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Dragon sighting in California along Interstate 5... If you are driving up Interstate 5 in northern California, just past Yreka - watch for the dragon! We first noticed it about a year ago. Made from 'found objects,' it stands about ten feet high and twenty-something feet long. It apparently likes attention, because when taking these pictures I saw a spotlight installed nearby so it can be admired at night. This takes 'art in public places' to a whole new level... Click on the images below to see bigger pictures.
Look up ‘DRAGOON’ in the dictionary. Its first definition is ‘a dragon.’ Its second is a weapon or firearm, and/or the soldier wielding it. I got curious over why percussive military devices were named after dragons – so I did some research. China was, of course, first to develop gunpowder - then Sung Dynasty craftsmen produced a small, hand-held firearm described as a pocket cannon. Further, the more ornate ones, owned by royalty, were made to look like a dragon! Apparently this design caught on for there are descriptions and drawings in ancient Chinese war chronicles that refer to dragon cannon, and early Chinese musket-like weapons very likely took on the same appearance. The first encounters with the Chinese may have been via trade along the Silk Road , or at sea between pirates and European ships. Imagine the fascination the Portuguese, Spanish, Dutch or English would have had for the fanciful guns – and their eagerness to copy and produce ‘dragon cannon’ of their own.As a matter of fact dragon cannon still exist outside China, although most are owned by collectors. In Borneo museums there are two-wheeled field cannon dating back to the 1800s complete with the head, feet and tail of a dragon. Some are garishly painted like the one pictured below. Click on the images below to see bigger pictures.
Contact us if you have captured a dragon image on film. We may be able to feature it here!
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