We continue to analyze the characters of Russian folk tales. Among the most frequent opponents of the protagonist, along with Baba Yaga and Koshchey the Immortal, is a huge, often three-headed, fire-breathing monster - the Serpent Gorynych.
His description, which is present in fairy tales, clearly indicates a relationship with mythological dragons, which are found among both Western and Eastern peoples. As to how the image of the dragon itself appeared in world folklore, scientists have no clarity.
Even exotic suggestions are expressed that this motive reflects the dull memories of the encounters of primitive people with dinosaurs. But from a scientific point of view, this simply cannot be, because between the first human ancestors and the last extinct dinosaur lies a gap of 60 million years.
In a compromise version of this version, primitive people were able to form an idea of the appearance of giant lizards, stumbling upon their fossilized remains.
Nevertheless, Vladimir Propp, the author of The Historical Roots of a Fairy Tale, mentioning such a theory, immediately rejects it:
At the same time, he himself attributes the appearance of the image of a serpent to ritual rituals during initiation, when a young man was "swallowed" by a monster, and then he came out of it reborn and with magical abilities. Here Propp sees the origins of the snake fighting motif among different peoples.
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Be that as it may, in ancient Russian mythology there is information about a certain Lizard, who was worshiped by the inhabitants of Novgorod and the surrounding lands. For example, academician Boris Rybakov writes about this. In the book "Paganism of Ancient Rus" he gives an archaic story about the god-korkodile (crocodile) living in Volkhov. He also describes a genuine find - a gusli of the first half of the 12th century with a unique image:
It is likely that on the basis of just such myths, one of the most striking characters appeared in Russian fairy tales - the Serpent Gorynych.
In conclusion, we will briefly say that there are still quite marginal versions that lead the Snake out of the rethought Tatar army, armed with guns. But here we can only say one thing - the image of a fire-breathing dragon is much older than any guns and firearms in general.
Which version seems more convincing to you?