Author(s): Fernandes, Francisca ; Nunes, Maria de Fátima ; Costa, Ana Maria ; Carvalho, Luís ; Nozes, Paula ; Figueira, Ana Paula
Date: 2025
Origin: Repositório Institucional do IPBeja
Subject(s): Unicorn; Symbols in religion; Aurochs; Christ; Narwhal
The unicorn is a legendary chimaera that, for centuries, has been present in the mindset of Euro Mediterranean cultures. Although its morphological description changed, tradition identifies it as an animal like a horse, albeit smaller and with a spiralling horn on its head pointing forward. The unicorn has been known since Antiquity, with references by authors such as Ctesias and Pliny. However, its relevance for medieval Europeans began with the Biblical references to this animal in several Old Testament verses. These verses gave legitimacy to the unicorn, and it was accepted as a tangible animal. During the Middle Ages and early Renaissance, the unicorn was often described as a ferocious animal, a symbol of purity, virginity, or grace, and people believed that his horn could purify and heal. The narwhal’s tusk (Monodon monoceros L.), a cetacean from the Arctic Ocean’s icy waters, served as the unicorn horn’s iconography standard. Our research aims to facilitate the interpretation of unicorn iconography in the context of Christian art to all those who find representations of unicorns during their pilgrimage or touristic periplus.
