believed to live for 2000 years or more.
Unicorn Legend Movie
- Although it has changed symbolism over time, it was originally portrayed as a kind and loving creature that fed on magical grasses, walked on water and even flew. It also had the mysterious ability to walk on grass without crushing the blades. Its image was carved on gravestones to assist the dead to heaven and to ward off evil spirits.
- The Chinese believe that Qilin can only be seen by ‘chosen ones’ and only appears during the reign of superior rulers. It is also believed to carry extraordinary children on its back transporting them from heaven to their earthly parents.
- Today, Qilin represents strength and power. It is used in Feng Shui to attract wealth and to eliminate negativity. It is also thought to help women who desire a child. Overall, it is seen as a good omen that brings joy, wisdom and long life.
Myth of the Turkish Unicorn
Unicorn, mythological animal resembling a horse or a goat with a single horn on its forehead. The unicorn appeared in early Mesopotamian artworks, and it also was referred to in the ancient myths of India and China. Slot Features Wild Symbols In Unicorn Legend, the Unicorn itself acts as the wild icon. When a win is realized, it sterns its head in a sort of magical beam, as if proclaiming your win out loud. This symbol can substitute all the symbols, except the slot’s scatter, which is the Celtic-emblem. Scatter and Free Spins NextGen really got creative with this feature, giving players an impressive.
Like many other early reports of unicorns, the Turkish unicorn, called karkadann, or kartijan, was thought to be a ferocious beast with a massive body and one horn. The karkdann was thought to outrun all the beasts of the forest with its thundering gait that shook the earth. Its voice was a frightening bellow that chased away all animals except for the ringdove, whose song was thought to lull the beast
Medieval Unicorns
The medieval unicorn myth likely gave rise to the western version of the unicorn. Because the unicorn was mentioned in the Bible, people of that time naturally assumed it was a real animal. (Scientists now believe the unicorn of the Bible was actually a type of wild ox.) It was included with other beasts in a book called The Physiologus, which listed and described existing animals.
- To please the church, each animal was given human traits and served as an allegory for Biblical teaching. The unicorn was portrayed as untamable and uncatchable, except by a virgin. According to The Physiologus, a unicorn was attracted to the purity and innocence of a virgin and would come to lay its head in her lap.
- The unicorn soon became associated with Christ and the Virgin Mary, which in turn led to the symbolism of unicorns as pure and gentle creatures able to discern truth.
- The belief that the unicorn horn possessed magical powers soon spread through medieval Europe. Drinking from the horn or ingesting the powdered horn was thought to cure disease combat poison.
- One of the most famous depiction of medieval unicorns is still accessible today through seven tapestries known as “The Unicorn Tapestries” or “The Hunt for the Unicorn” cycle.
Unicorns From Legend Wallpaper
Unicorns in Greek Mythology
Surprisingly, myths and legends of unicorns have no part in Greek mythology. Unicorns are not associated with Greek gods and goddesses. However, a Greek doctor named Ctesias gave us the first written description of this mythical creature after visiting Persia and hearing the stories from Indian travelers. According to Ctesias, the unicorn was a massive beast with a white body as big as a horse, a red head and single horn in the middle of the forehead.
An Evolving Mythical Creature
Some unicorn enthusiasts claim that to avoid the hunters that threatened the unicorn’s existence on earth; the unicorn took to the sea. In order to survive in the watery world, it evolved to become the narwhal, a whale-like creature from the arctic with one long horn in the middle of its forehead. The narwhal’s horn is actually an elongated tooth used to break the ice during mating. Ironically, narwhal ‘horns’ were often sold as unicorn horns in medieval times.
Unicorns and Modern Myths
Nowadays, unicorns have become part of modern culture through books, movies, online games, and social media. Perhaps the most recent “temporary unicorn myths” take the shape of memes. Memes are an important cultural development. They usually encompass any catchy saying, funny image, unusual story, or quick and shallow joke that gets spread around like a virus through social media, including face to face chats in some cases. Unicorn memes predate the Internet, but they spread so much faster and easier now that everyone can check Facebook multiple times a day.
After reading unicorn mythology facts, you probably have an opinion about the mysterious unicorn. Whether unicorns are real is up to you to decide. But, don’t be too quick to judge. This solitary creature is thought to live deep in the forest and only be seen by the chosen. Just because you haven’t seen one yet, doesn’t mean they don’t exist.
The unicorn footage is definitely NOT from Legend, although it is easy to see why the rumor is so persistent, as the imagery looks quite a lot like that of 'Legend'.
Despite what many seem to believe, original unicorn footage was in fact shot for the 1982 release; however, at the request of the producers (who didn't 'get it', or just decided it was 'too arty') it was cut.
When plans were made to make a DC, Scott insisted the footage be reinserted. Unfortunately, by that time, the intended unicorn footage had disappeared. However, one particular shot - an out-take from the original footage that had been discarded by Ridley Scott in 1982 - was found. That shot was cleaned up and colour-corrected, and became that particular BR scene we all know and love... ;-)
[- Source: Future Noir, page 366]
Note: A considerable amount of original footage was rediscovered when preparing to make the Blade Runner Special Edition. It is quite possible therefore that we may yet see more of the original unicorn sequence!
Can you tell me how to make my own origami unicorn?
No, but Shigeki Hayashi can! Visit his site for detailed instructions on how to fold the unicorn.