Dragons have been the subject of art and stories throughout history in nearly all cultures around the world. The image of the dragon features in art and literature in both Eastern and Western cultures. Dragons appear in paintings and sculpture, pottery and poetry, on land, in the air and in the sea. What is it about dragons that has so captured the collective imaginations of all cultures throughout the ages?
History
One of the oldest dragon paintings may be a 30-foot-long serpent that is painted on the roof of a cave in La Baume Latrone, near Nimes, France. Scientists estimate that painting was made about 15,000 years ago. Dragons were also popular themes in Chinese art from at least the time of the Shang Dynasty, which flourished about 1600 B.C. In India, dragons often took the form of a half-human/half-snake creature called Nagas, and were depicted in jewelry, pottery, sculpture and painting. In Japan, dragons were intertwined with both Buddhism and Shintoism. Many Japanese temples feature protective sculptures and paintings of dragons. It's still very common to see weather vanes in the shape of dragons on the roofs of Buddhist temples.
Dragons have also been a subject of art and literature throughout the history of the Western world. Some of the earliest maps are illuminated with beautifully inked drawings of dragons filling the margins--the sea serpents that gave rise to the legend "Here Be Dragons." While they are not as well known, there are also Native American dragons. The most famous of these is the feathered serpent dragon of Meso-American origin. There were also dragons in Incan and Brazilian mythology. They were most often depicted as large serpents with wings and feathers.
While the popularity of dragons in art has never completely faded, they have enjoyed an enormous resurgence in popularity as an artistic theme since the 1970s. Along with their mythical counterparts, the phoenix and unicorn, dragons have been the subject of posters, paintings, sculptures, figurines, textile design and tattoo art.
Significance
Dragons have had a significant role in mythology and religious beliefs in both Eastern and Western cultures. In China, the dragon has always been a symbol of deity and creation. Chinese dragons are good and wise creatures with an affinity for water. Many Chinese people identify themselves as Descendants of the Dragon, and the Dragon has historically been the symbol for the Emperor of China.
Likewise, Japanese dragons are associated with water deities, though the dragons of Japan come from many different sources. Japanese mythology about dragons is a combination of myths from China, India and their own myths. Dragons are entwined with Buddhism, Shintoism and Taoism.
Native American dragons were also seen as wise creatures who granted knowledge to man. The feathered serpent was a representation of a god, and there are stories connecting him to beliefs in death and rebirth.
Western dragons are typically far different creatures than Eastern dragons. Taking their cue from the Old Testament serpent, most European dragons are depicted as evil and bloodthirsty killers who ravage the crops and crave the blood of virgins. Among the most famous Western dragons is Nidhogg, the dragon of Norse myth who gnaws at the roots of Ygdrassil, the Tree of Life. Western art and literature often symbolizes the battle between Good and Evil with knights and heroes slaying dragons.
Types
Defining dragons by type can be difficult because of the enormous variety of dragons that appear in art throughout the world. It's difficult even to try to separate the types by region because there are so many variations of dragon within the overall regional types. There are, for instance, nine different types of Chinese dragons, each of them identified by markings and other factors. Some modern Western literature defines types of dragons by color, assigning characteristics and behaviors to each dragon color. Others sort dragons by body characteristics, giving different names to dragons with legs, dragons with wings, dragons with legs and wings and dragons with neither.
Theories/Speculation
Because there are myths and depictions of dragons in nearly every culture throughout the world, some people believe that dragons must have existed at some time in the past. Many creationists believe that myths about dragons are really stories handed down from our ancestors about their encounters with dinosaurs. Other historians of folklore and oral history believe that stories about dragons may have arisen from findings of dinosaur fossils and bones. Another theory about the origin of dragons speculates that dragons are based on real creatures like crocodiles, lizards and chameleons, but that accounts of encounters with those creatures have been embellished by imagination.
Misconceptions
Many people believe that dragons have always been considered evil creature. The truth is actually the reverse. In most cultures, dragons in myth were good and wise creatures who guard mankind and bring them knowledge. It's only the northern and western cultures that have considered dragons to be evil, aggressive and warlike.
Most other misconceptions about dragons in art and literature are simply untrue generalizations, such as the belief that all dragons have wings. In fact, in Chinese mythology only one out of nine types of dragons is winged. Most Japanese and Indian dragons are wingless, and some also have no legs.
