“According to the rules of heraldry, dragons have four legs and wyverns two, yes,” he wrote on his blog. “But have you ever seen a heraldic ‘seahorse?’ Heralds didn’t know crap about biology. Now, there are no actual dragons, to be sure. Martin was certainly aware of the difference between the two when he conjured up Westeros’ fauna. Smaug is clearly described as being a “dragon,” but his on-screen self is depicted with wyvern-like characteristics. Exhibit A:Įuropean dragons, on the other hand, traditionally have four limbs and wings. Think Toothless: Or Sean Connery: By morphology alone, Drogon, Rhaegal, and Viserion are more like wyverns than anything else, but modern fantasy has been breaking the old rules for many years.
The forelimbs are absent, replaced instead by bat-like wings with claws that can be used to make contact with the ground. It all sounds pretty dragon-esque, but here is where things start to diverge: unlike their pop-culture-pervasive kin, wyverns only have two legs. To understand the difference, we have to take a dive into mythozoology, which much to my excitement, is a real thing. In medieval mythology and heraldry – the practice of devising coats of arms – wyverns are described as serpent-like creatures with wings, often having spiked tails. The word “wyvern” is derived from the French “wyvere,” which means both “viper” and “life.” As a symbol, the animal represents war, and is a sign of strength to those who bear it. It was a valiant display of BAMF-ery no doubt, but something interesting caught my eye during the scene: Dany’s dragons walk on their wings, indicating that they aren’t dragons at all, but wyverns.
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We watched in awe as The Imp entered Rhaegal and Viserion’s holding cell, braving the odds to free the pair of dragons from their shackles. As we await the aftermath of Tyrion’s controversial mission on last week’s episode of Game of Thrones, it seems only fitting to highlight the show’s scaly beasts. Mild spoilers ahead. What is read may never die.
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