#the hunt of the unicorn

[imperceiveable]

The Hunt of The Unicorn

[dahliahere]

“The Hunt of the Unicorn” by Meister der Apokalypsenrose der Sainte Chapelle, 1495-1505

In order:

The Start of the Hunt, The Unicorn at the Fountain, The Unicorn Attacked, The Unicorn Defending Himself, The Unicorn Captured by the Virgin, The Unicorn Killed and Brought to the Castle, The Unicorn in Captivity

[capricorn-0mnikorn]

Summary: A "Virtual Museum Tour" by the Metropolitan Museum of Art, focusing on the one of the tapestries in The Hunt of the Unicorn series, talking about the gallery where it's displayed, the Early 15th Century culture when it was made, the symbolism of the plants and animals depicted, the craft employed in making it, and a bit of evidence of who the master weaver was. Explained by a few of the curators at the museum, who are especially fond of this piece.

Premiered 1 August, 2020. Proper closed captions. Some eye contact (small part of the screen). ~30 minutes.

I don't usually post videos this long, but this is in my Top 5 favorite works of art, ever. And I had to share the squee.

[littlelorekeeperwitch]

Commonplace Book-Week 3

[rebeccathenaturalist]

Unsurprisingly, a lot of the commentary I'm seeing about this has been of the "But--but--I would do the same thing because I don't want anything bad to happen to the deer!"

Look. I love wildlife, and I love getting to see deer, coyotes, and even the occasional black bear in my neighborhood. But they are here because there is good habitat nearby with lots of natural food sources, not because I deliberately put out food for them to eat. I respect them as wild animals with whom my relationship is very different compared to the domesticated animals I take care of every day. A deer is not a sheep or a horse; a coyote is not a dog.

People who do things like try to tame deer or, worse yet, try to raise a fawn or other young wildlife like pets are robbing those wild animals of their natural existences. We've already wrought our own preferences on the landscape to a severe degree, tearing the wildness out of it to create lawns and farms and subdivisions and strip malls. When we then dismiss the wildness of these animals and impress our own desire for connection on our terms on them, we are harming them.

I've already written elsewhere about the difference between "tame" and "domesticated". No matter how docile that deer seems, it is never going to be as (relatively) safe and tractable as a domesticated sheep or goat. It will always be more unpredictable, and more likely to lash out suddenly at a person due to fear, or hormones, or protection of young.

These animals need their wild instincts to be intact if they are going to survive without being dependent on us. They need those instincts in order to find mates and keep the gene pool stirred up. Their instincts keep them safe from danger, including humans. And their instincts never totally go away, no matter how much we may try to tame them otherwise.

This is why a good wildlife rehab is going to minimize handling of the wild animals they care for, especially those that are going to be able to be released back into the wild. The less comfortable these animals are with humans, the better their chances of surviving in the wild and having fulfilling, natural lives. Wildlife that retain their wariness of humans are less likely to end up falling prey to hunting, or being killed as nuisance animals when they get too aggressive in seeking food or otherwise coming into conflict with people.

The person who painted "pet" on a fully grown white-tailed buck and put a collar around his neck may have felt like they were doing that deer a kindness, but they have likely robbed him of the chance to just live a natural life as his own, independent being out in the woods and fields. He might be out there, sure, but perhaps he won't mate because he imprinted on humans. Or maybe he will end up shot by a hunter in spite of the precautions because he's just too friendly and those antlers are worth taking the shot.

There will always be something missing from this deer's life because of the arrogance of someone who thought they could own and keep and control a wild-born animal for their own enjoyment, instead of allowing him to come and go as he pleased. Honestly, it reminds me of King Haggard from Peter S. Beagle's The Last Unicorn, whose response to seeing something beautiful was to capture it and keep it rather than simply enjoying and remembering that magical moment:

"I like to watch them. They fill me with joy. The first I felt it I thought I was going to die. I said to the Red Bull I must have them, all of them, all there are. For nothing makes me happy but their shining and their grace. So the Red Bull caught them. Each time I see the unicorns, my unicorns, it is like that morning in the woods and I am truly young, in spite of myself."

That's how I feel about people who are willing to drastically alter a wild animal's behavior for their own selfish benefit, even if they think they're being kind. I know I'm fighting a bit of an uphill battle in this, but I'm rather stubborn that way.

[silver-peel]

Celebrating new year and ending of the quest:)🕯️🎄🪓

product of my recent green knight reread on holidays, save me erotic hunting scene...... Happy new year, hope everyone have a nice starting of the year!

for hardcore fans yes lady bertilak dress lowkey reference form manuscript (feat. burrito gawain)

[cadaverkeys]

Unicorn hunting illustration for class

[mummer]

barry got away with all of it buried with full honours martyred forever because that is what america has always done it has honoured its murderers it has raised them and dropped them onto foreign soil it has fed them with weaponry it has blinded them to the guts on the floor it has loved them and painted their image on its walls and its screens in brilliant dolbyvision. every square inch of this world is a shrine to violence

[claypigeonpottery]

the unicorn tapestries won the poll, but not by much!

the video of the mug spinning at the end if the timelapse does this piece better justice than the pictures, mugs are hard to photograph

I decided one of the hounds from the other tapestries could break free too

[slimeshade]

Snared

A wonderful commission piece for @bettsplendens ! Thanks a whole lot ✨

[sonlikesleep]

Unicorn hunt

Eternal love, reincarnation and pomegranates.

for @/sapphotales (Instagram or twitter), an absolutely incredible zine of sapphic art, characters and short stories.

[gobs-stuff]

last night i had a dream that zenos knocked on my door asking for sustenance so i made him some super noodles and he sat on the floor and ate them with my dog in his lap lol

[thelien-art]

Nahar; Steed of Orome

White in the sun, and shining silver at night 1 - the sleeping earth trembled at the beat of his golden hooves 2 - the fire that was stricken from the hooves of Nahar was the first light that returned to Valinor 3

 J.R.R. Tolkien; The Silmarillion, "Valaquenta: Of the Valar"

J.R.R. Tolkien; The Silmarillion, "of the Beginning of Days” 

J.J.R. Tolkien; The Silmarillion, "Quenta Silmarillion: Of the Darkening of Valinor"

[y-rhywbeth2]

Sacrifices favoured by Bane:

"Of late, clerics of Cyric have become a preferred sacrifice, though old favorites such as paladins, unicorns, children, and celestials remain popular with traditionalists." - Powers and Pantheons

Sacrifices favoured by Bhaal:

"the Lord of Murder is most pleased if the victim is one of your own kind and as formidable as, or more powerful than, you." - Elminster's Forgotten Realms.

Bhaal would rather not have children sacrificed to him, because it's not an impressive kill. You can go for the stylish assassin or the thriller villain as an aesthetic/method, but have some goddamn style for fuck's sake; you're supposed to honour him with your skill and make you both look good.

Bane? Kill 'em dead and wave their heads on sticks in front of their bereaved parents as a statement! Bathe in the blood of literal angels!

I often find it hard to track who is the worst out of these two, because every time I find something that makes one look terrible I see something I overlooked that makes the other one worse again (though on a different axis).

[lunegrimm]

"Unicorn hunt"

Finished commissioned peice for a client on twitter

[nitewrighter]

I have GOT to stop coming up with villains whose dynamic with the leading couple is "I want to be your third and that is a threat."

...but I don't want to.