Fantasy and Medieval Iconography in The Last Unicorn

Figs. 1-3 (L-R) - Various medieval images and representations of the unicorn beast.

Fig. 4 - The unicorn in Christian symbology.

The fantasy genre has deep connections with medieval and pre-medieval iconography. J.R. Tolkien, an Oxford professor of Anglo-Saxon literature and English literature and language, is often credited as being the father of modern fantasy (also called “high fantasy”). His novels, The Hobbit (1954) and The Lord of the Rings (1954- 1955), set the stage for later mid-century fantasy works such as Peter S. Beagle’s The Last Unicorn (1968). Both Tolkien and Beagle included elements found in pre-medieval and medieval iconography, from the dragon Smaug in The Hobbit to the creatures in Mommy Fortuna’s Midnight Carnival from The Last Unicorn, which included a satyr, a manticore, a Midgard serpent and a harpy. This post will explore the connections between the animated adaptation of The Last Unicorn (Arthur Rankin Jr. and Jules Bass, 1982) and a particular series of wall hangings collectively known as “The Unicorn Tapestries” (1495-1505), seven tapestries designed in Paris and woven in Brussels during the end of the fifteenth and the beginning of the sixteenth centuries. In the animated adaptation directed by Arthur Rankin Jr. and Jules Bass, the connection between modern fantasy and medieval iconography is made explicit through the use of these tapestries. Both the tapestries and the movie both deal with themes of death and resurrection, and while it might not have been the filmmakers’ intention to create a religious allegory, the use of medieval art in The Last Unicorn is heavily reliant upon Christian imagery, inviting connections between the unicorn and Christ.

Fig. 5 - The unicorn in Christian symbology.

Unicorns have been a feature of human imagination since antiquity; they appeared on ancient seals of the Indus Valley Civilization (Southwest Asia from 3300-1300 BC.E.), and were mentioned as natural history by Ancient Greek and Roman writers such as Ctesias, (a Greek physician in the 5th century B.C.E.), and Pliny the Younger (a Roman lawyer 61-c. 113 C.E.). To the ancients, the unicorn was a beast with a large single pointed spiralized horn projecting from its forehead (Figs. 1, 2 and 3). According to Medieval and Renaissance European folklore, the unicorn was a white horse or a goat-like animal that a had long horn and cloven hooves, and may or may not have had a goat’s beard. The unicorn dwelt within the woodlands and was an extremely wild creature.

During the Medieval and Renaissance Ages, however, the unicorn took on Christian symbology. A unicorn represented the Christian virtues of purity and grace while also serving as an allegory for Christ, especially in the Books of Hours (prayer books) and Bestiaries (books of the natural world that included moral stories). According to these books, a unicorn was ferocious and could easily kill a man with its horn. However, the unicorn would become docile in the lap of a virgin (a reference to the Virgin Mary, the mother of Christ) (Fig. 4), and only then could the unicorn be captured and killed (Fig. 5).

Fig. 6 - “The Star of the Hunt”.

Among these representations, “The Unicorn Tapestries” (also known as the Hunt of the Unicorn) represent an allegory for the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, with the unicorn as the symbol for Christ. Each individual tapestry represents a different event from Christ’s life. For example, the Star of the Hunt was a symbol for the Annunciation - the event wherein the Archangel Gabriel told Mary that she would bear the Son of God. The death of the unicorn by the hunters was therefore an allegory for Christ’s Passion. The unicorn is brought back to life in the final tapestry of the series and thus, represents Christ’s Resurrection. In The Last Unicorn, the unicorn herself (Mia Farrow) undergoes a parallel journey. She is told that she is the last of the unicorns, and goes out to save her fellow unicorns who have been pushed into the sea. Like Christ, she is hunted and captured. She also has a death of sorts when Schmendrick the magician (Alan Arkin) transforms her into a human. The more time she spends as a human, the more her unicorn-self dies. She is resurrected when Schmendrick turns her back into a unicorn so that she can defeat the Red Bull and save her fellow unicorns. The Red Bull in the story of Christ’s death and resurrection could be Death itself; Christ conquered Death when he died on the cross and rose out of his tomb on the third day.

Fig. 7 - The opening sequence of The Last Unicorn.

There are numerous elements and icons contained within “The Unicorn Tapestries” that can be usefully mapped onto certain scenes and sequences in the Rankin/Bass adaptation of Beagle’s novel. The first tapestry in the series is called “The Star of the Hunt” (Fig. 6), and consists of six hunters and five dogs searching the woods for the unicorn. The opening sequence of The Last Unicorn also involves hunters searching a forest (Fig. 7).

Fig. 8 - “The Unicorn is Found/ The Unicorn at the Fountain”.

The opening credits of the film also closely mirror the second tapestry in the series, “The Unicorn is Found/ The Unicorn at the Fountain”. Unlike the hunters in the original tapestry, the film hunters never see the unicorn in the forest. Instead, the elder hunter remarks that because this is a unicorn forest, they will find nothing to hunt and must search elsewhere for game. The second hunter scoffs at the notion and states that unicorns only exist in fairy tales. His doubt alludes to St. Thomas, who doubted the Resurrection of Christ until he saw and felt the wounds of the Crucifixion for himself. Christ then remarked that although St. Thomas was blessed because he saw, those who had not seen and felt the wounds of Christ were blessed because they believed without seeing. Furthermore, the opening credits of the film are designed to look like the first tapestry. The unicorn depicted in the artwork shows her role as the guardian of the forest, framed prominently in the foreground (Fig. 8). In The Last Unicorn, she sits on the ground, an exact copy of the first tapestry (Fig. 9). The same animals can be found in the same places in both the tapestry and the opening credits. The unicorn in the film rears onto her back legs and as the camera pans back, the background is revealed to be split in half: there is a blue side with a castle and an orange side with a forest (Fig. 10). This alludes to the unicorn’s journey from the safety of her woods to the danger of Haggard’s (Christopher Lee) castle as well as the division within herself as unicorn and human.

Figs. 9-10 (L-R) - The opening credits to The Last Unicorn.

Figs. 11-12 (L-R) - “The Unicorn is Attacked” and “The Unicorn Defends Itself”.

Fig. 13 - The unicorn meets the Red Bull in The Last Unicorn.

The third tapestry, “The Unicorn is Attacked” (Fig. 11) and the fourth, “The Unicorn Defends Itself” (Fig. 12), show the violent confrontation between the hunters, their dogs and the unicorn. The hunters use spears on the unicorn and the dogs look ready to pounce, while the unicorn rears into its back legs to kick the hunters while gorging one dog with its horn. The unicorn symbolically suffers a puncture wound from one of the spears with is blood trickling down, echoing the wounds Christ suffered at the Crucifixion.

Fig. 14 - “The Unicorn is Captured by the Virgin”.

The scene in The Last Unicorn that most aligns with this tapestry is the first meeting between the unicorn and the Red Bull (Fig. 13). The Red Bull disturbs the peaceful sleeping unicorn and chases her through the forest. Although the Red Bull does not physically harm her, instead it tries to shepherd the her into the sea, implying menace and injury to the unicorn. The fifth tapestry, “The Unicorn is Captured by the Virgin” (Fig. 14) shows a young woman behind the unicorn, with a hunter hiding behind her the in woodlands. The unicorn is in the foreground, being attacked by dogs. It was believed that unicorns only appeared to “virgins” (young, unmarried ladies) and as such, it was necessary to bring along a virgin in order to trap and kill the unicorn. The young lady in this tapestry has a beguiling look upon her face, perhaps one of temptation or seduction, which may explain why the unicorn is not in her lap and has already been bitten by the dogs. While this tapestry does not have an exact match in the film, Mommy Fortuna (Angela Lansbury) does indeed capture the unicorn while she is sleeping on the side of the road, though is not a virgin by the definition as a young, unmarried woman (Fig. 15). Rather, she is a crone (old woman who may either by malicious and sinister or wise and helpful) who keeps the unicorn in a cage. The unicorn meets Molly Grue (Tammy Grimes), who is the only human able to physically embrace the unicorn. (Fig. 16) In keeping with the tradition of the unicorn as a symbol for Christ, Molly becomes a symbol for the Virgin Mary.

Figs. 15-16 (L-R) - Mommy Fortuna captures the unicorn, while Molly Grue embraces the animal.

Fig. 17 - “The Unicorn is Killed and Brought to the Castle”.

The sixth tapestry, “The Unicorn is Killed and Brought to the Castle” (Fig. 17), places a young woman in the foreground of the bottom right, looking more reluctant than the lady in the previous fifth tapestry who stood behind the unicorn. This time, the unicorn is in the upper-left hand corner and is both bitten by dogs and speared by the hunters. The young lady looks distressed, as opposed to the lady in the fifth tapestry who is more assured.

By comparison, the unicorn in The Last Unicorn does not suffer such a gruesome death. Rather, the unicorn “dies” when she is turned into the Lady Amalthea (Fig. 18). The position of the unicorn/Amalthea’s body in Molly’s arms is further reminiscent of Michelangelo’s Pietà sculpture which depicts the Virgin Mary holding Christ's dead body after the Crucifixion (Fig. 19). This once again connects Molly to the Virgin Mary and the unicorn/Amalthea to Christ.

Figs. 18-19 (L-R) - The unicorn transforms into Lady Amalthea, while the image visually evokes Michelangelo’s Pietà sculpture.

Figs. 20-22 (L-R) - Amalthea is framed by images and icons of the unicorn.

Fig. 23 - “The Unicorn is Alive and in Captivity”.

There are three compelling images of the inner-struggle of Amalthea (the unicorn in human form) when she walks around Haggard’s castle. The first is when she passes a tapestry in his Castle (Fig. 20). The unicorn is in the middle of a blue and orange tapestry - evoking the colour scheme of the tapestry seen at the beginning of the film. Its eye looks directly at Lady Amalthea while she gazes into the distance. She is starting to forget who she was before she was turned into a human. The blue represents the forest and the orange with its yellow smoke is the turmoil of being a human woman. The second image is Amalthea looking into a mirror (Fig. 21). The lions from the “Unicorn at the Fountain” tapestry and the opening credits tapestry are to her left and a horn from another unicorn painting is right behind her head. The third is an inclusion of the third tapestry “The Unicorn is Attacked”; Amalthea and Molly walk right past it, and it takes up considerable space on the right-hand side of the screen (Fig. 22). These visual citations of medieval art are here intended to draw explicit attention to Amalthea’s previous identity, and perhaps enforce her internal struggles with her newly transformed state.

The seventh and final tapestry, “The Unicorn is Alive and in Captivity” (Fig. 23), shows the unicorn sitting in a circular cage, chained to a tree. Even though the unicorn is no longer free, there is an aura of peace and calm about the scene. It has been restored to life, much like Christ was three days after his Crucifixion. In the film, the unicorn is resurrected when Schmendrick transfers Amalthea back into her true form (Fig. 24). With new resolve, she defeats the Red Bull and frees the other unicorns (Fig. 25). She is no longer the last and, as such, has defeated Death for she has brought her fellow unicorns back to the world. Unicorns will no longer be extinct and people will start to believe in them again. However, unlike the tapestry, she is not kept captive. She goes back to her forest where she retains her role as the guardian of all its creatures.

Figs. 24-25 (L-R) - The resurrection of the unicorn and the defeat of the Red Bull.

The unicorn also has two more Christ stories that do not appear in the tapestries. The unicorn and Molly embrace after the unicorn has been restored to her true form, just as the Virgin Mary saw the resurrected Christ after his resurrection (Fig. 26). She also brings Prince Lir back to life, much as Christ brought Lazarus back to life (Fig. 27).

Figs. 26-27 (L-R) - Molly embraces the unicorn, who then revives Prince Lar.

While the makers of The Last Unicorn might not have had a conscious religious agenda in mind during production, their creative decision to be inspired by and directly allude to many examples of medieval art brings a number of Christian themes into the movie. This blog post, then, has shown how the many visual references and parallels to “The Unicorn Tapestries” in the Rankin/Bass animated adaptation of The Last Unicorn rely upon the dominance of the unicorn figure across pre-medieval and medieval iconography. More broadly, it also points the way in drawing rich connections between the fantasy genre and its roots in medieval iconography – a connection that The Last Unicorn draws so openly upon.

**Article published: May 22, 2020**

Biography

Noelle Taberham is an independent scholar based in Poole, UK. She has an MA in Medieval and Early Modern Studies from Kent University.