27. Claudius Aelianus (ca. 175–ca. 235) was a Roman author who composed a treatise entitled On the Nature of Animals (De natura animalium).
28. The legend of the enmity between dragons and elephants dates back to Pliny’s Natural History. See pp. 23–24, above.
29. Deuteronomy 32:33.
30. Here Topsell may be referring to Heliodorus of Emesa, a fourth-century Greek author.
31. Euphorbium is a resin made from the juice of the cactus plant called euphorbia.
32. “Emmet” is an archaic word for “ant.”
DWELLERS BELOW
1. Translated by Darius M. Klein with slight modifications by Scott G. Bruce from Athanasius Kircher, Mundus subterraneus in XII libros digestus, 2 vols. (Amsterdam: Joannem Janssonium, 1665), vol. 2, pp. 89–96.
2. See pp. 33–34, above.
3. The Sovereign Military Order of Malta was a medieval Catholic lay religious order whose members were also known as the Knights of Malta. This story of Francisco Deodato of Gozon and the dragon was repeated well into the nineteenth century in histories of the Knights of Malta.
4. Literally “bad step” in Italian.
5. Mount Pilatus is the name given to a collection of several tall mountain peaks looming over Lucerne in Switzerland.
6. Daniel 6:1–28.
7. The spring or vernal equinox happens around March 21, when the night and day are equal in length.
8. Conrad Lycosthenes (1518–61) was a scholar of Greek and Latin who published several books on omens and portents.
THE LAST AMERICAN DRAGONS
1. Cleveland Plain Dealer (Cleveland, OH), April 22, 1882, p. 2.
2. Tombstone Epitaph (Tombstone, AZ), April 26, 1890.
A LIZARDY SORT OF BEAST
1. Kenneth Grahame, “The Reluctant Dragon,” in Dream Days (New York and London: The Bodley Head, 1898), pp. 179–245.
YOUR KINDNESS QUITE UNDRAGONS ME
1. Edith Nesbit, “The Last of the Dragons,” in Five of Us and Madeline (London: T. Fisher Unwin, 1925), pp. 171–78.
Credits
Grateful acknowledgment is made for permission to use the following copyrighted works:
Excerpt(s) from Civil War by Lucan, translated by Matthew Fox, translation copyright © 2012 by Matthew Fox. Used by permission of Penguin Books, an imprint of Penguin Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC. All rights reserved.
Excerpt(s) from The Aeneid by Virgil, translated by Robert Fagles, translation copyright © 2006 by Robert Fagles. Used by permission of Viking Books, an imprint of Penguin Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC and Georges Borchardt, Inc., for the Estate of Robert Fagles. All rights reserved.
Excerpt from Silius Italicus, Vol. I, translated by J. D. Duff, Loeb Classical Library Volume 277, Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, first published 1934. Loeb Classical Library® is a registered trademark of the President and Fellows of Harvard College. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Excerpt from Lives of Roman Christian Women by Carolinne White, translation, editorial, and material copyright © 2010 by Carolinne White, published by Penguin Classics 2010. Reprinted by permission of Penguin Books Limited.
Excerpt from The Acts of Philip: A New Translation edited by François Bovon and Christopher R. Matthews, copyright © 2012 by Baylor University Press. Reprinted by arrangement with Baylor University Press. All rights reserved.
Excerpt from The History of the Kings of Britain by Geoffrey of Monmouth; translated by Lewis Thorpe, translation copyright © 1966 by Lewis Thorpe, published by Penguin Books 1966 and Penguin Classics 1973. Reprinted by permission of Penguin Books Limited.
Excerpt from Arthurian Romances by Chrétien Troyes, translation, introduction, and editorial material copyright © 1991 by William W. Kibler, “Erec and Enide” translation copyright © 1991 by Carleton W. Carroll, published by Penguin Books 1991 and Penguin Classics 2004. Reprinted by permission of Penguin Books Limited.
Excerpt from The Rig Veda translated by Wendy Doniger, translation copyright © 1981 by Wendy Doniger, published by Penguin Classics 1981, 2005. Reprinted by permission of Penguin Books Limited.
“The Seven Trials of Rostam” from Shahnameh: The Persian Book of Kings by Abolqasem Ferdowsi, translated by Dick Davis, copyright © 1997, 2000, 2004 by Mage Publishers, Inc. Used by permission of Viking Books, an imprint of Penguin Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC. All rights reserved.
Excerpt from The Monkey and the Inkpot: Natural History and Its Transformations in Early Modern China by Carla Nappi, Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, copyright © 2009 by the President and Fellows of Harvard College. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
Index
The page numbers in this index refer to the printed version of this book. The link provided will take you to the beginning of that print page. You may need to scroll forward from that location to find the corresponding reference on your e-reader.
A
About Everything (Hrabanus Maurus), 89–90
Acts of Philip, 38–43
Adam, 31, 194
Adomnán of Iona, 50
Aeneas, 101
Africa, 18
Alexios II Grand Komnenos, 129
alligators, 109
al-Masudi, 204–5
Alps, 266, 273–75
Antichrist, 163
Apep, 29
Apollodorus of Athens, 5
apostles, 38–43
Ares, 11
Ares, Dragon of, 11–15
Arizona, 237
Arnold (monk), 91
Arthurian legend, 101
Arthur, King, 101, 141
Ascension, Feast of the, 44
Athanasius of Isauria, 49
Athena, 11, 16
Auxerre, 83
B
Babylon, dragons of, 33–34
Babylonians, 31
Bagrada River, Dragon of, 18–22
Baldwin of Beauvais, 143–51
Bel, 266
Beleth, John, 99–100
Beowulf, 55, 57–73, 125
bestiaries, 106–8, 109
bonfires, 99
Book of Dragons, The (Nesbit), 315
Book of Kings, The, 206–8
Book of Monsters, 87
broadsides, 239
Burgundy, 83
Byzantium, 115
C
Cadmus, 11–15
California, 137
Campbell, Thomas, 279–80
Captives, The, 143–51
Carey, Henry, 188
Carthage, 18
chanson de geste, 143
China, 109, 212
Chrétien de Troyes, 141–42
Christianity, 29–30, 35, 50, 139
Chronographia (Psellos), 12–21
Chrysorrhoe, 132–36
Civetot, Battle of, 143
Columba, Saint, 50–51
Concerning the Miracles of Blessed Mary of Laon (Herman of Tournai), 96–98
Constantine, Emperor, 125, 155
Constantinople, 115
treasury dragon of, 125–28
Constantius, Emperor, 125
Cowell, Cressida, 285
Crusade Cycle, 143
D
Daniel (biblical char.), 33–34
Daniel, Book of, 266
Deodato, Francisco, 268–72
Devil see Satan
Dialogues on the Miracles of the Italian Fathers (Gregory the Great), 47–49, 91
Dinabutius, 102
Diocletian, Emperor, 129
Draco (constellation), 3
dracontites,
86
“Dragon of Wantley,” 188–93
Dragonriders of Pern novels (McCaffrey), 285
dragons
in Byzantium, 115–36
in children’s literature, 285–322
as demons, 122–24
in early Christianity, 29–51
in early modern thought, 237–81
of the East, 199–233
elephants and, 23–25
as fire-breathing, 277–78
in Greco-Roman world, 3–25
last American, 279–81
in later middle ages, 139–95
lightning as fear of, 120–21
medicinal properties of, 212
in medieval bestiaries, 107–8
of medieval Europe, 83–111
of northern Europe, 55–79
reproduction of, 276–77
saintly slayers of, 152–59
dreki, 55
Drought, Dragon of, 201–3
E
Edo Period, 214
Egypt, 29
elephants, 23–25, 86
Elizabeth I, Queen, 165
England, 239
Ernoul of Beauvais, 143
Errour, 165–71
Etymologies (Isidore of Seville), 85, 91
Eugenios, Saint, 129–31
Europa, 11
Eurystheus, King, 5
Eve, 139, 194
F
Faerie Queene, The (Spenser), 165–87
Fáfnir, 74–77, 78
Fasold, 78
First Crusade, 143
First Punic War, 18
Five Children and It, The (Nesbit), 315
Fortunatus, Venantius, 44
G
Gannett, Ruth Stiles, 285
Garden of Eden, 29, 31–32
Genmei, Empress, 209
Genoa, 109
Geoffrey of Monmouth, 101–5
George, Saint, 152, 153–55, 287–314
Glaber, Rodulfus, 83
Gog and Magog, 205
Golden Legend (Jacobus de Voragine), 152–59
Gorgon see Medusa
Grahame, Kenneth, 285, 287–314
Grass-Cutter (sword), 209–211
Greco-Roman mythology, 3
Greece, 3
Gregory the Great, Pope, 47–49, 91
Grendel, 57
Grimm, Jacob, 55
H
Heaven’s Ladder, Guardian of, 36–37
Hera, 5
Hercules, 3, 5–6, 206
Herman of Tournai, 96–98
Herodotus, 204
Hidesato, Fujiwara, 214–20, 221
History of Four-Footed Beasts, The (Topsell), 242–64
History of Serpents, The (Topsell), 242–64
History of the Kings of Britain (Geoffrey of Monmouth), 101–5
Hobbit, The (Tolkien), 57
Howard, Joseph, 279–80
How to Train Your Dragon (Cowell), 285
Hrabanus Maurus, 89–90
Hrothgar, King, 57
Huachuca Desert, 280–81
Hydra of Lerna, 5–6
Hypatios, 125–28
I
India, 23, 108
Indra, 29, 201–3
indulgences, 163
Inheritance Cycle, The (Paolini), 285
Iolaus, 5
Isidore of Seville, 85–86, 87, 89, 91
Italy, 47
J
Jacobus de Voragine, 152–59
Japan, 209
Jerusalem, 143
Jesus Christ, 38
John of Damascus, 117–19
John the Baptist, Saint, 99
Jörmungandr, 55
Julius Caesar, 7
K
Kallimachos, 132–36
Kallimachos and Chrysorrhoe (Palaiologos), 132–36
Kara-jang, 109–111
Kekaumenos, 117
Ketil Trout of Hrafnista, 78–79
Kircher, Athanasius, 265–78
Koshi, Eight-Headed Serpent of, 209–211
Kublai Khan, 109
L
Lancta, Jerome, 267
Laocoön, 16–17
“Last of the Dragons, The” (Nesbit), 315–22
Lazaropoulos, Ioannes (Ioseph), 129
Lazarus, 158
Lenox Globe, 237
Leviathan, 31, 32–33, 159
Library, The (Apollodorus of Athens), 5
Libya, 7, 152, 153–55
Li Shizhen, 212–13
Loch Ness, 50
Lucerne, 273–75
Luther, Martin, 163
M
Marcellus, Saint, 44–46
Marduk, 29
Margaret, Saint, 122, 152–53, 156–58
Marie de France, 141
Marina, Saint, 122–24
Martha, Saint, 153, 158–59
Martin, George R. R., 285
Martyrdom of Saint Marina, 122–24
Mary (biblical char.), 96
Mary Magdalene, 158
Maugantius, 103
Maximinus, 158
McCaffrey, Anne, 285
Meadows of Gold and Mines of Gems (al-Masudi), 204–5
Medusa, 7–10
Mehmed II, Sultan, 115
Merlin, 101–5
Mesopotamia, 29
Metamorphoses, The (Ovid), 11
Michael (archangel), 31, 34, 143
Michael VIII Palaiologos, Emperor, 132
Milton, John, 194–95
Ming dynasty, 212
missionaries, 38
Mongol Empire, 109
My Father’s Dragon (Gannett), 285
N
Natural History (Pliny the Elder), 85
Nesbit, Edith, 285, 315–22
Ness, Monster of the River, 50–51
Nicaea, Council of, 125
Norse mythology, 55
O
Odysseus, 16
Ogre-Dragon, 132–36
Old Norse (lang.), 55
Olybrius, 156–57
Onachus, 159
Ō No Yasumaro
Ophiorhyme, 38
orme, 55
Otohime, 221–33
Ovid, 11
P
Palaiologos, Andronikos, 132–36
pamphlets, 239
Pannonian dragon, 91–95
panther, 106–7
Paolini, Christopher, 285
Paradise Lost (Milton), 194–95
Paris, 44
Pentateuch, 31
peridexion tree, 108
Perpetua, 36
Perseus, 7–10
Persian Empire, 206
Philip (apostle), 38–43
Pliny the Elder, 23, 83, 85, 87, 89
Polo, Marco, 109–111
Pompey, 7
printing press, 163
prophets, Jewish, 31
Protestant Reformation, 163
Psellos, Michael, 120–21, 122
Ptolemy XIII (Pharaoh), 7
“Puff the Magic Dragon” (Yarrow), 285
R
Ra (god), 29
Rakhsh, 206–8
Records of Ancient Matters (O No Yasumaro), 209–211
Redcrosse Knight, 165–87
Reginn, 74
Regulus, Marcus Atilius, 18–22, 118, 245
“Reluctant Dragon, The” (Grahame), 287–314
Revelation, Book of, 31, 34–35, 91, 163
Rhodes, 267–68
Rig Veda, 201–3
> Rome, 3, 18, 115, 152
Rostam, 206–8
Rufus (demon), 122
Rushing Raging Man, 209–211
Rustichello da Pisa, 109
S
Saga of Þiðrekr of Bern, 78, 79
Saga of Ketil Trout, 78–79
Satan, 29, 34, 36, 107–8, 117–18, 139, 143–51, 152, 194–95
Sathanas, 143–51
Saturus, 37
Schorer, Christopher, 272–73
Schumperlin, Paul, 273
Scotland, 50
Sigemund the Wælsing, 57–58
Sigurd, 55, 74–77
Silena, 153
Silius Italicus, 18
Smaug, 57
snake cult, 38–39
Song of Ice and Fire, A (Martin), 285
South Asia, 29, 201
Spenser, Edmund, 165–87, 188
Strand Magazine, 315
“Strange, But Now a Neighbor to Us” (Trundle), 239–41
Subterranean World (Kircher), 265–78
Summa on Ecclesiastical Offices (Beleth), 99–100
Sylvester, Saint, 152, 155–56
T
“Tale of Tawara Toda, The,” 214–20
Tarasconus, 159
Teutonic Mythology (Grimm), 55
Thebes, 11
Theodore (monk), 48–49
Theodoric the Great, King, 78
Theodosius, Patriarch, 156
Thor, 55
Tiamat, 29
Tolkien, J.R.R., 57, 78
Topsell, Edward, 242–64, 265
Travels (Polo), 109
Trebizond, Terror of, 129–31
Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, 194
Trojan horse, 16
Trundle, John, 239–41
U
Una, 165–87
Urashima Taro, 221–33
V
Vesuvius, Mount, 265
Victor, 273–75
Virgil, 16–17
volcanoes, 265
Völsunga saga, 74–77
Vortigern, King, 101–5
Vrtra, 29, 201–3
W
Wiglaf, 65–70
Wister, Owen, 188
Wonders of the East, 87
Wondrous-Inada-Princess, 209
Wrath (sword), 74
Y
Yarrow, Pete, 285
Yvain, the Knight of the Lion (Chrétien de Troyes), 141–42
Z
Zeus, 11
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z
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