The Oak King, the Holly King and the Unicorn: The Myths and Symbolism of the Unicorn Tapestries - Softcover

Williamson, John

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0060960329 ISBN 13: 9780060960322

Publisher: Harper and Row, 1986

Synopsis

Examines the unicorn tapestries displayed at the Cloisters in New York City

About this title

From Publishers Weekly:

Visitors to the Cloisters museum in New York City are familiar with the Unicorn Tapestries. This set of seven medieval textiles depicts the hunting and slaying of a unicorn and the mythic animal's resurrection in an enclosed garden. Williamson, who designed the Cloisters medieval gardens, has written an invaluable study that tells as much about the origins of Christianity as it does about these magnificent tapestries. The unicorn was a symbol of the resurrected Christ to early Christians, yet it derived this meaning from its associations with pre-Christian gods, myths and icons. In various Indo-European and pagan religions that were precursors of Christianity, a "dying god" or vegetation deity sacrificed himself for the benefit of humankind; such fertility figures included the Green Knight, Wild Man, Holly King and Oak King, all linked to the unicorn myth. By unraveling the rich plant and animal symbolism of the tapestries, Williamson, a Connecticut botanist/landscape architect, shows how the cycle of the four seasons, celebrated by the nature religions, was the framework Christianity used to gain acceptance. Illustrations.
Copyright 1986 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Harper and Row
• Publication date: 1986
• ISBN 10: 0060960329
• ISBN 13: 9780060960322
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1