Dragon Tattoos

Eastern Dragon Tattoos

In Asian cultures, particularly in China but also in Japan, Korea, Thailand, and Mongolia, the dragon is seen as a friend to humanity. It is a benevolent protector, a bearer of life, a creature endowed with healing powers, and a symbol of good fortune. Eastern dragons have been used in tattoos for ages and today these dragon tattoos are most popular with people who train in or have an interest in martial arts.

The Eastern dragon is characterized by a definitively mythical appearance. It has a flat face which is often depicted to be grinning or smiling in some way and a long, serpentine body that seems as if it should have many legs, like a centipede, but instead walks on a pair of short hind and a pair of front legs only. Eastern dragon tattoos are often large and intricately designed, often depicted crawling over the shoulder of otherwise wrapped around the body. They are most often red in color but can be yellow, blue, green, almost any color imaginable. They have a definite Oriental look about them and it is easy to see that they are most likely Chinese in origin. Since the art of tattoo as we know it today was developed in nearby Japan (although cultures the world over have used tattoos it was Japan that first treated it as an art form) it is likely that some of the earliest artistic tattoos ever created were Eastern dragons.

Western Dragons

Traditionally dragons in the western world have been viewed quite differently than those in the East. European legends are full of stories about dragons which wreak havoc on human kind. They attack unmercifully, carry off women and children, and have the ability to fly as well as breathe fire. Western dragons were meant to be slain, and one of the most famous dragon stories out of Europe is that of St. George slaying a dragon and saving the citizens from the vile creature.

Western dragons are more reptilian in appearance. They are covered in scales, have a snouted face and a mouth full of razor sharp teeth. They are usually depicted with wings as well. Although they were considered evil in most of the stories and legends about them, they hold a certain mystique that has attracted people for ages. In fantasy art and dragon tattoos, they are now seen as beautiful, if deadly, creatures. Western dragon tattoos usually depict the dragon in flight with its great wings outstretched in an impressive span. Images of the dragons breathing fire or with smoke coming from their nostrils are also common.

Western dragon tattoos can also be very intricate, but they are usually not as detailed as the Eastern dragon tattoos. Also, while tattoos of Eastern dragons are usually large, Western dragon tats can be almost any size. They are worn by people who just think the dragon is a cool design or by those who have a special fascination or love for the creatures.

Some people even believe dragons are real and are either extinct or living in hiding, their numbers severely dwindled by all the dragon-slaying knights of the middle ages. These people are more likely to get very detailed and beautiful dragon tattoos.