The Unicorn Found

A practicing physician during the late Renaissance in Northern Germany, Paul Ludwig Sachs drafted this monograph on the unicorn, aiming to prove that the narwhal is the true embodiment of the mythical animal. Sachs argues that the narwhal’s tusk is in fact a horn, and not a tooth, possessing the properties attributed to the famed “alicorn” of the unicorn. The text includes testimonies from prominent physicians of his day, who claim to use the horn in their practices, and engravings of sea unicorn anatomy, such as this narwhal skull, which Sachs drew from observation.