Images

A Chinese lacquered coffin with dragon and bird decoration from the Chu state. 4th century BCE. (Hubei Provincial Museum, Wuhan, China)

Papyrus Moscow 120, page 2, c. 1090-1075 BCE Held in the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts. Image source: M. Коростовцев: Путeшecтвиe Ун-Амуна в Библ. 1960

Papyrus Moscow 120, page 1 Held in the Pushkin Museum of Fine Arts. Image source: M. Коростовцев: Путeшecтвиe Ун-Амуна в Библ. 1960

This relief of a male holding a bird is from the 5th century BCE, found in modern day western Turkey near the ancient city of Thyatira. Thyatira was named such by Seleucos I Nicator around 290 BCE but prior to that it was an important city...

This tablet (tabular) dates to the 2nd century BCE and the ancient city of Thyatira. Thyatira was once a Lydian city, on the border of Lydia and Mysia, but at times was under the control of the Persians, and then the generals of Alexander...

A Chinese miniature jade mask. 2nd millennium BCE. Height: 4 cm. (British Museum, London)

A Chinese jade plaque of a cormorant and fish. 1100-900 BCE. Height: 4 cm. (British Museum, London)

A Chinese cong of jade, a ritual object commonly found in tombs but of unknown function. Unknown date but probably Neolithic. Height: 12.9 cm. (British Museum, London)

A Chinese jade dragon. Zhou Dynasty, 5th-4th century BCE. Height: 9 cm. The British Museum, London.

A 19th-century illustration of Ryujin, the dragon king and sea god of Japanese mythology. Here he is chasing the princess Tamatori. National Museum, Warsaw.