A dragon sits on a small turret around the side of The Highwayman Inn, Sourton.
"Quoted as being the most unusual pub in Britain and also said to be the most haunted inn too!!
An Aladdin's cave of eclectic artifacts and curios, an interesting and celebrated clientele (including a resident ghost), combine to make The Highwayman Inn truly something special. Great food, including Oggies! (Pasties to those unfamiliar with the term!) and Scrumpy (local strong cider) this has to be a place you should NOT pass without calling in. Eccentrically decorated with so much to see and the most wonderful ambience. The owners of this special inn have no fear of being wonderfully interesting and different."
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"A dragon is a large, serpent-like legendary creature that appears in the folklore of many cultures around world. Beliefs about dragons vary drastically by region, but dragons in western cultures since the High Middle Ages have often been depicted as winged, horned, four-legged, and capable of breathing fire. Dragons in eastern cultures are usually depicted as wingless, four-legged, serpentine creatures with above-average intelligence.
The earliest attested dragons resemble giant snakes. Dragon-like creatures are first described in the mythologies of the ancient Near East and appear in ancient Mesopotamian art and literature. Stories about storm-gods slaying giant serpents occur throughout nearly all Indo-European and Near Eastern mythologies. Famous prototypical dragons include the muš?uššu of ancient Mesopotamia, Apep in Egyptian mythology, V?tra in the Rigveda, the Leviathan in the Hebrew Bible, Python, Ladon, and the Lernaean Hydra in Greek mythology, Jörmungandr, Níðhöggr, and Fafnir in Norse mythology, and the dragon from Beowulf.
The popular western image of a dragon as winged, four-legged, and capable of breathing fire is an invention of the High Middle Ages based on a conflation of earlier dragons from different traditions. In western cultures, dragons are portrayed as monsters to be tamed or overcome, usually by saints or culture heroes, as in the popular legend of Saint George and the Dragon. They are often said to have ravenous appetites and to live in caves, where they hoard treasure. These dragons appear frequently in western fantasy literature, including The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings by J. R. R. Tolkien, the Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling, and A Song of Ice and Fire by George R. R. Martin.
The word "dragon" has also come to be applied to the Chinese lung (Pinyin long), which are associated with good fortune and are thought to have power over rain. Dragons and their associations with rain are the source of the Chinese customs of dragon dancing and dragon boat racing. Many East Asian deities and demigods have dragons as their personal mounts or companions. Dragons were also identified with the Emperor of China, who, during later Chinese imperial history, was the only one permitted to have dragons on his house, clothing, or personal articles."
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