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to HERE BE DRAGONS!
INTRODUCTION As a young child I was fascinated with Puff the Magic Dragon and the serpent in the Garden of Eden. As a Dabbs Dragon (J.P. Barnett Elementary in Deer Park, Texas) for the first four years of my formal schooling and a reader of the Serendipity series of books, that fascination with dragons increased. Then, in middle school I read Anne McAffrey's story of Menolly and her fire lizards in Dragonsong and Tolkien's The Hobbit and met the ancient, smelly Smaug of Lonely Mountain, and I was hooked!
Dragons appear in some of our earliest known written works as the serpent and Leviathan in the Bible and the dragon that Beowulf defeats at the cost of his own life, to name just a few. Native dragon legends have appeared on every continent people inhabit, including aboriginal Australia as the Rainbow Serpent and South America as the Feathered Serpent, Quetzecoatl, and are present and appear in nearly all ancient mythologies and religions concerning the beginnings or workings of our physical world. I have linked to some great dragonlore sites below.
LINKS and INFORMATION
IMPORTANT! Please read my internet safety policy before following any links to pages outside the class web!
[Click on any of the following links to jump to section.]
REMINDER! Don't follow ANY links on pages outside the class web without parental or teacher permission and guidance.
"HERE BE DRAGONS" Phrase Origin
HERE BE DRAGONS is an expression commonly thought to have originated from ancient mapmakers. Instead of leaving a gaping hole for uncharted territories, they wrote the phrase "Here be Dragons" or filled it in with pictures of monsters, sea serpents, dragons or anything else creative they could think of. The written phrase, itself, is not as common as most people think, however. For more information click the following link: http://www.maphist.nl/extra/herebedragons.html
Dragon Encyclopedia
History Brief History of Dragons throughout the Ages
Types of Dragons
Famous Dragons
Dragon Heraldry
Civic Heraldry of England and Wales - Type "dragon" or "wyvern" in the site search box.
International Civic Heraldry - Type "dragon" or "wyvern" in the site search box.
Dragons in Different Languages
PUFF THE MAGIC DRAGON LINKS:
Storyboard from TV Movie - Jackie Draper meet Jackie Paper Words to the Song (Helpful Hint - Click link below right before clicking on this link.)
Dragons in Literature
Modern Fantasy
The Dragon is Deadfrom JRR Tolkien's The Hobbit
Under the Mountain dark and tall The King has come unto his hall! His foe is dead, the Worm of Dread, And ever so his foes shall fall. The sword is sharp; the spear is long, The arrow swift, the Gate is strong; The heart is bold that looks on gold; The dwarves no more shall suffer wrong. The dwarves of yore made mighty spells, While hammers fell like ringing bells In places deep, where dark things sleep, In hollow halls beneath the fells. On silver necklaces they strung The light of stars, on crowns they hung The dragon-fire, from twisted wire The melody of harps they wrung. The mountains throne once more is freed! O! Wandering folk, the summonses heed! Come haste! Come haste! Across the waste! The king of friend and kin has need. Now call we over mountains cold, 'Come back unto the caverns old'! Here at the Gates the king awaits, His hands are rich with gems and gold. The king is come unto his hall Under the Mountain dark and tall. The Worm of Dread is slain and dead, And ever so our foes shall fall!
Online Research Book
Dragons and Dragonslayers by FW Hackwood
Classics
Leviathan
Myths, Legends, and Folklore [What's the difference between myth, legend and folklore?]
Africa
Asia
Chinese Dragons Dragons in Ancient China - (All of the links on this page are family friendly)
Middle East Famous Babylonian/Sumerian Dragons
Australia Famous New Zealand and Australian Dragons
Rainbow Serpent Rainbow Dreaming (by students)
Rainbow Serpent Art Four Snake Dreaming at Mt. Singleton Follow the "Tracks of the Serpent"
Europe
Dragon legends and lore from the Rhine Famous Greek and Roman Dragons
Dragons of England: Dragons and Beasts - Hampshire County Council Dragons of the British Isles Map Dragons of the Marcher Counties Dragons and Serpents in Sussex
India
North America Piasa Bird (Alton, Illinois)
South America
The Islands
Miscellaneous/General History of Dragons around the World
Dragonslayers
REAL Dragons!
Dragons in Astronomy
CONSTELLATION DRACO Constellation Draco and accompanying Myths Draco - Johann Hevelius: URANOGRAPHIA (1690) Draco - John Flamsteed: ATLAS COELESTIS (1753) Chandra X-Ray Observatory Photo Album - Draco
CONSTELLATION CETUS Cetus The Whale or Sea Monster Cetus - Johann Bayer: URANOMETRIA (1603) Greek Myth behind the Constellation
CONSTELLATION HYDRA Hydra - Johann Hevelius: URANOGRAPHIA (1690) Hydra - John Flamsteed: ATLAS COELESTIS (1753) Chandra X-Ray Observatory Photo Album - Hydra
CONSTELLATION HYDRUS Chandra X-Ray Observatory Photo Album - Hydrus Hydrus Constellation and History
DRACONID METEOR SHOWERS 2002 Calendar Info on Draconids Look Out for the Draconids - Oct '99 Article
CONSTELLATION SERPENS & OPHIUCHUS Serpentarius and Serpens - Johann Hevelius: URANOGRAPHIA (1690) Ophiuchus and Serpens - John Flamsteed: ATLAS COELESTIS (1753) Chandra X-Ray Observatory Photo Album - Ophiuchus
Living Dragons First snakes may have come from water - News in Science
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