[Three Hundred Animals Contents]
This is another offspring of the lively and fruitful fancy of man. Surely there is variety enough in the real works of nature; why should we conceive monsters, and hatch them out of our imagination? The word Unicorn is found in the Psalms, and it is not certain what animal is meant by it, unless it is the Rhinoceros; however, the animal known now by this appellation, is a compound of the horse and Antelope. The head and body belong to the equine species, but the hoofs are those of a stag, and the horn, the tuffs, and the tail, are anomalies. This animal holds a high rank in Heraldic lore, and is one of the supporters of the royal arms.
Another liberty has been taken with the horse. Mythology has added wings to this elegant figure, and called it Pegasus; he sprung from the blood of Medusa, when Perseus had cut off her head. He bears a close analogy to the Ippogrifo of Aroisto, and is often seen in coats of arms, as in the instance exemplified in the following engraving:-
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