Roar in the Sky

Today we know that dragons don’t exist. But in ancient times, people all over the world believed they did. In China, dragons were sometimes described as spine-chilling creatures that lived in the ocean. In Egypt, stories were told about a petrifying monster that caused earthquakes. In Europe, tales of fire-breathing dragons made people break out in a cold sweat.

So why do so many cultures have stories about dragons? Some of these stories probably spread after people found the bones of long-gone animals, like dinosaurs. At the time, it wasn’t known that dinosaurs once roamed the earth. When people found their enormous skeletons, they believed the bones belonged to a bloodcurdling monster, like a dragon.

Some dragon stories also likely came from people trying to explain things they didn’t understand—like earthquakes. Not knowing what caused these frightful natural events, people imagined that a giant creature was shaking the planet.

Today we know that dragons aren’t real. But long ago, people all over the world believed they were. In China, dragons were sometimes described as spine-chilling creatures that lived in the ocean. In Egypt, stories were told about a petrifying monster that caused earthquakes. In Europe, tales of fire-breathing dragons made people break out in a cold sweat.

Why do so many places have stories about dragons? Some of these stories probably started after people found the bones of animals from long ago, like dinosaurs. At that time, people didn’t know that dinosaurs once lived on Earth. So when they found huge dinosaur skeletons, they believed the bones belonged to a bloodcurdling monster, like a dragon.

Some dragon stories also likely came from people trying to explain things they didn’t understand. People didn’t know what caused some frightful events, like earthquakes. So they imagined that a giant creature was shaking the earth.