The Christian Meaning of the Unicorn

Centuries before the unicorn was used to promote various political ideologies, it had a Christian meaning. In the medieval world, the unicorn actually symbolized the Incarnation, the moment when Christ was conceived in the womb of the Virgin Mary. The unicorn symbolizes Christ and the virginal maiden associated with it represents his mother the Virgin Mary. The piercing of the unicorn's side, which is often portrayed in art, serves as an allegory for Christ’s death.

Ancient Biblical Unicorns

Unicorns do not make any appearance in ancient Greek or Roman mythology. They do however appear in the medieval bestiary which is a series of manuscripts that act as a sort of encyclopedia of animals and imaginary beasts. In the bestiary animals are seen in the light of the biblical worldview with an allegorical and moral meaning attached. 

The primary ancient text that refers to unicorns is the Old Testament itself. There is no perfect word in Hebrew that translates to the word ‘unicorn’. The Latin vulgate gave us this word to describe what most people in the ancient and medieval world believed to be a real animal that resembled a rhinoceros but looked more like a horse. 

Most biblical references to unicorns mention them just in passing but there are three verses out of eight that highlight the strength of the creature as its main attribute. "God brought them out of Egypt; he hath as it were the strength of an unicorn."(Num 23:22). "God brought him forth out of Egypt; he hath as it were the strength of an unicorn." (Num 24:8) and Job 39:9-12 "Will the unicorn be willing to serve thee, or abide by thy crib? Canst thou bind the unicorn with his band in the furrow? or will he harrow the valleys after thee? Wilt thou trust him, because his strength is great?”. 

The Unicorn as a Christ Figure

At the heart of the medieval understanding of the unicorn is a folk tale. The beast which is a one of a kind magical healer who cannot be replaced is tragically killed and its dead body rests in the lap of the virgin. Naturally, medieval Christians saw this folktale as an allegory for the Incarnation and death of Jesus. Jesus, the healer is the only person who in himself contains both a human nature and a divine nature. He truly is one of a kind. It’s only because Mary says ‘Yes!” to the angel Gabriel’s message of salvation that he is able to become a part of this world. Jesus, who is God, in his human nature, because of the Incarnation, because of Mary’s yes, is suddenly susceptible to death. There are several tapestries and woodcuts that portray the Angel Gabriel as the hunter of the unicorn which flees into the lap and arms of Mary. 

We see this as the ‘unicorn moment’ of the Incarnation, the moment heaven and earth become united in the womb of Mary. At the same time, the hunters catch up to him and pierce his side which is an allusion to the death of Jesus on the cross. So there is a collapse of time. The image of the Unicorn in the lap of the Virgin with a lance plunged into his side is the beginning and the end of his earthly life all in one scene. One image then represents the totality of the Jesus story foretelling the resurrection and emphasizing the timelessness of Jesus.

In almost every image of the death of the unicorn and maiden, the maiden is shown to be in anguish, desperately protesting the killing. This calls to mind the role Mary played at the foot of the cross, still giving her original assent but with a heart that is spiritually pierced, and in a state of total anguish. 

The Unicorn and Chastity

There are several statues located in St. Peter’s basilica that were carved to depict the virtues. The statue that depicts the virtue of chastity features a very powerful, masculine unicorn whose horn is in the grip of a bare breasted virgin. In her other hand she holds a delicate rose. The bare breast in the center of the scene symbolizes life-giving agape love or Christian love because it represents the willingness of the mother to offer her breast to the infant. 

The horn of the unicorn represents masculine sexual energy and the rose represents feminine sexuality. Since this is a statue depicting chastity, the message is that Christian love will tame but not diminish the wild passion of eros love and in doing so will bring together the male and female in a way that is orderly and beautiful. The virgin is looking into the eyes of the unicorn with reverence and awe which is how we should respect the gift of sexuality.