“Another certaine friend of mine, being a man worthy to be beleeved, declared unto me that he saw at Paris, with the Chancellor, being Lord of Pratus, a peece of a Unicorn’s horn, to the quantity of a cubit, wreathed in tops or spires, about the thicknesse of an indifferent staffe (the compasse therof extending to the quantity of six fingers) being within, and without, of a muddy colour, with a solide substance, the fragments whereof would boile in the Wine although they were never burned, having very little or no smell at all therein.
“When Joannes Ferrerius of Piemont had read these thinges, he wrote unto me, that, in the Temple of Dennis, neare unto Paris, that there was a Unicorne’s horne six foot long, ... but that in bignesse, it exceeded the horne at the Citty of Argentorate, being also holow almost a foot from that part which sticketh unto the forehead of the Beast, this he saw himselfe in the Temple of S. Dennis, and handled the horne with his handes as long as he would. I heare that in the former yeare (which was from the yeare of our Lord), 1553, when Vercella was overthrown by the French, there was broght from that treasure unto the King of France, a very great Unicorn’s horne, the price wherof was valued at fourscore thousand Duckets.[32]
“Paulus Poæius describeth an Unicorne in this manner; That he is a beast, in shape much like a young Horse, of a dusty colour, with a maned necke, a hayry beard, and a forehead armed with a Horne of the quantity of two Cubits, being seperated with pale tops or spires, which is reported by the smoothnes and yvorie whitenesse thereof, to have the wonderfull power of dissolving and speedy expelling of all venome or poison whatsoever.
“For his horne being put into the water, driveth away the poison, that he may drinke without harme, if any venemous beast shall drinke therein before him. This cannot be taken from the Beast, being alive, for as much as he cannot possible be taken by any deceit: yet it is usually seene that the horne is found in the desarts, as it happeneth in Harts, who cast off their olde horne
thorough the inconveniences of old age, which they leave unto the Hunters, Nature renewing an other unto them.
“The horne of this beast being put upon the Table of Kinges, and set amongest their junkets and bankets, doeth bewray the venome, if there be any suche therein, by a certaine sweat which commeth over it. Concerning these hornes, there were two seene, which were two cubits in length, of the thicknesse of a man’s Arme, the first at Venice, which the Senate afterwards sent for a gift unto Solyman the Turkish Emperor: the other being almost of the same quantity, and placed in a Sylver piller, with a shorte or cutted[33] point, which Clement the Pope or Bishop of Rome, being come unto Marssels brought unto Francis the King, for an excellent gift.”... They adulterated the real article, for sale. “Petrus Bellonius writeth, that he knewe the tooth of some certaine Beast, in time past, sold for the horne of a Unicorne (what beast may be signified by this speech I know not, neither any of the French men which do live amongst us) and so smal a peece of the same, being adulterated, sold ‘sometimes for 300 Duckets.’ But, if the horne shall be true and not counterfait, it doth, notwithstanding, seeme to be of that creature which the Auncientes called by the name of an Unicorne, especially Ælianus, who only ascribeth to the same this wonderfull force against poyson and most grievous diseases, for he maketh not this horne white as ours doth seeme, but outwardly red, inwardly white, and in the Middest or secretest part only blacke.”
Having dilated so long upon the Unicorn, it would be a pity not to give some idea of the curative properties of
its horn—always supposing that it could be obtained genuine, for there were horrid suspicions abroad that it might be “the horne of some other beast brent in the fire, some certaine sweet odors being thereunto added, and also imbrued in some delicious and aromaticall perfume. Peradventure also, Bay by this means, first burned, and afterwards quenched, or put out with certaine sweet smelling liquors.” To be of the proper efficacy it should be taken new, but its power was best shown in testing poisons, when it sweated, as did also a stone called “the Serpent’s tongue.” And the proper way to try whether it was genuine or not, was to give Red Arsenic or Orpiment to two pigeons, and then to let them drink of two samples; if genuine, no harm would result—if adulterated, or false, the pigeons would die.
It was also considered a cure for Epilepsy, the Pestilent Fever or Plague, Hydrophobia, Worms in the intestines, Drunkenness, &c., &c.,—and it also made the teeth clean and white;—in fact, it had so many virtues that “no home should be without it.”
And all this about a Narwhal’s horn!