Editing Winged unicorn

{{Short description|Fictional hybrid of a pegasus and unicorn}}
{{distinguish|Flying horses (disambiguation){{!}}flying horse|Winged horse (disambiguation){{!}}winged horse}}
{{Expand French|topic=cult|Licorne ailée|date=July 2015}}
{{wiktionary|pegacorn|unisus|unipeg}}
{{Infobox mythical creature
|name             = Winged unicorn
|image            = File:Manège d'Andréa cheval.JPG
|image_size       = <!-- Image size in pixels; do not use with image_upright -->
|image_upright    = <!-- Image size scale factor; do not use with image_size -->
|caption          = A winged unicorn on ''[[Le Manège d'Andrea]]''

|AKA              = Flying unicorn, Cerapter, Alicorn, Pegacorn, Unisus, Unipeg
|Grouping         = [[Popular culture]]
|Sub_Grouping     = [[Syncretism]]
|Similar_entities = <!-- Entities described as similar -->
|Family           = [[List of horses in mythology and folklore|Mythological horses]]
|Folklore         = <!-- Folklore genre (legend, myth, recipe, charm, etc.—please note that these are not synonyms) -->

|First_Attested   = <!-- First attestation (in other words, source) -->
|Country          = [[Assyria]]
|Region           = <!-- Region of origin -->
|Habitat          = <!-- Specifically where the entity may be found -->
|Details          = <!-- Any additional details -->
|module           = <!-- Any other child Infobox module to be embedded -->
}}

A '''winged unicorn''' or '''flying unicorn''' is a mythical [[ungulate]], typically portrayed as a [[horse]], with feathered wings like a [[Winged horse|pegasus]] and the horn of a [[unicorn]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Citations:cerapter|title = Citations:cerapter|date = 24 June 2020}}</ref> It further features in modern popular culture and fiction.

==Origin==
===Etymology===
In some literature and media, it has been referred to as an '''alicorn''', a word derived from the Italian word {{Lang|it|alicorno}},<ref>{{cite book |last=Shepard |first=Odell |title=The Lore of the Unicorn |publisher=Unwin and Allen |year=2008 |orig-year=1930 |isbn=9781437508536 |location=London}}</ref> or as a '''pegacorn''', a [[portmanteau]] of pegasus and unicorn.

===Origin and Symbolism===
As a combination of the unicorn and Pegasus, who are characterized as symbols of purity, poetry, reverie, and magic, winged unicorns naturally carry both portfolios of symbolism, and are depicted in [[drawing]]s and cited in [[Channeling (as a medium)|channeling]]-type visions.

==Ancient depictions==
[[File:Detail of the embroidered dress of an Apkallu, showing 4-legged winged and horned animals. From Nimrud, Iraq. 883-859 BCE. Ancient Orient Museum, Istanbul.jpg|thumb|upright|Detail of the embroidered dress of an [[Apkallu]], showing four-legged winged and horned animals. From [[Nimrud]], Iraq. 883–859 BCE. [[Museum of the Ancient Orient]], Istanbul]]
Winged unicorns have been depicted in art. Ancient [[Achaemenid Assyria]]n seals depict winged unicorns and winged bulls as representing evil, but winged unicorns can also represent light.<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0OarxGMWrgkC&pg=PA18 |page= 18 |isbn= 9780766185302 |title= The Unicorn: A Mythological Investigation |last= Brown |first= Robert |year= 2004 |publisher= Kessinger Publishing}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |title= The Ancient Seals from the Near East in the Metropolitan Museum: Old and Middle Persian Seals |first= Hans Henning |last= Von Der Osten |journal= The Art Bulletin |volume= 13 |issue= 2 |date= June 1931 |pages= 221–41 |doi= 10.2307/3050798 |jstor= 3050798}}</ref>

==In popular culture==
[[File:Lampsakos Heykeli.JPG|thumb|upright|A sculpture of a pegasus with a horn in [[Lapseki]], Turkey]]
{{in popular culture|date=October 2022}}
*Irish poet [[W. B. Yeats]] wrote of imagining a winged beast that he associated with ecstatic destruction. The beast took the form of a winged unicorn in his 1907 play ''The Unicorn from the Stars'' and later that of the rough beast slouching towards [[Bethlehem]] in his poem "[[The Second Coming (poem)|The Second Coming]]".<ref>{{cite journal |title=Yeats's Conflicts with His Audience, 1897–1917 |first= David |last= Ward |journal= ELH |volume= 49 |issue= 1 |date= Spring 1982 |pages= 155–6 |doi= 10.2307/2872885 |jstor= 2872885}}</ref>
*In ''[[She-Ra: Princess of Power]]'', the titular character rides an alicorn named Swift Wind.
*In ''[[Sailor Moon SuperS]]'', a man named [[List of Sailor Moon characters#Helios/Pegasus|Helios]], the Guardian Priest (the [[high priest]] and guardian) of Elysion who guard the Golden Crystal, took the form of a pegasus, which is depicted as in such form, having both a golden horn and wings, as he hid from the [[Dead Moon Circus]] after having been imprisoned by [[Dead Moon Circus#Queen Nehelenia|Queen Nehelenia]].<!-- In the orignal Japanese version, he is voiced by [[Taiki Matsuno]] in ''Sailor Moon'', while [[Yoshitsugu Matsuoka]] voices him in ''[[Sailor Moon Eternal]]''.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Mateo |first1=Alex |title=Sailor Moon Eternal Film Reveals Cast, Teaser Video, Visual |url=https://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2020-04-23/sailor-moon-eternal-film-reveals-cast-teaser-video-visual/.158906 |website=Anime News Network |access-date=7 May 2020 |language=en |date=23 April 2020}}</ref> In the Cloverway's English version, he is voiced by [[Rowan Tichenor]], and in the Viz Media's English version, he is voiced by [[Chris Niosi]]. In the English version of ''Sailor Moon Eternal'', he is voiced by [[Brian Beacock]]. In the musicals, Pegasus is voiced by Yuta Enomoto.<ref>1996 Sailor Moon Musical ''Sailor Moon Super S (Kaiteiban) Yume Senshi - Ai - Eien ni... Saturn Fukkatsu Hen!''</ref> -->
*The PBS Kids series ''[[Arthur (TV series)|Arthur]]'' features one of DW's toys, a blue fluffy unicorn from the fictional company My Fluffy Unicorn with white feathered wings and stars on her hips.
*In the [[My Little Pony (2010 toyline)|2010 incarnation]] of the ''[[My Little Pony]]'' toyline and its ''[[My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic|Friendship Is Magic]]'' television series, winged unicorns have made several appearances, including [[List of My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic characters#Princess Celestia|Princess Celestia]] and her younger sister [[List of My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic characters#Princess Luna|Luna]] who formerly ruled Canterlot, then [[List of My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic characters#Shining Armor, Princess Cadance and Flurry Heart|Princess Cadance, the ruler of the Crystal Empire and her daughter Flurry Heart]], and her sister-in-law [[Twilight Sparkle]], who formerly lived in Ponyville and later lives in Canterlot as the ruler of Equestria as of the [[My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic finale|series finale]].
*In the 2021 film ''[[My Little Pony: A New Generation]]'', Sunny Starscout was originally an earth pony until the end where she gained translucent wings and a horn. The 2021 soft reboot of the My Little Pony franchise, in which ''A New Generation'' is a part of, further explores the idea, as the evil pony Opaline has tangible wings and a horn. Additionally, ''Friendship Is Magic'' winged unicorns return in ''[[My Little Pony: Make Your Mark|Make Your Mark]]''.
*In ''[[Sofia the First]]'', the Mystic Isles episodes, one of the isles is called the Isle of Unicorns, where the winged unicorns reside, and in episode 29 of the 4th season "Forever Royal, Part 2", Sofia uses the amulet of Avalor to change her into a winged unicorn.
*''[[Luigi's Mansion]]'' (2001) has two pegacorn statues on the big balcony.
*''[[Webkinz]]'' has two pets called the Celestial Unicorn, a winged unicorn that is colored purple and cyan, and the Quirky Carnival Unicorn, a dark purple and mint green one.
*The ''Skandar'' book series by [[A. F. Steadman]] feature winged unicorns that reside on an island between Britain and Ireland known simply as The Island. These unicorns hatch from eggs that appear in The Island's hatchery on the same day their destined riders are born and hatch when the riders turn thirteen. In order to find which of the Hatchery's eggs contains their destined unicorn, riders must place their right hand onto an egg. If the rider finds the correct egg, the unicorn inside will start to hatch from it and their horn will pierce their rider's palm, leaving a wound on it called a Hatchery wound. This procedure causes the unicorn to transfer some of its magic into their rider, allowing them to use magic connected to the elements of Fire, Earth, Air, Water and Spirit. Afterwards, the unicorn and their rider train at a school on The Island called The Eyrie for five years, where they are taught how to perform elemental magic (with their assigned element being their strongest). Eyrie students in their fourth and fifth year along with older riders participate in the Chaos Cup, an event where twenty five unicorns and their riders race whilst using elemental magic against their opponents. The winning rider earns the title of Commodore of Chaos, which involves them taking charge of The Island. The rider holds onto the title for a year unless they continue to win future Chaos Cups. It is known that the life of a bonded unicorn is connected to their rider, meaning that if the rider were to die, the unicorn would die too, though if the unicorn died first, their rider would survive. It is also known that unicorns that hatch and do not have a rider to bound with will become wild and ferocious. Wild unicorns are also immortal (but can be killed by those allied to the Spirit element) and have a decayed appearance. The series' protagonist Skandar Smith owns a unicorn called Scoundrel's Luck.

==See also==
* [[List of fictional horses]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

{{Fictional biology}}

[[Category:Winged unicorns| ]]
[[Category:Heraldic beasts]]
[[Category:Greek legendary creatures]]
[[Category:Medieval European legendary creatures]]
[[Category:Horses in mythology]]
[[Category:Fictional horses]]
[[Category:Mythological hybrids]]