When scientists are asked about what real animals became the basis for fairy dragons, they usually name large reptiles - for example, a crocodile or a monitor lizard. For example, the giant Australian monitor lizard Megalania (up to 7 meters long) became extinct in historical time, and the Australian aborigines still tell stories about meeting this monster while hunting.
But where did dragons appear in Russian fairy tales? And not only in fairy tales … In the 30s of the twentieth century, archaeologists began excavations in Novgorod the Great. In layers dating back to the tenth to eleventh centuries, many wooden buckets were found, the handles of which were decorated with real dragon heads.
Novgorod finds.
Before the adoption of Christianity, the northern Slavs worshiped, along with other pagan gods, the monstrous Lizard - the lord of the waters, the master of fish wealth. The head of the Lizard was decorated not only with buckets, but also with musical instruments, and even buildings. And in the most ancient times, even human sacrifices were made to the Lizard - once a year, they chose a "Lizard bride" from beautiful young girls, dressed her up, put her in a boat, loaded the boat with gifts - and then drowned them, thereby trying to appease the "lake owner".
In the memory of generations, the "choice of the Lizard's bride" has been preserved, eventually turning into a children's round dance game "Sidi Yasha":
For more than a thousand years, "Lizard" has turned into "Yasha", and the cruel pagan ritual has become a child's play.
Promotional video:
And in the chronicles of Novgorod one can read the following: “There was a Novgorod prince named Sloven, from whom the Slavs are called. His eldest son, Volkhov, was an evil sorcerer and wizard, and knew how to turn into a fierce crocodile beast, and hid in the Volkhov River. And those who did not worship him, he devoured, and drowned others."
Crocodile?! In Novgorod ?! In Volkhov ?!
And here is an excerpt from the "Notes on Russia" by the Englishman Horsey (this diplomat and merchant lived in Russia from 1573 to 1591, knew our country well and was even a confidant of Boris Godunov):
“When we crossed the river, a poisonous dead crocodile-snake was lying on its bank. My men pierced him with spears. At the same time, such a terrible smell spread that I was poisoned and was ill for a long time."
The Englishman here writes not just "crocodile" or "snake", but uses the word "crocodile-serpent". And here is what the Austrian diplomat Sigismund von Herberstein, who traveled to Russia in 1517 and 1526, writes:
In Lithuanian "gyvate" means "snake". But the author clearly does not mean ordinary snakes - otherwise he would just write: "snake". But no, "the terrible creatures of the givoites." And the most amazing evidence was found in the Pskov Chronicle under 1582:
“In the same year, fierce beasts, crocodiles, came out of the river, and did not give way; people ate a lot, and people were in fear and prayed to God all over the earth."
The trail of the mysterious North Russian lizard is found in folk tales, and in songs, and in arts and crafts, and in chronicles, and travel notes … And if we assume that we are not dealing with a fairytale image, but a kind of real creature?
Huh?.. No, it seemed … It can't be …
Here is another document from the reign of Peter I:
Note again - a snake with paws! And it stinks just like the "crocodile-snake" of the Englishman Horsey …
Let's try to collect all the evidence together and make a "portrait of the suspect."
1. This mysterious animal lived in the rivers and swamps of modern Lithuania, Belarus and northern Russia
2. Most of all, this animal resembled a black snake with paws
3. The animal was large, it could attack a person (and even eat!)
4. There were many sharp teeth in the mouth of the animal
5. The animal gave off a disgusting smell.
Could it be a real crocodile? Or a monitor lizard? Not. Crocodiles and monitor lizards are very thermophilic creatures. When in 2010 the American state of Florida was covered by "terrible frosts" of +2 degrees, local residents had to save local crocodiles from certain death. The climate of Veliky Novgorod or Pskov is too harsh for crocodiles.
There is another consideration: reptiles have very poorly developed skin glands, so they do not smell. And the "Novgorodian lizard" has a strong and very unpleasant smell. But if a lizard is not a reptile, not a reptile, then what is it?
More ancient relatives of reptiles are amphibians, or amphibians (for example, frogs and newts known to everyone). However, amphibians can reach very large sizes - for example, the Chinese giant salamander Andrias Davidianus grows up to almost two meters in length and can be dangerous to humans. Moreover, she lives (unlike crocodiles) in cold water!
Chinese salamarndra.
The Japanese gigantic salamander Andrias Japonicus is slightly smaller - "only" one and a half meters in length….
Japanese salamander.
And fossil six-meter amphibians - kulazuchuses - lived in the Cretaceous period even in Antarctica, at the South Pole. In size and lifestyle, the kulazuchus was very similar to a crocodile, but at the same time it was perfectly adapted to low temperatures. Finally, the skin of amphibians is thin, moist and contains a large number of glands - so they can smell very, very unpleasant; the skin of amphibians can even be poisonous - like some toads and tropical frogs. Remember the Englishman Horsey, who got sick from just one smell?
Kulazuhus (alleged appearance).
The latest eyewitness accounts of the lizards of Belarus and northern Russia date back to around the end of the 19th century. What were these amazing animals? Modern giant salamanders or fossil kulazuhus? Are they completely extinct - or did they simply hide from people in impassable swamps?
Many cryptozoologists believe that the period of 100 years for the extinction of the species is too short, and therefore do not lose hope one day to catch or at least see a live "Novgorodian lizard" or "Pskov crocodile" …