When most people think of unicorns, they imagine mythological medieval horses with a horn protruding from their heads. They might also consider the Chinese conception of unicorns, chimeric entities that represent wealth and prosperity. Or perhaps they envision the Greek interpretation based on Persian depictions of the majestic beast. Cultural variations aside, one thing’s for sure: Many of us likely doubt unicorns ever existed, and cast them aside to the yellowed pages of allegory and fairy tales.
But the unicorn was real, in a sense — just not in the ways it's commonly depicted. In the past few years, scientific research has helped us learn more about this Ice Age giant, Elasmotherium sibiricum, that may have inspired our tall tales.
As it turns out, E. sibiricum (also known as the Siberian unicorn) actually shared a common ancestor with a group that includes today’s rhinoceros. And although no horns have been ...
