Dragons Back from Slovakia

Well our research trip to Slovakia on the nature and history of European dragons proved interesting and just scratched the surface of things. First off, in Slovakia we found many statues and coats-of-arms of villages and churches with dragons. Only problem was that in all cases they were being slain by a brave knight with a long sharp lance! Ouch! And one of our relatives said, “In Europe the dragon is always the loser.” This does seem to be the case all right. And the dragons depicted seem to specialize in having 3 heads – when one gets cut off the others can take over. Not a happy sight! Here are some pictures of such a dragon fountain.

Slaying the 3 headed dragon

Close-up of the 3 headed dragon fountain

On a happier note in Bratislava in the old city there is a pharmacy with a golden dragon hanging over their entrance. Some people told us that the dragon was the guild emblem of herbalists and pharmacists. We haven’t been able to substantiate that but the dragon certainly is very lovely. And not being slain!