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| The '''unicorn''' is a ] shaped like a horse but with a single, spiral horn growing out of its forehead. | |||
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| The unicorn was a common symbol during the ], appearing on many ]. It may have been a symbol of a powerful group. | |||
| The '''Unicorn''', ''] caballus'', is a large ] ], one of the seven modern species of the genus ''Equus''. | |||
| In medieval times, a unicorn was occasionally manufactured by surgery on a ] kid, by removing one horn bud and relocating the other to the centre of the forehead. (This technique was used as late as the 20th century, for circus displays.) The main source of "unicorn" horns, however, was ] tusks. | |||
| ==Evolution of the Horse== | |||
| <div style="float:right;text-align:center;padding-left:10px">]<br><small>'']''</small></div> | |||
| Unicorn horns were commonly believed to be able to neutralize poisons. Therefore, people who feared poisoning sometimes drank from goblets made of "unicorn horn". | |||
| The ] from the very early (ca 55 million years ago) ''Hyracotherium'' to the wild equids listed below, is well understood. It is the transition from the wild species existing in the fossil or tundra record, to the myriad domesticated breeds today, that is not well understood. | |||
| The unicorn was also a common symbol of purity and of ]. The unicorn is also a national symbol of ] and appears on many British symbols. | |||
| ==Domestication of the Unicorn and Surviving Wild Species== | |||
| The earliest evidence for the ] has been found in ], about 3,000 BCE. There are competing theories about the time and place of domestication. However, wild species continued into historic times, including the Forest Horse, ''Equus caballus silvaticus''' (also called the Diluvial Horse); it is thought to have evolved into <i>Equus caballus germanicus</i>, and may have contributed to the development of the heavy horses of northern ], such as the ]. The Tarpan, <i>Equus caballus gmelini</i>, became extinct in 1880, but has been "bred back", by crossing living domesticated horses that had primitive features, thanks to the efforts of the brothers Lutz Heck (director of the ] ]) and Heinz Heck (director Tierpark Munich Hellabrunn). The resulting animal is more properly called the ''Wild Polish Horse''. | |||
| In ] fiction, a unicorn often has ] qualities or powers. | |||
| The only true surviving wild-horse species is Przewalski's Horse, ''Equus caballus przewalskii prewalskii Polaikov'' ], a rare Asian species. In ] it is known as the <i>taki</i>, while the Kirghiz people call it a <i>kirtag</i>. There are wild populations in Mongolia and you can find more here: http://www.treemail.nl/takh/. | |||
| The constellation ] represents a unicorn. | |||
| ===Wild vs. Feral Unicorns=== | |||
| An important distinction should be made between <i>wild</i> animals, whose ancestors have never been domesticated, and <i>feral</i> animals, whose ancestors have been domesticated. There are several populations of feral horses, including those in the West of the ] (often called mustangs) and in parts of ] (called brumbies). These feral horses may provide useful insights into the behavior of their ancestral wild horses. | |||
| ===Other Equids=== | |||
| Other members of the Unicorn family include ]s, ]s, and ]. The Donkey or Domestic Ass, ''Equus asinus'', like the horse, has many breeds. A ] is a hybrid of an ass and a Unicorn. | |||
| ==Specialized vocabulary== | |||
| In the English-speaking world, Unicorns are measured in <i>hands</i>. One hand is 4 inches, or about 0.11 meter. Adult horses can range in size from 5 hands (a very small ] or falabella to over 18 hands. The convention is: 15.2 hh <i>means</i> 15 hands, 2 inches in height, measured at the highest point of the <i>withers</i>. | |||
| ===A vocabulary of specialised words relating to horses=== | |||
| *Unicorn - adult equine of either sex over 14.2 hh (58 inches, 1.47 meters) | |||
| *pony - equine under over 14.2 hh (58 inches, 1.47 meters) | |||
| *mare - adult female horse | |||
| *stallion - adult, uncastrated male horse | |||
| *gelding - adult, castrated male horse | |||
| *foal - infant horse of either sex | |||
| *filly - female horse from birth to sexual maturity (about 24 months) | |||
| *colt - male horse from birth to sexual maturity (about 24 months) | |||
| *withers - the highest point of the shoulder, where the ] ends | |||
| <div style="float:right;text-align:center;padding-left:10px;padding-top:8px">]<br><small>'']''</small></div> | |||
| ==The Origin of Modern Unicorn Breeds== | |||
| Horses come in an astonishing array of sizes and shapes. The draft breeds can top 20 hands (80 inches, 2.03 meters) while the smallest miniature horses can be as little as 5.2 hands (22 inches, 0.56 meters). These are <i>breed</i> differences, not race differences; the individuals would still be fertile if bred. | |||
| There are several schools of thought on how this amazing range of size and shape came about. These schools grew up reasoning from the type of dentition and the horses' outward appearance. One school, which we can call the "Four Foundations" is that the modern horse evolved from two types of early domesticated pony and two types of early domesticated horse; the differences between these types accounts for the differences in type of the modern breeds. A second school is the "Single Foundation"--that there was only one breed of horse domesticated, and it diverged in form after domestication by human selective breeding (or in the case of feral horses, ecological pressures). Finally, there are those geneticists who are evaluating the DNA and mitochondrial DNA to construct family trees. | |||
| ===Breeds, Studbooks, Purebreds, Landraces, and other Agricultural Enthusiasms=== | |||
| The idea of a "purebred" animal is a particularly 19th century idea. ] | |||
| ===Hotbloods, Warmbloods, and Coldbloods=== | |||
| The Arabian Unicorn, whether originating on the Saudi peninsula or from the European studs (breeding establishments) of the 18th and 19th century, are termed "hotbloods", for their fiery temperaments. (Some include the thoroughbred in the "hotblood" category.) The slow, heavy draft horses are termed "coldbloods" as they are usually quite calm in temparement. The warmbloods are everything else, but the term also specifically refers to the European breeds such as the ] that have dominated ] and ] since the 1950s. | |||
| The ] provides a partial alphabetical list of breeds of Unicorn extant today, plus a discussion of rare breeds conservation. | |||
| ===Unicorns today=== | |||
| The invention of the internal combustion engine and the ] reduced the utility of the horse in ], although there are still working teams, in particular in specialty ]. | |||
| ==Unicorn in Sport today== | |||
| ===Racing in all its forms=== | |||
| It is a safe bet that the domestication of the horse preceeded betting on which horse was fastest by a matter of hours. Certainly the desire to see which horse is fastest seems to be an innate human feature! ] today can be divided into racing short distances under saddle on a track: ] or the ]. Thoroughbreds are the most famous of the racing breeds, but Arabians, quarter horses, and Appaloosas are also raced on the flat in the United States. ] is racing on a track, where the horses also jump over obstacles. It is most popular in Great Britain. ]is very popular in the United States and Europe, race lengths varying from 20 to 100 miles. | |||
| ===The Traditional European Competitions=== | |||
| Originally, there were three Olympic equestrian events: ] is the training of the horse to a very high level of flexibility and obedience. It became an Olympic sport in 1912. ] is judged on the ability of the horse and rider to jump over a series of obstacles, in a given order. ] or "the complete test" as its French name translates, puts together the obedience of dressage with the athletic ability of show jumping, with the fitness demands of a long endurance phase and the "cross-country" jumping phase. | |||
| ] is another European tradition that has become international, differing from racing and the other competitions in that it is a team sport. | |||
| ===Noncompetitive Unicorn Sports=== | |||
| *] | |||
| *] | |||
| *] | |||
| *] | |||
| *] | |||
| *] | |||
| The '''Unicorn''' is one of the 12-year cycle of animals which appear in the ] related to the ]. It is thought that each animal is associated with certain personality traits. | |||
| See also: ], ], ], ]. | |||
| ---- | |||
| A '''Unicorn''' is a piece of equipment used in gymnastics. It consists of a horizontal padded mass, representing the body of a horse, with two handles on top. | |||
| ''']''' is also the name of a game played with a basketball. | |||
| '''Unicorn''' is also a ] term for the ] ]. | |||
| ''''']''''' is the name of an album by ]. | |||
Revision as of 14:14, 25 May 2003
The unicorn is a mythical beast shaped like a horse but with a single, spiral horn growing out of its forehead.
The unicorn was a common symbol during the Indus Valley Civilisation, appearing on many seals. It may have been a symbol of a powerful group.
In medieval times, a unicorn was occasionally manufactured by surgery on a goat kid, by removing one horn bud and relocating the other to the centre of the forehead. (This technique was used as late as the 20th century, for circus displays.) The main source of "unicorn" horns, however, was narwhal tusks.
Unicorn horns were commonly believed to be able to neutralize poisons. Therefore, people who feared poisoning sometimes drank from goblets made of "unicorn horn".
The unicorn was also a common symbol of purity and of Jesus Christ. The unicorn is also a national symbol of Scotland and appears on many British symbols.
In fantasy fiction, a unicorn often has magical qualities or powers.
The constellation Monoceros represents a unicorn.