The Hunt of the Unicorn is a series of seven magnificent late Gothic tapestries, probably woven in the Netherlands in the decade from 1495-1505. Each measures about twelve feet in height, with varying widths; as a collective, they tell the story of the hunt for and subsequent capture of a unicorn by a party of noblemen. They are also some of the most stunning works of art that remain from the Middle Ages.

Their origins are mysterious, though it is thought that the designs came from Paris, and were sent to a tapestry-making firm elsewhere for construction. There are some very small stylistic discrepancies between individual tapestries; this implies that they might have originally been components of several different sets of hangings, though again there is no outside evidence to confirm or deny it.

As was common in the fifteenth century, the warp is woollen. Wool and silk make up the bulk of the weft; small accents are done in silver and gilt thread. They were woven far before the advent of chemical dyes; the rich range of shades and hues was dyed in small quantities with weld to make yellows and golds, woad for blues and greens, and madder root for reds and rusts. Oddly and fortuitously, most of the colours have not faded noticeably.

The abundance of plants and flowers that surround the scenes is striking. Over a hundred species have been identified among those depicted, most of them with unerring accuracy. In nature, they do not all reach their prime simultaneously; but in the tapestries they have, forming a richly detailed backdrop for the hunt.

Also in the background are a number of small animals. Most of these would have been heavy with symbolic weight to a mediaeval viewer of the tapestries. A popular work at the time was a Latin work known as a bestiary, translated from Greek texts between the fourth and sixth centuries; it listed and described in painstakingly meticulous detail the nature of God as it was shown through flora and fauna. According to it, the creatures depicted in the tapestries are closely associated with the life and sufferings of Christ.

The Hunt of the Unicorn itself is quite evidently intended as an allegory. Guillaume le Clerc summarised it most succinctly in a thirteenth-century version of the bestiary, here as translated by George Claridge Druce:

This wonderful beast, Which has one horn on its head, Signifies our lord Jesus Christ, our saviour. He is the spiritual unicorn, Who took up in the virgin his abode Who is so especially worthy In her he assumed his human form In which he appeared to the world. His people of the Jews Believed him not, but spied on him And then took him and bound him Before Pilate they led him And there condemned him to death.

The story of the tapestries runs as follows:

I. The Start of the Hunt (12'1" x 10'4")

Hunting parties in the fifteenth century were very well-organised and based in ritual. This first tapestry shows the party setting off into a stylised forest with a pair of greyhounds in the foreground and a pair of smaller blunt-nosed hounds, or "running hounds", in the background, all held on leashes.

In addition to the hounds there are five men also depicted in this tapestry. The man at centre is the seigneur of the hunt; the three who surround him are his companions, likely noblemen. The man pictured second from the left carries a hunting horn; he is the lymerer, whose task it is to give the signal to release the hounds once the unicorn has been roused from its hiding place. A fifth man is a hunter hidden in the forest signalling to the rest of the party from behind a walnut tree; he is likely directing them to the unicorn's hiding place.

II. The Unicorn Dips His Horn into the Stream to Rid It of Poison (12'1" x 12'5")

The seigneur and his companions -- in far greater numbers, this time -- pause by the edges of the tapestry. Before them is the unicorn, knelt down, purifying a poisoned stream with a fountain. A stag, a pair of lions, a hyena, and a collection of other animals wait by the stream's banks for the unicorn to finish. As far as is known this particular interpretation of the unicorn's magical abilities is unique; the miraculous touch adds another dimension to the already rich lore surrounding the hunt.

The reasons for the hunting party to have stopped are likely considerably less innocent than allowing the unicorn to purify the stream. In order to hunt it properly as they would a stag, the unicorn must take off running so that the men and the dogs might give chase.

III. The Unicorn Leaps the Stream (12'1" x 14')

By the third tapestry the chase is on, and the unicorn is pursued by hounds and surrounded on all sides by hunters with spears. In an attempt to escape, the unicorn has found and crossed over a small river, which is what a stag might do when being pursued. A castle, presumably belonging to the seigneur, appears in the background and to the right.

IV. The Unicorn Defends Himself (12'1" x 13'2")

The hunters have now closed in for the kill. The castle in the background now appears to the left side of the tapestry, to show that the party has moved forward, but not a great deal. Surrounded by dogs, the unicorn defends himself by lashing out with his hind legs at one, and goring another with his horn.

All of the hunters have their weapons drawn and their gazes fixed on the unicorn save for the one at the far left of the tapestry, who is blowing a hunting horn. In myth, a unicorn cannot be captured by force, instead only by guile and trickery; this single hunter seems to be the only one of the party who realises the futility of dogs and weapons.

V. The Unicorn Is Tamed by the Maiden (in two fragments; the left side, 68.5" x 25.5", and the right side, 76.5" x 26")

The fifth tapestry is torn into fragments and is missing a number of pieces. Nevertheless, the story it tells is a familiar one: the unicorn is tamed by a virgin, who here supports and confirms the allegory. The unicorn's coming to rest with the maiden quite possibly represents the Annunciation and subsequent Incarnation of Christ.

The maiden is duplicitous, however; her expression is sly, as she glances over her shoulder and beckons to a huntsman with a hunting horn hidden in the forest. Two hounds are also seen; any other details of the hunt have been lost with the missing pieces.

VI. The Unicorn Is Killed and Brought to the Castle (12'1" x 12'9")

While entranced by the maiden, the unicorn was evidently overcome by dogs and hunters as in this scene he is run through with spears and being dragged to the castle. A courtly-looking gentleman, perhaps a knight, holds a sword and prepares to deal the killing blow.

This is by far the most unsettling of the tapestries. The unicorn's head is reared back, his eyes are wide with terror, his mouth gapes, and his tongue lolls as he is set upon by four dogs, with spears protruding from his neck and shoulder. A party of noblemen and women wait by the castle gates for the hunters to arrive home with their prize. The killing is done just out of their sight.

VII. The Unicorn in Captivity (12'1" x 8'3")

The final tapestry in the series is a picture of serenity, standing in stark contrast to the violence of the previous scene. Surrounded by flowers, the unicorn is held captive by a fence and a golden chain. The gashes where he was wounded by spears and dogs have been replaced with smears of pomegranate seeds.

The tapestries themselves, though woven far earlier, did not appear in any written records until they were listed in an inventory circa 1680 of the possessions of one François VI de La Rochefoucauld, living in Paris. They were later moved to the family's country home, but lost to looters during the French Revolution. They were not returned until 1850, and at that considerably worse for wear. It was during this interim that the fifth tapestry came to be almost entirely ruined but for the two remaining pieces.

The six whole tapestries were sent to New York in 1922, where they were exhibited until John D. Rockefeller, Jr. saw them and was entranced enough to purchase them. Later, in 1937, he donated them to New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art. The fragments of the fifth tapestry were purchased separately and joined with the rest in time for the opening of a new exhibition area at the museum; The Cloisters were opened to the public in 1938, and the tapestries have been there ever since.

Sources: Freeman, Margaret. The Unicorn Tapestries. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 1976. "The Unicorn Tapestries: The Hunt of the Unicorn". The Metropolitan Museum of Art. http://www.metmuseum.org/explore/Unicorn/hunt_unicorn_transcript_7.htm "The Unicorn Tapestries: Flowers, Plants, and Trees". The Metropolitan Museum of Art. http://www.metmuseum.org/explore/Unicorn/unicorn_flora.htm "The Unicorn Tapestries: How the Tapestries Came to the Met". The Metropolitan Museum of Art. http://www.metmuseum.org/explore/Unicorn/unicorn_howcame.htm "The Unicorn Tapestries: The Birds and the Beasts". The Metropolitan Museum of Art. http://www.metmuseum.org/explore/Unicorn/unicorn_fauna.htm "The Unicorn Tapestries: The Noble Sport of Hunting". The Metropolitan Museum of Art. http://www.metmuseum.org/explore/Unicorn/unicorn_hunting.htm

See The Hunt of the Unicorn at The Cloisters, in the Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, or online at http://www.metmuseum.org/explore/Unicorn/hunt_unicorn_transcript.htm