page_title: European dragon
section_title: Depiction
hierarchical_section_title: European dragon / Middle Ages / Depiction
caption_attribution_description: English: Dragon illustration in 13th century manuscript
context_page_description: European dragons are legendary creatures in folklore and mythology among the overlapping
  cultures of Europe.
  The Roman poet Virgil in his poem Culex lines 163-201, describing a shepherd having a fight with a big constricting snake, calls it "serpens" and also "draco", showing that in his time the two words were probably interchangeable.
  In and after the early Middle Ages, the European dragon is typically depicted as a large, fire-breathing, scaly, horned, lizard-like creature; the creature also has leathery, bat-like wings, four legs, and a long, muscular prehensile tail. Some depictions show dragons with one or more of: feathered wings, crests, ear frills, fiery manes, ivory spikes running down its spine, and various exotic decorations.
  In folktales, dragon's blood often contains unique powers, keeping them alive for longer or giving them poisonous or acidic properties. The typical dragon in Christian culture protects a cavern or castle filled with gold and treasure. An evil dragon is often associated with a great hero who tries to slay it, and a good one is said to give support or wise advice.
context_section_description: During the early Middle Ages, European culture was largely out of contact with classical literature for centuries. During this time there was a gradual change in the usual mental image of the "dragon", i.e. the Latin draco and its equivalents in vernacular languages, which occurred in oral and written literature, including in classical literature. This led to the depiction in this literature of "modern-type" dragons, whose features are described below.
  The modern western image of a dragon developed in western Europe during the Middle Ages through the combination of the snakelike dragons of classical Graeco-Roman literature, references to Near Eastern European dragons preserved in the Bible, and western European folk traditions. The period between the 11th and 13th centuries represents the height of European interest in dragons as living creatures.
  Dragons are usually shown in modern times with a body more like a huge lizard, or a snake with two pairs of lizard-type legs, and breathing fire from their mouths. This traces back to the continental dragon, commonly referred to as a fire-breathing dragon. The continental, like many other European dragons, has bat-like wings growing from its back.
  The Anglo-Saxon poem Beowulf refers to a dragon as a draca and also as a wyrm (worm, or serpent). Its movements are denoted by the Anglo-Saxon verb bugan, "to bend", and it is said to have a venomous bite, and poisonous breath; all of these indicate a snake-like form and movement rather than with a lizard-like or dinosaur-like body as in later depictions, and no legs or wings are mentioned; however it shows several dragon features that later became popular: it breathed fire, lived underground, and collected treasure.
  The Ramsund carving from Viking-age Sweden, around 1030, depicts events related in the Old Norse Völsunga saga about the hero Sigurd. It shows the dragon Fafnir as a big and very long wingless snake, drawn rather fancifully, surrounding the scene.
  The oldest recognizable image of a "modern-style" western dragon appears in a hand-painted illustration from the bestiary MS Harley 3244, which was produced in around 1260. This dragon has two sets of wings and its tail is longer than most modern depictions of dragons, but it clearly displays many of the same distinctive features.
  Dragons are generally depicted as having an underground lair or cave, or living in rivers. They are envisioned as greedy and gluttonous, with voracious appetites. Dragons are often identified with Satan, due to the references to Satan as a "dragon" in the Book of Revelation.
  In Western folklore, dragon-like creatures and dragons in Christian literature are usually portrayed as evil, except mainly in Asturian and Welsh folklore and modern fiction. In the modern period and late medieval times, the European dragon is typically depicted as a huge fire-breathing, scaly, and horned lizard-like creature, with wings (usually leathery bat-like, sometimes feathered), two or four legs, and a long muscular tail. It is sometimes shown with one or more of a crest, a fiery mane, ivory spikes running down its spine, and various exotic colorations. Dragon's blood often has magical properties. The typical dragon protects a cavern or castle filled with gold and treasure and is often associated with a great hero who tries to slay it. Though a winged creature, the dragon is generally to be found in its underground lair, a cave that identifies it as an ancient creature of earth.
caption: MS Harley 3244, a medieval bestiary dated to around 1260 AD, contains the oldest recognizable image of a fully modern, western dragon.[13]
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