Poland

• Krak's Dragon
• Footnotes

History: In 700 C.E., the hero Krak was reaching the peak of his fame. He found himself in the mists of a distressed town, called Wavel, which was savaged by a fearsome dragon. Instead of brute strength, Krak devised a cleaver plan where he filled a sheepskin fill of saltpeper.¹

The dragon saw the sheepskin and hastily gobbled it down. Unfortunately, the saltpeper made the dragno thirsty beyond belief, so he proceeded to drink water (some say a whole river) until his body burst into many pieces.²

Some alternate stories say that the King of Krakow offered his daughter's hand to anyone who could slay the foul beast. In each story, however, the dragon is slain by similar means. However, in the secondary story, the slayer is a poor shoemaker.³

Symbolism: The fact that this dragon is nameless is a sign that this story was more to promote the fame of the slayer than the dragon. The story is the common evil dragon versus good slayer.

Physical Description: Unknown

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1. Famous Dragons
2. Famous Dragons
3. Weird Beasts: A Polish Dragon

For more information, see the Bibliography.