This is the second instalment of a series in which we explore some of the lesser-known creatures and monsters found in Classical mythology, as many of these fantastical beings have similar counterparts in today’s modern fantasy literature and film. It’s my hope that giving more “screen time” to some of the unique creatures from ancient sources will inspire fantasy writers to try new things and take their beasts in new directions—and inspire readers to imagine worlds more fully, now that they understand better the origins of many traits we find ascribed to fantasy’s “popular crowd.” You can read part one here.
This month, we’re looking at a specific dragon from Greek and Roman mythology. However, instead of being the typical dragon you imagine when the word comes to mind—a fire-breathing, scaly, winged beast that lies on piles of gold—this particular dragon served more like a guard dog for a sacred object.
Notably, this concept of serpent creatures as guardians of sacred objects goes back further than Greek mythology (Eden, anyone?), and may account for the eventual role of dragons as guardians of things that became important to humans as society evolved—namely, gold & jewels (i.e. objects that provided or denoted physical wealth).
Onward to the Colchian Dragon.
Its Origins
“But the serpent with his sharp, unsleeping eyes had seen them coming and now confronted them, stretching out his long neck and hissing terribly … the monster in the sheath of horny scales rolled forward his interminable coils, like the eddies of black smoke that spring from smoldering logs and chase each other from below in endless convolutions.” – Argonautica, Apollonius of Rhodes
Remember all those myths and fairy tales where the hero needs to get past a giant monster, but instead of confronting it directly, cleverly waits until it falls asleep? Jason and Medea weren’t so lucky. When Jason and the Argonauts traveled to Colchis to claim the Golden Fleece—a long story worth reading on its own—they were rather dismayed to find that the Fleece was guarded. By a dragon. Who never sleeps.
The Colchian Dragon, so named because of its geographical location in Colchis, is described in versions of Jason’s story (by various ancient writers) as a deathless and unsleeping beast, the offspring of Gaia and Typhon after Typhon’s beat-down by Zeus. Blood from Typhon’s head spilled on the earth and Gaia—being, well, the earth—created the dragon.
Its Appearance
Many ancient writers focus more on the Dragon’s gaze as opposed to its physical makeup, the implication here being that stealing the Golden Fleece is an impossible task… no matter what, the Colchian Dragon will see you, and stop you. Probably painfully. Very painfully.
Apollonius of Rhodes describes the Dragon as a “formidable beast who peers all round and never, night or day, allows sweet sleep to conquer his unblinking eyes,” while one of Pindar’s Pythian Odes (composed after the Apollonius’ Argonautica) elaborates on how the Dragon is a “ravenous drakon, far surpassing in length and breadth a ship of fifty oars … [with] glaring eyes and speckled back.”
Other writers do give the Colchian Dragon physical and other traits, such as four nostrils, a crest and three-forked tongue, a devotion to gold and “whatever golden thing it sees it loves and cherishes” (Philostratus), a twin who helps guard the Fleece, a serrated spine, and massive jaws.
Its Defeat
The story wouldn’t have been very interesting if Jason and Medea just turned around and went home without the Golden Fleece. Jason wouldn’t have completed his quest, and we wouldn’t get that great story later on about Medea murdering her children after Jason betrays her (okay, so maybe “great” isn’t the right word, but it’s a fascinating tale on its own).
As happens with many myths transmitted through the millennia, there are different versions of the story that contain bits and pieces that either correlate to other pieces, contain similarities, or sometimes don’t fit anywhere at all.
When it comes to defeating the Colchian Dragon, the hero of the story changes depending on the storyteller. In some versions, Jason kills it with brute force, while in others Medea uses her magic to charm the poor beastie to sleep. Still other versions suggest that Orpheus, one of the Argonauts, used his lyre to lull the creature to sleep.
One version of the story is preserved only on a red-figure kylix vase painting from the 5th-century BC. On this vase, Jason is actually being devoured by the Dragon as the Fleece hangs from a tree branch behind him. It’s a dire scene, but sadly for the Dragon, the end is near. The woman standing to the Dragon’s right is not, in fact, Medea, but the goddess Athena. Presumably it’s through her assistance that Jason doesn’t end up as the Dragon’s lunch—though it’s hard to know for sure, since this version of the story only appears on this vase painting. What it does imply is that the Dragon is strong and powerful enough that a god’s assistance is needed to get past it.
The better-known version of the tale celebrates Medea’s role, and it’s her defeat of the Colchian Dragon that allows Jason to claim his rightful place as King of Iolcus, making his later betrayal of Medea all the more cruel. Medea creates a sleeping draught, into which she dips a sprig of fresh juniper and chants a sleeping spell. She then sprinkles the potion on the Dragon—which sounds a lot less dramatic than getting potion on a massive dragon probably was—who inhales the scent of the potion and falls asleep.
Several writers note that, as the Dragon falls asleep, he stretches out his coiled body to its full length. And rather than risk the creature awakening and chasing after them as they flee with the Fleece, Medea takes the time to smear a magic salve on its head that keeps it sleeping long after they leave.
Its Enduring Presence
While some aspects of the Colchian Dragon are reflective of the modern-day concept of what a dragon should be, the concept of a serpent guarding something sacred is perhaps the most enduring aspect of this particular creature. Of course, this wasn’t the first serpent figure to guard something sacred, but it certainly draws on that tradition of the serpent being defeated by a woman…with everything going to hell soon afterward (as we discover in Euripides’ Medea).
The Colchian Dragon presents many possibilities for fantasy writers, because there’s much left unsaid about the beast. It’s always awake, looking around…and may have poisoned fangs…and it’s enormous…but then what? We’re never told exactly how the Colchian Dragon kills its prey (though the version of the story on the red-figure vase may have contained this information), leaving the details marvellously wide open to the creativity of imagination.
This article was originally published on April 10, 2013.
Geoff Matthews
Julia Kitvaria Sarene
is this a real thing or did you make it up
Woah! thanks for the info! I know so much about the Colchian, but I now know more!