Unicorns were real, and they looked something like this. Not the typical, white haired horse you were expecting – but it’s close enough.

It was said that people of the past mistook rhinos as unicorns, not knowing what they were. But it’s not outlandish to think there were variations of species thousands of years ago, some just happened to look similar to what we picture as ‘unicorns’.

It was thought this long extinct mammal died out around 350,000 years ago, but this recent discovery changes everything.

It was thought the animal looked closer to a rhino but this skull shows its much more akin to a horse and was actually still existing 29,000 years ago. Just found in Kazakhstan, this species of animal is known as Elasmotherium sibiricum. 

The early descriptions of the Siberian unicorn say it was around 2 metres tall, 4.5 metres long, and weighed close to 4 tonnes. This is bigger than the horses we know today, but back then the typical size of an animal was much larger.

This “Siberian Unicorn” skull was found in the Pavlodar region of Kazakhstan and was in surprisingly good shape. Researchers from Tomsk State University used radiocarbon dating techniques to determine exactly how old the bones were. They suggest it was a male based on the size but are still unsure as to how it died. 

These types of animals had died off hundreds of thousands of years earlier, so researchers were baffled as to how this one lasted so much longer. They think the most likely thing is that it migrated south and lived in warmer areas. 

Many people believe unicorns are representations of a kind of energy, an image of the collective idea of fantasy.

It’s important to remember that life before modern, recorded history was a lot more strange than we understand. We don’t have all the fossils, ruins and artifacts to show us exactly what it was like, and because of this, many believe the ancient life of the past was simply primitive.

Many cultures before us could of had incredible technology, fascinating species and a completely different way of life that was anything but primitive. It was in harmony with the earth, it was natural; they didn’t need massive steel buildings and shopping centers.

So, until we all enable the ability to transcend time and experience what really happened through the history of mankind; the results of the study have been published in the American Journal of Applied Science.