03-23-2013, 05:05 PM
Lucianus Quomodo Hist. 29 calls a Parthian unit of a thousand a dragon. Now this is not a very serious source, it is a comedy, so we should treat this with caution. However, the Persian name for a cavalry squadron is a dirafsh. I wonder if there is a connection, or that this is simply another case of a "Volksetymologie".
I suspect the head of the draco standard was not originally a wolf, but a senmurv, a mythical creature with the head of a dog, claws and wings of a bird, and a huge tail with a squirrel tilt.
Robert, do you know who actually started the wind-sock theory? I have always liked it, but I never found a source that seems to be its origin.
I suspect the head of the draco standard was not originally a wolf, but a senmurv, a mythical creature with the head of a dog, claws and wings of a bird, and a huge tail with a squirrel tilt.
Robert, do you know who actually started the wind-sock theory? I have always liked it, but I never found a source that seems to be its origin.