I've actually heard that dragons are merely different cultures interpretations of dinosaur bones that had been found in different periods of history.
This actually happened with quite alot of mythological creatures.. If large bones were found, the Ancient Greeks for example, would suggest that they were the bones of a hero, or some mythological creature of their stories. For example I'm sure I have read somewhere that the area where the griffins were meant to populate was an area where there were many beaked dinosaur finds, that some people in the past may have discovered before the modern age, leading to the origin, or a confirmation of that story.

The same is possibly true with dragons... In different parts of the world every now and then dinosaur bones would be found, and the different cultures would give their own interpretations as to what the creature would look like, spawning the different looks.

It's only recently when we came up with the term Dinosaur that we had a label for these kind of finds, and knowledge about what they actually were. In antiquity finds such as the skull of a T-Rex would probably translate into being the head of a dragon, or some similar creature.

Hey argor, your thread about FF Movie stars was brilliant =D.

What you say is true, I believe Dragons originated as a chinese depiction in art, and made its way west.

What you say could very well be true, but alas nobody knows.

- Kuja

Yeah, my Movie Stars Thread went better than I thought.. for a few days! No-one has posted for ages though... It's still alive and not deleted yet though as far as I know!

Hmmm.. As for Cryptozoology, I just wish more people took part in this type of thread! I live for this stuff!

I think a fair amount of stories about Dragons, at least for the European version of them, can be accredited to The Bible, in The Revelations. That seems to be the oldest European trace of the fire-breathing Dragon, since in the Bible, the Dragon symbolized Satan. Since Satan is usually matched with 'fire,' that would make sense. But, again, Greek Mythology also included stories about Dragons. I only mention The Revelations, since most of Europe was very religious, and likely read The Bible more than they would have read Greek Mythology, or other ancient texts that made mention of it.

I definitely agree though, that the idea of the dragon is very widespread, since, like you said, there have been many ancient pictures and legends found in many areas around the world.

As for Cryptozoology, I don't have a problem with it. It's a bit unfair to say that just because a few people in the field are nutty, that it discredits all of them. Most cryptozoologists are just trying to disprove or prove these myths, and in a sense, it makes them similar to the guys on 'Mythbusters.'

Personally I dont find anything wrong with it either , but I think people should consider it a hobby and not a job.

After all many of these so-called myths have turned out to be fakes:

1. Bigfoot - Somebody made tracks out of custom sandals

2. Lochness Monster - Guy attached clay or wood to the top of a toy boat and took a picture

3. Chupacabra - While nothing has discredited this yet, The Chupacabra excuse is mainly used in spanish-speaking countries, and hardly anywhere else in the world, as such I have an issue with this "thing" being real. Also the appearance differs person-person.

- Kuja

Cryptozoology is a valuable science in my opinion. Mostly small scale stuff, rather than Nessie and dragons, is (dis)proved though. There was a lot of oxygen that wasn't supposed to be there until 1996, and someone proved that a certain type of microbe existed on coral in salty water, and went on an expedition to Shark Bay to find some. These microbes pump out 140,000 tonnes of oxygen a year each, and the Shark Bay coral is full of them. Thus, Cryptozoology explained something. Cool, isn't it.

I believe that Cryptozoology is a neccessary branch of science, it packs a lot of excitement into just plain zoology. Have you ever watched those shows where they go in search of unidentified animals?....Sure, it is probably fake, but it is exciting nonetheless. And i agree it should be a hobby, not an actual profession.

One thing i hate is when people bash cryptozoologists for their beliefs. Personnally, i dont think anyone should that something dosnt exist, rather they should accept the possibility that it COULD exist.(now i understand that if there is solid evidence that a creature dosnt exist than they can say so. Example:Nessie)

Now im probably a little bisased to this since im a native to the Pacific Northwest and ive always been fascinated with it since i was very little, but look at something like Bigfoot. just because we havent found evidence that supports it yet donst mean it does not exist. It just means we have not found the right evidence. Im not saying i do believe in it, but i believe it could exist.

Now with any "unknown" creature(not just bigfoot but ill use it as an example) but you have got to take a lot of things into consideration.

A) Look at how much of the world man has yet to set foot in(if im not mistaken some 30% of the forests in the Pacific Northwest has never been explored) also im sure there is plenty of the worlds uncharted wilderness that may not be accesible to man. just the other day i was out hunting with my dad and we were in some really rough terrain after about 6-hours of hiking we had to turn back because we were wet, cold and running out of light. we had been trying to get into this basin all day, but we were cut short due to lack of supplies. if you have a creature that lives in the habitat and can navigate it easily and can survive out there, wouldnt you agree it would be very hard to find?

B) people also claim that just because no bodies have been found a creature couldnt exist. There is a lovely thing called decomposition. Now lets assume that a bigfoot died somewhere in the wilderness(even if it in an explored, accesible part) The wilderness is a HUGE place. Maybe by the time someone gets to where the body is, it is decomposed enough to the point where you cant tell what it is, if you even notice something like that in a think foresty area. Combine this with option A and think about the chances of actually finding a body.

i just wantt to finish by aplogizing for this being a lengthy post

Dragons first appeared in the Iliad(a Greek myth that is about a siege THAT HAPPENED IN TRUTH but has has some mythological stuff inside it):''Agamemnon had a blue dragon painted in his armor''.Also my father had watch a documentary that explained how dragons could fly(even if they had wings they would be too heavy to fly) and throw flames.