FORGET wings. Chinese dragons have none, although this doesn’t make them any less formidable. St George’s foe glides through the air as it seeks to terrorise villages and eat the odd girl or two; its Chinese counterpart floats among waves, cliffs or clouds, almost looking ‘like a primitive snake or fish,’ according to Mark Slaats, partner at Asian art specialists Littleton & Hennessy. It’s closer to ancient Greece’s Hydra or the sea serpents of Scandinavian mythology, but, unlike them, it is a benevolent creature, ruling over water and weather and symbolising wisdom, prosperity and power.
It’s hardly surprising, then, that Chinese emperors quickly appropriated the motif. Dragons, explains Edward Luper, specialist for Chinese works of art at Bonhams, make a very early appearance in Chinese art, on stones from the Neolithic Xinglongwa culture (6200BC–5400BC) and jade carvings from the Hongshan culture (4500BC–3000BC). Mr Slaats mentions an interesting Hongshan green-jade example from the National
