Cultural Influence
In medieval bestiaries, legendary creatures are listed together with real animals. Throughout history legendary creatures have been incorporated into heraldry and architectural decoration.
Many legendary creatures appear prominently in fantasy fiction. These creatures are often claimed to have supernatural powers or knowledge or to guard some object of great value, which becomes critical to the plot of the story in which it is found. Dragons, for instance, are commonly depicted as perched on a gleaming hoard of gold which becomes the target of adventurers.
Legendary creatures have also been accepted into many facets of popular culture, most notably in fantasy role playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons, video games, and Hollywood movies.
Read more about this topic: Legendary Creature
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