What's the obsession with unicorns and where did it start? - Garry Parsons
Unicorns are well established members of the picture book bestiary, but where did they come from and how long are they staying?
The unicorn, it seems, has origins in all sorts of places, from Chinese mythology to early Christian folklore, as well as sources being found in India and Persia.
The Hindu epic, Mahabharata tells of a human bodied unicorn called "Gazelle Horn" which has to be lured from the forest by the King's beautiful daughter in order to guarantee rainfall over the kingdom.
The Chinese unicorn, Ch'i-Lin, also lives alone in the forest. It's body gives off light and it has a voice like a monastery bell. Ch'i-Lin is the very meaning of benevolence and wisdom and is so allusive that it is only seen when the kingdom is ruled virtuously.
Unicorn Cake!
Unicorns were a special fascination in the West during medieval Christian times. Still depicted with a fiery wild nature, they were also imbued with a loving spiritual benevolence. They were imagined in art as a metaphor for Christ.
This medieval unicorn, also aloof, rare and solitary, could only be coaxed from the forest by a virgin were it willingly allowed itself to be captured. This capture is interpreted as as the spirit's willingness to be incarnated through the body of the Virgin Mary.
Virgin and Unicorn 1602 - Domenichino (1581 -1641)So the general idea of the unicorn is that it of a wild, solitary creature, capable of great strength and speed and a creature that cannot be captured alive unless by lure or trickery. Most importantly, it has magical powers and is distinguished by a single horn in the centre of the forehead.
The Unicorn in Captivity - Tapestry 1495 - 1505 Brussels
Pulling our search for unicorns back from the mythological a little, is Elasmotherium sibiricum, otherwise known as the Siberian unicorn. Elasmotherium went extinct an estimated 39,000 years ago. Related to the five surviving species of rhino we know today, only twice as big (weighing 3.5 tonnes and standing 2.5 metres high), in Elasmotherium's day, there were as many as 250 different species of this ancient rhino.
Elasmotherium sibiricum
What's fascinating about this animal is that it went into extinction around the same time that Neanderthals went extinct, meaning that they would have been sharing Eurasia with both modern humans and Neanderthals. Clearly though, it wasn't all rainbows and sparkles for Elasmotherium, so where does our modern unicorn come from?
danaisabellaa
Throughout the medieval period and long after, the unicorn and especially the horn, was thought to hold magical powers. In the 16th and 17th Century, trade in unicorn horn powder was thought to hold powers at detecting poison or purifying contaminated water or healing wounds and illness. The horns themselves being narwhal or elephant tusks, marking the unicorn with a commercial value as well as perpetuating the unicorn's reputation for being rare and elusive - a creature you would know about but never quite see and would certainly never capture.
However, the belief in the unicorn horns ability to heal began to be met with scepticism and the existence of the mythical creature waned. So the golden age of the unicorn for this period, came to and end.
The Narwhal's tusk used as evidence for the existence of the unicorn
The rediscovery of the Lady and the Unicorn tapestries in the late 19th Century sparked a new interest in unicorns. A series of six tapestries, created in the style of mille-fleurs ("thousand flowers") was woven in Flanders from wool and silk. The tapestries are considered one of the greatest works of the middle ages in Europe. Each of the six tapestries includes a noble lady depicted with a unicorn on her right and a lion to her left, and have been attributed as the inspiration for the French Symbolist painter, Gustave Moreau, in his canvas 'The Unicorns'. Later still, during the 1950's, Jean Cocteau designed a ballet inspired by the tapestries.
The Lady and the Unicorn Tapestries - Musee de Cluny - Paris
The Unicorns - Gustave Moreau 1885The unicorn has also made it's mark for the LGBTQ community in the last century, in it's fusion with the rainbow flag created by American artist Gilbert Baker, as a joyous symbol of diversity, with the unicorn appearing on T-shirts and banners at pride events around the world.
Starbucks Unicorn FrappuccinoUnicorns get a real boost from the popularity of 'My Little Pony' in the 90's but it's not until later that the mythical beast begins to make a real cultural comeback.
Fuelled by social media and the arrival of the Unicorn Frappuccino from Starbucks in 2016, unicorn fever takes off and a year later, My Little Pony; The Movie, voiced by Zoe Saldana, Emily Blunt and Kristin Chenoweth makes a hit and the cinema box office.
My Little Pony - The Movie Instagram feeds become flooded with the new, vibrant, glitter effused, pastel coloured sparkling unicorn that we are familiar with today.
Vibrantandpure
From unicorn toast and unicorn beauty products with make-up tutorials on youtube, to unicorn inflatable pool floats, unicorn cakes, unicorn eyelashes and false nails, unicorn slippers, unicorn onesies and ...unicorn picture books!
A selection of unicorn picture books from Dad SuggestsSo regardless where the latest unicorn fever has come from, it is certainly alive in our minds and galloping wild through our imaginations. The latest golden age of the unicorn is well and truly underway and looks like it is here to stay... for a while at least.
So celebrate National Unicorn Day on 9th April with unicorn cake!
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Garry Parsons is an illustrator of children's picture books including The Who'sWhonicorn of Unicorns and Daisy and the Trouble with Unicorns, both written by Kes Gray and published by Puffin.
And to confirm that the trend for unicorns is here to stay for a little while longer, The Who's Whonicorn of Unicorns 2nicorn is coming to a bookseller near you, soonicorn!
@icandrawdinos www.garryparsons.co.uk
