Medieval European folklore

The sea unicorn

For centuries, the spiralled tusks of the narwhal, brought south by Nordic traders, circulated across Europe as genuine unicorn horns — sold for immense sums in royal courts and credited with magical powers. The real origin of these tusks, the long spiralled tooth of an Arctic whale, was only established much later.

🌍 Ocean: Arctic Ocean

Associated species

Narval dans l'Arctique russe
Harmless

Narwhal

Monodon monoceros

Narwhal

Nicknamed "the unicorn of the sea", this Arctic whale carries a long spiralled tusk that long fuelled the unicorn myth in Europe.

🌊 0800 m

  • Its spiralled tusk, actually a tooth, can exceed 2.5 metres in length
  • Dives up to 800 m on a single breath to hunt, one of the deepest dives known in a marine mammal
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