dinoloreous

[dinoloreous]

Dragons are real (Kind of)

There are many creatures of myth that people have believed in throughout history such as unicorns, trolls, and chupacabras, but one that exists across multiple cultures and even continents has been dragons. What is it about dragons that makes them so popular and widespread around the world? Perhaps because it is because of all species of myth, dragons are one of the few that had physical evidence of existing, or rather what people of the time believed to be evidence. While many mythical creatures came about because of non credible sightings, dragons were inspired by the discovery of dinosaur fossils in ancient times. In the 4th century, Chinese historian Chang Qu discovered the fossil remains of a dinosaur which he then labeled as a dragon. While Asia and Europe were the only places to actually call these creatures dragons, nearly every civilization had some kind of lore about giant reptilian beasts. Naturally, dinosaur fossils have been discovered on every continent including Antarctica. Refer to the images. See how dinosaur fossils can easily be seen by less informed people as some kind of great dragon, especially when a fossil is incomplete, leaving interpretation for the presence of other dragon like features. Also see how many dinosaurs were avian. Most dinosaurs were also a common link between modern reptiles and birds alike. What is a dragon but a reptile that can fly like a bird. The term dinosaur wasn’t coined until 1841 by Richard Owen, but there is countless recording of fossils being found before them. We can only assume that they were called dragons before they were called dinosaurs. Additionally, many aquatic prehistoric creatures that went extinct later than believed could be responsible for myths of sea monsters. Even today, while the majority of people accept dinosaurs as fact, we still think of them in the back of our minds as some kind of myth. We are so distanced from them by time that they don’t seem real. A T-rex feels more like a dragon than a chicken, which is its closest living relative. We need to remember that dinosaurs aren’t myths, although they have been mythicized by popular culture. Movies such as Jurassic park, at times attempt to show accurate representations, however also perpetuate more myths about various dinosaur species and make us believe that they were bloodthirsty killing machines rather than more like animals today. Let me know your thoughts on the matter. Also tell me what other creatures of myth have real world explanations. Till next time.

https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/where-did-dragons-come-from-23969126/

https://www.thoughtco.com/dinosaurs-and-dragons-the-real-story-1092002#:~:text=Dragons%20were%20inspired%20by%20the,megafauna%20of%20the%20Cenozoic%20Era.