Man Made Unicorns
In 1906 two unicorn rams [male
sheep] were on display at the zoo in London,
England. These animals had been presented to the Prince
of Wales as part of a large collection of animals from the country of Nepal
in Asia. Author Peter Costello says: "There was some mystery about the
creatures, for though the rams were unicorns, underneath the horn sheath
were found two horn buds. Further inquiries revealed that they were not
natural, nor were they freaks, but artificial creations."
May 1936, Dr. Dove discussed an experiment
carried out at the University of Maine. Dr. Dove says that separate horn
buds (small bits of tissue that later produce horn) can be transplanted
in whole or in part to other regions of the head where they take root.
"They develop as true horns ... either solidly or
loosely attached to the skull, according to the method of transplantation."
In March 1933, an operation was performed on a day - old Ayrshire calf.
Two horn buds were transplanted to the center of the calf s skull so that
lay side by side over the frontal division of the skull. Since the horn
buds are normally round, Dove trimmed them so that they were flat along
the sides where they touched. Thus they made closer contact. |
Dr Dove's fifteen month old unicorn calf. The two
horn buds fused together, making a single, solid horn.

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"It was expected that the two horns would fuse together
into one large horn solidly attached to the skull and located between and
somewhat above the eyes, as is the horn of the unicorn." The experiment
was successful! At two and a half years old, Dr. Dove reported, this cow
used its single horn "as a prow to pass under fences and barriers in his
path, or as a forward thrusting bayonet in his attacks." While a two horned
animal must make side cuts and slashes, the unicorn can put its full body
weight behind its one horn. It becomes almost invincible. Moreover, the
unicorn is conscious of its unusual power.
Lancelot, the living unicorn, bred by Morning Glory.
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in 1980, pictures
of a "living unicorn" hit the United States newspapers. To skeptics the
animal looked like a goat. But it was no ordinary goat. From the middle
of its forehead there did indeed grow a ten inch horn!
Born in California, This goat like creature is an
appealing animal, bred of Angora goat stock, so its coat is white and soft.
Its name is Lancelot. Lancelot's creators are two naturalists, Morning
Glory and her husband Otter G'Zell, who do not hide
the fact that they created Lancelot and that its mother
was a goat. They describe Lancelot as a true medieval
- type Unicorn, with a silken plumed tail, who walks the Earth on dainty
cloven hooves, and has a golden horn growing from the center of his brow.
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Since the birth of Lancelot, these naturalists have
bred other single homed animals which resemble the unicorns on the medieval
tapestries. Morning Glory and G'Zell do not go into detail about their
methods of achieving one horn on an animal that would ordinarily have two.
Nor do they describe the technique they claim to have pioneered for taking
away the "obnoxious billy goat stink" that they say contributes to some
undesirable behaviors. They do admit to having clipped the unicom's hair
to produce a flowing mane, plumed tail, and feathers of hair on the legs.
In addition they have "conducted appropriate magical rites, invoking the
spirits of Nature and the Horned God, and focusing the light of the waxing
Moon onto their [the unicorns'] foreheads through a quartz crystal." All
these devices, "and others more subtle, go into the production of a true
Unicorn," according to Morning Glory and G'Zell.
| They believe so strongly that what they have created
is something special that they want to share their unicorns with the world.
"A live unicorn could be an international ambassador of good will," they
say, "since the unicorn. is a cross-cultural symbol. Lancelot is also the
ultimate symbol for endangered species that have made a comeback. "Controversy
and outrage developed when Lancelot was put on display with Ringling Brothers
and Barnum and Bailey Circus in 1980. John Kullberg, then president of
the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, called Lancelot
a goat which had been subjected to an inhumane implant of a bull's horn. |
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Dr. Gerald Toms, a veterinarian with the U.S. Department
of Agriculture, sent federal inspectors to
examine the creatures. They reported that they were
goats which had been medically altered as kids to
give them each a single horn, but that the horn was living
vital tissue. Toms said the goats appeared to have
undergone a simple graft in which their own natural
horn was made to grow in an unnatural part of their
heads. "If you use anesthesia and it's done by a competent
person, it's basically a simple tissue graft," he said. He described their
care as "quite good," saying, "Obviously these are valuable animals and
they are being treated accordingly." |
| The anger died down. The circus retained its right
to show Lancelot as a feature attraction. Some people still said, "It's
just a goat." They thought the public was being deceived. But, "As far
as we're concerned," said Debbie Linde, a circus spokesperson, "It's a
unicorn. A unicorn is an animal with one horn." |
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