5 Historical Figures Who Claimed to Have Seen Dragons
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Share on XShare on RedditCopy ArticleAdd us as a preferred sourceIn Disney's 1977 film Pete's Dragon, Mickey Rooney's character runs around singing, "A dragon!
I swear I saw a dragon!" As the town drunk, however, everyone laughs it off, which is likely what many of us would do today if someone claimed a dragon sighting. But there was a time when the existence of dragons wasn't in question, and even prominent leaders and explorers claimed to have seen them. In Disney's 1977 film Pete's Dragon, Mickey Rooney's character runs around singing, "A dragon!
I swear I saw a dragon!" As the town drunk, however, everyone laughs it off, which is likely what many of us would do today if someone claimed a dragon sighting. But there was a time when the existence of dragons wasn't in question, and even prominent leaders and explorers claimed to have seen them. Legends of dragons were given credibility when historical figures added their firsthand accounts to the tales.
People sincerely believed that the winged lizards existed because of the trustworthy nature of these figures. Whether they mistook another creature for the mythical beasts, or embellished their stories for attention, these historical figures all claimed to have seen dragons. Legends of dragons were given credibility when historical figures added their firsthand accounts to the tales.
People sincerely believed that the winged lizards existed because of the trustworthy nature of these figures. Whether they mistook another creature for the mythical beasts, or embellished their stories for attention, these historical figures all claimed to have seen dragons. Alexander the Great-->Alexander the GreatKing Alexander III of Macedon, also known as Alexander the Great, was said to have encountered a dragon while on his military campaign through India in 330 BCE.
King Alexander III of Macedon, also known as Alexander the Great, was said to have encountered a dragon while on his military campaign through India in 330 BCE. The only existing account we have is from De Natura Animalium (On the Nature of Animals) by Claudius Aelianus, but it describes how Alexander and his men heard a great hissing from a cave. What was visible of the dragon was estimated to be over 100 feet long.
The Indian people revered the dragon and begged Alexander not to kill it, so he moved on, but allegedly told the story to his people once home. The only existing account we have is from De Natura Animalium (On the Nature of Animals) by Claudius Aelianus, but it describes how Alexander and his men heard a great hissing from a cave. What was visible of the dragon was estimated to be over 100 feet long.
The Indian people revered the dragon and begged Alexander not to kill it, so he moved on, but allegedly told the story to his people once home. Pliny the Elder-->Pliny the ElderPliny the Elder was an ancient Roman historian credited with authoring one of the first encyclopedias, Natural History, in 77 CE. He would die just two years later of smoke inhalation from Mt.
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