Famous Greek Dragons

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"Ladon"

- Ladon was the hundred-headed dragon that guarded the golden apples in the garden of the Hesperides, nymphs who were daughters of Atlas [the titan who held the sky and the earth upon his shoulders]. Hercules eleventh labour consisted of stealing these golden apples. Since the Garden of Hesperide's dragon knew Atlas, Hercules had to persuade him to steal the apples while he stayed to support the sky in his place. Atlas, who had a loathing for his task as punishment following the downfall of the Titans, intended to leave Hercules with the weight of the world upon his shoulders. Hercules asked Atlas whether he could take it back, just for a moment, while the hero put some soft padding on his shoulders to make the job more comfortable. Atlas placed the apples on the ground and lifted the burden. Hercules seized the apples and quickly ran off.

- Lernean Hydra [info can be found here]

- A serpent giant in the ancient city of Carthage was a deadly obstacle to the Roman army, led by the general Regulus. The enormous serpent had a flattened head and glowing eyes, and its jaws were lined with rows of fangs. It lurked among the reed beds of the river Bagrada. The army had to cross the river but the water started to boil as soon as the first man stepped in. The serpent mercillessly coiled around and dragged the man down to his death beneath the water. The plan Regulus devised in the end was similar to the tactics in besieging a real fortress. Boulders were bombarded at the serpent until its skull was smashed. The Carthaginian serpent was skinned [it was 120 feet/37m] and Regulus presented the skin and jaws to the city of Rome upon his victorious return. An ovation was granted to the general and the remains of the serpent were displayed in a temple on Capitol Hill. The remains disappeared during the Numantine War in 133 B.C.

- Cetus, the Dragon of Poseidon: Perseus, travelling on his winged sandals, noticed a maiden, who was tied up and gazing fearfully at the sea. She looked at him, and proceeded to tell her story. She was Princess Andormeda. Her mother was a vain woman who claimed that she was even lovelier than the sea nymphs known as the Nereids.

Cetus from Johan van Keulen's Boeck zee-kaardt, 1709.

The sea god Poseidon then called Cetus, a serpent dragon, from the depths of the ocean, and ordered it to create havoc in their land. The people called out in fear, and he told them that only the queen's daughter's sacrifice could rid them of the monster. As the princess ended her sad tale, the serpent dragon surfaced. It resembled a giant whale with large ivory tusks and its head was like a hound's, Perseus waited to make his move. While the dragon was intent on the lady, Perseus swung in, and thrust his sword underneath the head of the monster. It collapsed, and floated down to the depths of the sea.

- The Dragon of Rhodes: There is a legend of a brave knight known as Gozon, who sought to slay a fearsome dragon which roamed the Greek Isle of Rhodes in the Mediterranean. This dragon enjoyed preying on fair maidens and the local peasantry. However, Gozon was determined to rid Rhodes of this menace so he built a model of the creature from the descriptions he had heard. He trained his dogs to attack it and sought the dragon in its lair after much practice. Gozon stabbed the dragon in the neck as the creature fought off the attacking dogs, effectively ending the terror of the inhabitants of the island. The skull of the Dragon was said to have remained above the Amboise Gate until 1837. Gozon died in 1353, and his tomb is said to have been the only inscribed with the words, "Here lies the Dragon Slayer."

References:

Books -

1. Ultimate Encyclopedia of Mythology by Arthur Cotterell & Rachel Storm

2. Dragons: A Natural History by Dr. Karl Shuker

Websites -

> Ancient Sprial Dragon Serpent > What is Better Than Slaying a Dragon

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