I noticed a detail in several pictures of Saint Margaret of Antioch. I lost count, but there are lots of pictures of her dragon with St. Margaret's cloak in his mouth.
Most pictures show her wearing a blue cloak, with one or two showing a red cloak. Suppose St. Margaret's cloak represents the sky? I have this sense that we could figure out the old meaning of dragons if we kept on with theses guesses. Dragon as simargyl? Medieval dragons often seem to have tails that end in a flourish of leaves and flowers, possibly representing abundance.
But there are also lots of wicked dragons. I remember one called "the laidly worm..." -that means ugly worm... I keep on wondering if the dragon is somehow related to old fortune telling beliefs. Sometimes the sky bring you plenty, other time only destruction.
I'm picturing an ancient tradition of women shamen, who may have used dangerous plants like the poppy. Well, this is not a scholarly blog. I'm just making notes about some ideas that branch out from the book, The Dancing Goddesses, by E. W. Barber. Her book is about folk dance, but it hints at a completely new understanding of pagans.
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