A short history on the world of Dragons!

“But it is one thing to read about dragons and another to meet them.”

~ Ursela K. Le Guin, A Wizard of Earthsea

From the beginning of time, mankind has been fascinated with the idea of dragons. We’ve heard of the Firedrake dragon slayed by Beowulf, the Hydra of Lerna slayed by Hercules, St. George and the dragon, and even the story or Perseus and Andromeda where Poseidon sends a “sea monster” to ravage Aethiopia.  Many fantasy novels include dragons and it is no wonder why. They are scary, cunning, wise, dangerous, and above all else, magical. R.A. Salvatore, author of Streams of Silver, said, “No, I would not want to live in a world without dragons, as I would not want to live in a world without magic, for that is a world without mystery, and that is a world without faith.”



In honor of Colleen Houck, we take a closer look at her FAVORITE mythological creature, the

dragon

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This dragon is described as having a long sinuous body, almost snake like and no wings. It is covered in red shiny scales with its top streaked with vermillion that glows a dim red and a black underbelly. Its head is large with long black-and-red tendrils trailing its black-bearded cheeks. 



The Blue Dragon's Pet- Qinglong, Dragon of the Ocean, born in the Southern Ocean



This dragon first appeared wrapped around a castle ruin on top of the island, snoring.  It has a similar in shape to his brother, Longjun, but has a longer head. His cheeks and brow are covered with feathers that shimmer like fish scales in brilliant blues and purples. Similar feathers trail down the spine and fan out at its tail and limbs like hair. It has golden talons, yellow eyes and a purple tongue.



The Green Dragon's Hunt- Luselong, Dragon of the Earth, born in the Indian Ocean



This dragon likes to play games, but only to his advantage. He is cunning and a cheat. He is first spotted hidden in the trees on an island. It's head is brown and knobby like old driftwood with a snout like a crocodile and pointed teeth. He has golden eyes and large antlers on the back of his head. Moss hangs off the horns and he too has a long snake-like body. His scales resembled green leaves and has gold talon feet. He also has a brown beard and mane of silky hair down its back like that of a horse's mane.



The Golden Dragon's Hoard- Jinselong, Dragon of the Treasures, born in the Atlantic



This dragon hoards gold in his underwater palace. He is greedy and barters for gold. He has scales made of hard golden disks that glint in water and vary in shades of gold with the darker tones on its back. He has four long spikes protruding from the back of its head and a trail of smaller spikes starting at its nose and travels the length of his spine. He has wise ginger-brown eyes. He can also shift to human form.



The Ice Dragon- Yinbailong, Dragon of the Ice, born in the freezing waters of the Arctic



This dragon too lives in an underwater lair both wondrous and frightening. The Ice Dragon's lair juts from the ocean floor like a crystal stalagmite with crystal sculptures in the shapes of water plants, trees, and flowers, with a bright light emanating from within.  You first meet the white dragon in human form. He is lean and tall with smooth white hair, a prominent brow over icy blue eyes, thin lips and a wizened face full of expression. He is wise, possesses great magic and has a good bedside manner. When he shape shifts, his body cracks and splinters into thousands of shards and spills into a sparkling white body. He has blue dragon claws and eyes, a blue forked tongue and two horns on the back of its head, looking like long icicles, with smaller horns on its tail. He has a white mane stretching from the top of its noble head all the way down its back and surprisingly, the dragon is quite soft and warm.



There you have it, Houck's five dragons from Tiger's Voyage. Just use your imagination based off Houck's descriptions and you have a very unique and frighteningly beautiful version of dragons.



I hope you enjoyed this post all about Dragons! If there is a mythological creature you're dying to learn more about, include it in the comments section!



Till next time~



Linda Louise Lotti