Deer in mythology

A gilded wooden figurine of a deer from the Pazyryk burials, 5th century BC

Deer have significant roles in the mythology of various peoples located all over the world, such as object of worship, the incarnation of deities, the object of heroic quests and deeds, or as magical disguise or enchantment/curse for princesses and princes in many folk and fairy tales.

The deer also symbolizes a connection to the supernatural, the Otherworld, or the fairy realm, e.g., being a messenger or an entity's familiar.[1]

  1. ^ Ogle, M. B. (1916). "The Stag-Messenger Episode". The American Journal of Philology. 37 (4): 387–416. doi:10.2307/849691. JSTOR 849691.