The Coming of the Unicorn
A folktale from Scotland
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Story
The king is sad. The court magicians decide to create a frightening creature made from the body of a pony, the tusk of a wild boar and the tail of a lion. They hope that if the king defeats the creature, he will cheer up. The king is intrigued to hear that there is a something new is the kingdom but when he sees it he doesn’t find it frightening. It makes him smile. In fact he loved it so much that he ordered beautiful stone unicorns to be made – and that is why if you go to Scotland you will see stone unicorns wherever you go.
This story is a Travellers’ tale about the first unicorn, originally told by Scottish storyteller Duncan Williamson. It mixes an origin story with the legend of a UK national animal.
The unicorn is the national animal of Scotland and has been the heraldic symbol of the Scottish royal family for centuries.
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Why we chose it
Children really enjoy the magic of the story, when the unicorn is created. Audiences enjoy the link between the story and real life unicorn statues in Scotland.