The unicorn is noble
He keeps him safe at high
Upon a narrow path and step
Climbing to the sky
- Medieval German Folk Song

Legend has it the beast could heal wounds and purify water with th touch of its horn.  Speculation is that unicorns may have really existed in the middle ages, which would explain their recurrence in medieval art - the most famous example being the Unicorn Tapestries.

Loreena McKennitt says The Mask and Mirror was, in part, inspired by the seven medieval tapestries depicting the hunt and capture of the unicorn.  Historians have viewed the visual story as an allegory for the Passion of Christ.  For her CD cover, she borrows images from the seventh tapestry in the series, now kept in the Cloisters in New York City.  The original is known as the 'Unicorn in Captivity.'  It depicts the one-horned creature living within a fence and tied to a pomegranate tree with a 'chaine d'Amour.'

Other unicorns you will see in McKennitt's company are dancing on two enormous tapestries, borrowed from Poculi Lundiqua Societas, a Toronto-based medieval theatre troupe.  They gracefully flank the stage of her live show, which is always lit by a sea of candles. - Cindy McGlynn

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