Dragons: Real, or Erased So You'd Never Ask?

Did dragons actually exist, or has history been rewritten to make sure you never ask?

In this episode, I share what I found in old books, Latin dictionaries, and dragon artwork, and outline why those sources contradict what we learned in school.

A 1946 dictionary defined dragons as "now rare". My 1700s Latin dictionary lists female dragons, water dragons, and baby dragons as if they were distinct animals. Medieval manuscripts placed dragons next to elephants and wolves, not in a separate section labeled fantasy.

Ancient China, medieval Europe, Japan, the Vikings, and the feathered serpent cultures of Central and South America all recorded dragon-like creatures independently across thousands of years. The Chinese zodiac uses eleven real animals and one dragon. Why?

My argument with Dr. Phil about carbon dating comes up. So does the Triceratops skull I once stood next to before a museum whisked it away, a 1500s book on the medicinal use of the unicorn horn, Marco Polo's writings on dragons and griffins, and why I think rare book collectors are acting as gatekeepers of a version of history most people will never see.

I'm not telling you dragons existed. I'm asking why the answer feels so protected.

You’ll Learn:

[0:00] Introduction

[3:45] How a 1946 dictionary defined dragons as "now rare" instead of imaginary

[5:48] Dozens of disconnected cultures recorded strikingly similar dragon creatures

[9:01] Why medieval books listed dragons alongside real animals like elephants and lions

[12:52] The newspaper accounts of flying reptiles that historians still debate

[17:46] Why the Chinese zodiac lists only real animals, except the dragon

Resources Mentioned:

1984 by George Orwell | Book
The Travels of Marco Polo the Venetian by Marco Polo | Archive
Dictionary, English and Latin by Robert Ainsworth (1773 edition) | Archive
De Unicornu Observationes Novae by Bartholin, T. et al. (Unicorn Book) | Archive
Dr. Phil Primetime episode on Conspiracy Theories – Believing Everything Yet Nothing! (featuring Gubba) | YouTube

Related Gubba Homestead Episodes:

These Secrets Hidden in Mainstream History Reveal A Dark Pattern

Hello, and welcome back to the Gubba Homestead Podcast. I'm Gubba, a first-time homesteader following in the footsteps of my homesteading forebears. I discuss everything from homesteading to prepping and everything in between.

Today, we're stepping outside the garden and into one of history's greatest mysteries: dragons. Most people immediately write dragons off as nothing more than mythology, lumping them in with fairy tales and fantasy novels. But the deeper you dig into history, the more interesting the conversation becomes. Why did civilizations all across the world, separated by oceans and thousands of years, record remarkably similar dragon-like creatures in their stories, artwork, and historical writings?

Were they all simply creating the same mythical beast, or could there be another explanation?

I'm not here to tell you dragons definitely existed. Instead, I want to explore the historical accounts, old books, artwork, and traditions that have kept this mystery alive for centuries and ask whether we've been too quick to dismiss them without taking a closer look.

Before we jump into today's episode, I want to thank the sponsor of this podcast, my small skincare business, Arvoti. If you've been wanting to simplify your skincare with products inspired by traditional ingredients, you can find my tallow balms, goat milk soaps, Anti-Aging and Hair Serums, cleansing oils, my handcrafted Shampoo Bar, and more. Every order helps support this podcast and my homestead, and I'm incredibly grateful to everyone who chooses to support small businesses like mine. You can browse the entire collection at Arvoti.com.

One of the first things that made me stop and think about this topic wasn't actually an old legend or an archaeological discovery. It was a dictionary. Years ago, people began sharing images of a dictionary published in 1946 that defined dragons in a way that sounds very unusual to modern readers. Instead of simply describing dragons as imaginary creatures, one edition included wording that referred to them as "now rare."

Why would a dictionary use language that seems to imply rarity instead of mythology?

My Latin dictionary includes definitions for female water and baby dragon.

Once you start looking beyond this, you quickly realize dragons appear almost everywhere throughout human history. I mentioned this when I was a guest on Dr Phil and everyone laughed but Ancient China wrote about dragons. Medieval Europe wrote about dragons. Japan had dragons. The Vikings carved dragon heads onto their ships..

Across Central and South America, feathered serpents held tremendous cultural importance. What's remarkable isn't that dragons appear in one culture. It's that they appear in dozens of cultures that developed independently over thousands of years. They often differ in appearance and symbolism, but they also share striking similarities. Long bodies, scales, claws, horns, wings in some traditions, immense size, and extraordinary power seem to appear again and again.

Another fascinating aspect of the dragon conspiracy the artwork. Throughout history, people carved dragons into stone, painted them onto pottery, embroidered them onto royal garments, and incorporated them into architecture. Temples, castles, ancient manuscripts, and monuments all contain dragon imagery.

Old books make the mystery even more interesting. Medieval books often listed dragons alongside lions, elephants, wolves, and other animals that unquestionably existed.

Like my Latin dictionary and a few other pages I have of old dragon mentions. Recorded as if real animals. Today we are told that these books mixed observation with folklore, moral lessons, and religious symbolism.

If dragons were viewed purely as fantasy, why were they frequently discussed alongside ordinary animals rather than being placed in an entirely separate category?

My unicorn book…

As you continue digging into historical records, you occasionally come across reports that many people have never heard about. Some nineteenth- and early twentieth-century newspapers published stories describing enormous flying reptiles or dragon-like creatures. One frequently discussed account involves railroad workers in the American West who allegedly encountered an enormous winged animal.

Another often-cited story comes from China in the 1930s, where newspaper reports described villagers claiming that what they believed to be a dragon had fallen from the sky. What’s funny is they say these accounts are difficult to verify today, and historians debate their reliability because many rely on newspaper reporting or secondhand testimony rather than physical evidence. But we believe in dinosaurs?

Even so, they demonstrate that belief in dragon-like creatures persisted well into the modern era instead of disappearing entirely during the Middle Ages.

And “History” has surprised us before. The giant squid existed in sailors' stories long before scientists documented living specimens. Look at the creatures on the old maps. My Marco Polo book…

Sometimes skepticism is healthy, but so is remaining open to new evidence when it appears.

I think one of the biggest mistakes we can make is assuming every mystery has already been solved simply because we live in the modern world. Every generation has believed it understood the world better than the one before it, and every generation has eventually been proven wrong about something.

Science itself depends on asking questions, testing ideas, and changing conclusions when better evidence becomes available. That's why I find topics like this enjoyable. They encourage us to think critically instead of automatically accepting or rejecting an idea simply because it sounds unusual.

Whether dragons were entirely mythical, inspired by misunderstood animals, influenced by fossil discoveries, or based on something we've yet to fully understand, one fact remains undeniable.

Few creatures have left such a profound mark on human history. They appear in stories, artwork, architecture, literature, royal symbols, religious traditions, and folklore from nearly every corner of the world. Very few ideas have endured across thousands of years and countless civilizations the way dragons have, and that alone makes them worth exploring.

At the end of the day, I'm not asking you to believe dragons certainly existed, and I'm not asking you to dismiss centuries of historical accounts without reading them for yourself. Instead, I'd encourage you to stay curious. Look at the old artwork. Read the ancient stories. Examine the historical books.

Compare traditions from different cultures, and ask yourself why dragon-like creatures became such a universal part of human history. Maybe the answer is simpler than we think, or maybe history still holds mysteries that haven't been fully explained or are hidden.
Either way, I think asking thoughtful questions is far more interesting than pretending every mystery has already been solved.

Thank you so much for listening to another episode of the Gubba Homestead Podcast. If you enjoyed today's conversation, I'd love it if you shared this episode with someone who enjoys history, archaeology, and asking big questions.

As always, if you'd like to support both the podcast and my homestead, visit Arvoti.com to browse our handcrafted skincare made with simple, nourishing ingredients. Until next time, keep learning, keep asking questions, and I'll see you in the next episode.