Other Historical Dragons

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by Jon Bowser

As the popularity of the dragon grew, so did the many stories involving heroes or important worms. Here are a few of the more well known myths of these creatures.

Dragonstake

Sigurd and the dragon Fafnir
(Norse) Sigurd (Siegfried) Volsung, on the advice of a dwarf named Regin, killed the dragon Fafnir by hiding in a pit outside of its lair. Fafnir was really Regin's brother who had killed their father in order to gain the wealth of the kingdom. His greed caused him to change into a dragon. Siegfried was forced to kill Regin because the dwarf plotted to kill him and take all of the hard earned treasure.

Jormungand, the Migard Serpent
(Norse/Scandanivan) Jormungand was the son of Loki and Angerboda. He was expelled by Odin and forced to encircle the earth while holding his own tail in his mouth beneath the sea. In the day of the Last Battle, he rose up to fight Thor. Thor slew him with his great hammer.
Jormungand was of a dragon type known as the ouroborus, which means 'tail eater'. The ouroborus was first seen in Egypt, than later in Greece. It stood for eternity and the never ending and became a symbol of the universe.

'Demon of Scattery' by Michael Whelan

Nidhogg/Niddhogg/Nydhogg
Nydhogg is a monster serpent which forever gnaws on the roots of the world tree, Yggdrasil. This tree supports the universe and Nydhogg desires to destroy the universe.

Gold sleeping dragon Beowulf
      (Anglo-Saxon) Beowulf is an epic poem about a man who becomes king, Beowulf, and his many adventures. It is the oldest known piece of English literature and the first poem in English. It was written about A.D. 1000. It is actually a combination of three stories with the third being about Beowulf's combat with the fire dragon.
      The story says that a servant of Beowulf's was in some trouble and ran away to hide from it. He stumbled upon a dragon horde near the town and took a gold cup back with him, hoping to buy his way out of the trouble. When the dragon awoke and discovered the missing treasure, it set out to terrorize the land.
      Though Beowulf was getting old, he gatherd together twelve of his best warriors and set out to rid Geats, the country where he was king, of this menance. A young warrior named Wiglaf begged the king to let him help fight the dragon. Beowulf refused and went to fight the dragon alone. Beowulf rushed the beast with his sword, but it broke and he didn't have time to draw his dagger before the dragon bit him. Wiglaf rushed to save the king and jammed his sword into the soft underside of the dragon's jaw, causing it to let go. Together, they hacked the dragon until it was dead. Beowulf died from the poisonous bite, but transfered his crown to Wiglaf before he did.

Nessie - the Last Surviving Dragon?
The Loch Ness monster, or 'Nessie', is what we could call a modern day dragon. Though her first recorded sighting was in A.D. 565 by St. Columba as he was crossing the loch with a group of followers, her real fame only recently surfaced in the 1930's. She was spotted in 1933 on land and ever since sightings of her have grown. In 1934 the most famous picture was taken by a London surgeon. Unfortunately, it has since been proven to be a fake.

The surgeon's picture
      After that, the number of sightings grew and a few more photographs were produced, though none of good quality. During the early years of the sightings, a hippo's footprint was planted by a prankster and taken very seriously until the truth was discovered. Sightings were not taken as seriously after that, but it didn't stop them or their intentsity.
      It seems that even in modern times, there might still be a market in dragon-hunting. After the 'first' sighting in 1933, many speculators offered large prizes for the animal, dead or alive. Circus owner Bertram Mills promised a sum of 20,000 pounds to any man who could bring the creature alive to his circus. If dragons were still around as they were in days of old, this is the sort of thing they be subject to. They were subject to it. Perhaps this is why they are no longer here.
      Though there has ben on solid 'proof' - no clear pictures, no body, etc. - sightings occur even today. There are groups that attempt to research and prove or disprove Nessie's existance. She 'lives' in Loch Ness, the largest of the three lochs in the Great Glen of Scotland. She is thought to possibly be a plesiosaur, a sea dwelling dinosaur that became extinct 65 million years ago. The decription given by most people who claim to have seen her - a giraffe like neck, small head, skin like an elephant, two very short forelegs or flippers - supports this theory. After the last ice age, the loch may have been connected to the sea, and so Nessie may have become stranded in the loch. Recently, the existance of a large underwater cavern was discovered and is now being researched. Could this possibly be Nessie's lair? There are as many theories to this creature's existance as there are theorist, including the theory that she doesn't exist at all. And as long as she remains elusive, there may never be proof of the Loch Ness Monster.

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Created 6/9/99
Updated 9/28/00

Lair of the Dragon	Dragon's Gold	Western Dragon
Through History	Many Forms	Dragons of the Far East
Dragons among the Stars	Dragon Links