Dragons: Their History and Symbolism

by Janet Hoult

The dragon is a symbol which is found all over the world, and dates from the earliest creation myths. It has many different meanings, and is portrayed in many different styles. This book looks briefly at the depictions, history, celebrations, legends, heroes and saints connected with dragons, and the symbol's use in alchemy, as well as putting forward a suggestion as to what the dragon actually meant to the people in the past.

Genres: Nonfiction, Mythology, Dragons

64 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1987

Reviews

[Sam · Rating 2 out of 5]

Now I know this is only a short little book but I was expecting a little bit more from it. Yes Hoult packs a lot of information into those 64 pages including a good number of illustrations and references but I did find the selection somewhat limited in the sense that it was all linked back to Christianity and modern day lore. As interesting as that was I would've like a lot more about the origins of the dragon mythology, which far outdates Christianity, as well as more on how it influenced modern culture including dragon stories of today (which lets face it are still prevelant). A good starting point but a few more pages on early dragon lore would've been of huge benefit.

[Christine · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good little book about dragons. Consdering the book's size, it holds a large amount of information. Hoult goes into some detail about the development of dragon lore and the possible meaning of dragons.