This guy lives outside the Summer Palace in Beijing, China.

From How Dragons Work:

Sightings of fire-breathing, flying reptilian creatures have been documented in many different cultures all over the world. Whether a dragon sighting is considered a good thing (or a very, very bad one) varies according to the mythology associated with it. In Japanese culture, for example, most dragons were seen as benevolent creatures that protected people’s earthly treasures. But dragons were so notorious in medieval Europe that early cartographers penned the phrase “Here be dragons” onto maps to mark unfamiliar and potentially dangerous territories — to them, dragons represented the mysterious and hazardous unknown.

Today, dragon mythology still influences everything from popular culture to psychology. Dragons played a pivotal role in the “Harry Potter” series by J.K. Rowling and are even studied in classes exploring analytical psychology methods pioneered by Carl Jung.

We’ve researched some of the dragon’s most recognizable characteristics, delved into the facts and fictions that have created dragon mythology, and explored the symbolism surrounding dragons’ lives and deaths. So how, exactly, do these winged creatures work? Keep reading to find out…