Jiachen spring solstice, flying dragon in the sky.
Dragons, an important element of Chinese culture, have also permeated the lives of different peoples around the world.
They are hidden in the silhouettes of huge buildings, and the stories associated with them have been passed down from generation to generation.
The Year of the Dragon begins on February 11, the second day of the Lunar New Year.
Building a Dream of the World" will visit with you.
In different corners of the world, start the "dragon journey".
This year is the Year of the Dragon, and in the zodiac, the dragon is the only creature imagined. Dragon culture has a long history in China, from the Neolithic Age, more than 8,000 years ago, the ancestors had a totem worship of the primitive dragon; In the feudal era, successive emperors regarded themselves as the "true dragon son", and used a large number of dragon elements in palace buildings and utensils; To this day, people still use idioms or allusions with the word "dragon" to describe the good things in life. Many people see the dragon as a symbol of China, the Chinese nation, and Chinese culture. For the Chinese, the image of the dragon has become a symbol, a spiritual and flesh-and-blood emotion. In addition, many countries also have an indissoluble bond with dragons and have their own interpretations of dragons. In this episode, we will explore interesting dragon cultures around the world through architectural art.
Okura. 
Dragon culture is one of the most representative elements of Chinese culture. According to some scholars' statistics, the record of the "appearance" of the dragon appeared as many as 108 times in ancient historical books such as "Hanshu", "Chronicles of the Three Kingdoms" and "Notes on the Book of Water". In Chinese culture, the dragon symbolizes wisdom, transcendence, and authority, and since ancient times, it has been said that the emperor has been associated with the bloodline of the dragon.
From ancient times to the present, the palace architecture has many elements from decoration to details, dragons. As the largest existing palace ruins, the Forbidden City has the most decorated and imposing motifs of dragons. The five-clawed golden dragon became the dominant motif in the Forbidden City. It is said that there are more than 13,000 "dragons" in the Taihe Hall alone, which are distributed on the eaves beams, walls, house pillars, screens, and the emperor's throne, with thousands of forms, vivid and vivid.
Dubrovnik Old Town.
And there is a clear difference between the dragons of the West and the dragons of the East: the dragons of the West breathe fire and mostly live in caves; The Chinese dragon spits water and inhabits between rivers, lakes and seas; The dragons of the West rely on wings to fly, while the Chinese dragons have no wings but can soar through the clouds. Some scholars believe that the difference between the Eastern and Western dragons confirms the aesthetic curiosity of Chinese civilization and European civilization: the body of the Chinese dragon is "thin" like a lightning bolt, while the Western dragon is as strong as a hill.
The American drama "Game of Thrones" makes people remember the fire-breathing dragon in Western legends, and also remember the city of King's Landing, which was burned down by the dragon, the city of architectural heritage in the real world of mankind. It is approximately square, spreads for miles, and is protected by high walls. Within the city walls, winding alleys, wide boulevards, mansions, pavilions, barns, brick warehouses, wooden inns, and market stalls, one after the other.
King's Landing was filmed in the old town of Dubrovnik, Croatia, known as the "Pearl of the Adriatic". Dubrovnik's Old Town was added to UNESCO's World Heritage List in 1979. The old city was surrounded by mountains and seas, and with its developed maritime ** and clever diplomacy, it became the only city-state that could rival Venice in the 15th and 16th centuries. Dubrovnik is best known for its well-preserved old walls, which were built from the 8th century and were largely finalized by the 14th century. But both on land and by sea, the walls were built extremely high, and King's Landing and the Red Keep were located here. Even without the special effects, it's spectacular. The high walls make it the best vantage point for a panoramic view of the old town. As for the legend and imprint of the dragon in the old city, has it been left behind? There is no evidence that this beautiful ancient city is related to dragons, so perhaps archaeologists and historians still have a lot of room to dig up?
Stockholm Cathedral.
Interestingly, unlike the auspicious dragon in the East, the symbolism of the dragon in the West is complex and diverse, and the Greeks and Romans sometimes saw dragons as benevolent forces, but most of the time they saw them as the embodiment of **. Whether it is a two-legged dragon or a four-legged dragon, these Western dragons have strong combat effectiveness at the same time, but also have shortcomings such as irritability, greed, and grudges, and most of the time they become negative teaching materials, dying under the sword of heroes, "Dragon Quest" is the epitome of the positioning of the dragon image in Western culture.
The story of "St. George slaying the dragon" began in the Middle Ages and was widely told in Europe. Walking through the streets of Europe today, you will find the figure of "St. George slaying the dragon" everywhere, or in the murals of churches, or standing in the form of statues in squares. St. George appeared like a medieval knight, dressed in elaborate armor and riding a horse to fight the poisonous dragon, heralding the final victory of justice.
In Stockholm Cathedral, there stands a famous "St. George Slaying the Dragon" wood carving, this wood carving carved in 1489 is the largest wood carving in Northern Europe, the sculptor shows the ultimate in wood carving art with gorgeous and delicate carving techniques, this statue compares the Swedish army to the knight George, and teaches Denmark a lesson that symbolizes the evil dragon. With a history of more than 700 years, Stockholm Cathedral is the oldest church in the old town of Stockholm, the capital of Sweden, and is an important example of Swedish brick Gothic architecture.
Viking dragon art.
In the British history book "Anglo-Saxon Chronicles", there is a record of "Vikings riding evil dragons soaring through the sky": "In this year, a bad omen appeared in Northumbria and frightened its inhabitants. Lightning and thunder roared, and the dragon flew through the sky ......The barbarians plundered and bloodied the monastery of Lindisfarne. ”
Historically, the Anglo-Saxons hated the Vikings and collectively called them "pirates". In the long history of Northern Europe, the Vikings were a legendary people. Between the 8th and 11th centuries AD, they ushered in the "Viking Age" and became the maritime supremacy of that time through their seafaring prowess, reaching as far as Newfoundland, Canada, and 500 years before Columbus arrived in the Americas.
Originally, the Vikings lived in Scandinavia. There are fjords, which are very conducive to the development of maritime traffic, while the land is crisscrossed by mountains and ravines, and it is difficult to get around. As a result, the Vikings cut down a lot of wood to build dragon head ships, and the hull was carved with dragon totem decorations. They believe that the dragon symbolizes courage, strength, and bringing fear to enemies. The Vikings' dragon head ships had the characteristics of shallow draft and flexible steering, so they were very advantageous in plundering warfare at sea. The Vikings plundered at sea, and then grew stronger and stronger, developing to land and conquer.
With advanced navigation and navigation technology, the Vikings established a series of colonial strongholds along the "Iceland-Greenland-North America" route, serving as a hub for fishing and **, and they became the first Europeans to reach North America. Today, on June 21 every year, Icelanders celebrate their ancestors and Vikings, and celebrate the largest traditional festival in Antarctica, "Midwinter", that is, the summer solstice of Antarctica, which is the darkest day in Antarctica, which indicates that the long, lonely polar night is about to pass, and it can be said that "Midwinter" is equivalent to Iceland's "Spring Festival".
Viking and medieval Scandinavian art also gave rise to a unique dragon-style architecture, dragestil, which was widely used between 1880 and 1910. These buildings have exposed wooden walls, usually asphalted on the outside and varnish on the inside; The building has a steep roof and large eaves, and is decorated with a dragon head molding.
Thai Dragon Temple. This is Thailand, and there is a rather "magical" dragon building, which is not like the detailed decoration of dragon elements in Chinese architecture, this dragon is very straightforward and exaggerated on the façade of the building, and people can't help but wonder if they have traveled into a game or a movie. Although the building has mixed reviews, it attracts countless tourists from all over the world.
Thailand has a rich and colorful dragon culture, different from the way Chinese dragon culture is depicted, the Thai dragon is shaped into an elegant, bright, light image, beautiful streamers and feather embroidery, reflecting the ancient and exquisite art of Thai culture. The dragon is considered to be the embodiment of the dragon god in Thailand, and unlike the image portrayed in Chinese culture, the image of the Thai dragon is more elegant and graceful, conveying a message of "harmony".
Located in the Sampai district of Nakhon Pathom Province, Thailand, the building is a 17-storey temple surrounded by a giant dragon. The entire exterior wall of the Dragon Temple is painted pink, and the huge gold-threaded green-scaled dragon circles upward, its tail is at the bottom of the building, the dragon's head is located on the top of the building, and the huge dragon claws are tightly attached to the wall, lifelike, and looks very powerful and domineering. Realistic forms that make people unforgettable! In fact, the dragon is not just for spectators, its body is completely hollow inside, with stairs for people to climb up to the top floor. Since this is a pure temple where monks practice in it, visitors are not allowed to enter the building with three floors or more. There is also an "unsolved mystery" of this dragon temple, that is, it has stood for a hundred years, but no one knows who built it, let alone the date of its completion.
Vietnam Dragon Bridge. In the history and culture of the Vietnamese people, there is a traditional saying of "dragon son immortal grandson"; The dragon has a double meaning, the five-clawed golden dragon represents the emperor of the empire, while the ordinary dragon represents the Vietnamese people. Vietnam's place names, such as Ha Long Bay, Thang Long City, etc., are closely related to "dragon". Although the dragon is a legendary animal, it is not mysterious in Vietnam. Vietnam's coastal metropolis of Da Nang is also known as the "City of Bridges". Each of the bridges here is unique, not only the Buddha Hand Bridge that is out of the circle, but also the Dragon Bridge, which fully interprets the "dragon style" in Vietnamese culture. When lit up at night, the faucet emits amazing flames and mist of water.
The total length of the Dragon Bridge is 6665 meters, it is a 5-span continuous bridge. The bridge has 6 lanes in both directions, and there are sightseeing walking trails on both sides. The Dragon Bridge spans the east and west banks of the Han River and is the shortest route connecting Da Nang International Airport to the coastal beaches. The davits of the entire bridge are decorated in the shape of dragons, neatly arranged with sharp "dragon fins", and the unique "dragon heads" are equipped with devices that can spew fireworks, fire, and water. The Dragon Bridge is a combination of classical bearing platform, middle bearing type and beam-arch combination, and the combination of three types. The design of the upper and lower continuous beam arches has made the Dragon Bridge occupy an important place in the history of bridges in Vietnam. The curved beam arch of the Dragon Bridge looks like a "flying dragon crossing the river" from a distance, becoming a model of the perfect integration of classical bearing platform style and modern concept.
The times are constantly developing, and human civilization is like a "flying dragon in the sky", which continues to jump.
In this process, the ancient totems have not disappeared, they are silently hidden in the silhouette of the huge building, bit by bit, infiltrating our spirit and life.
Inadvertently, I saw the dragon in the field.
For more exciting content, please tune in to this episode.
Editor: Lai Sini.