Dragons in Paragon of Design by Skrocki's Pieces

*One of our leather dragon masks. For other pictures of this mask click here

We both became interested in dragons long before we met, but it was the same dragon that inspired a lifelong love of fantasy, the dragon from “The Hobbit” known as “Smaug.”

When I was a child, I drew every dragon I came across. Around the same time, Tanner was doing the exact same thing. A friend introduced him to “The Hobbit,” and it changed his interests from that point on. The poetry in the book, and later The Lord of the Rings trilogy, inspired Tanner to write thousands of poems, draw hundreds of pictures, and create several unpublished short stories.

I came across “The Hobbit” a year before it was assigned in school, in grade 4 or 5, and I have read it at least 10 times since then. What stood out to me, besides Smaug, were the descriptions of the mounds of treasure, which inspired my love of jewelry and stones. From that point on, I knew I wanted to create jewelry that looked like something Smaug would keep in his treasury, long forgotten adornments aged by time and inscribed with ancient symbols and designs.

We wanted to create a 3D sculptural version of some of the dragons we had drawn over the years, so we began the long process of prototyping and building a dragon mask.This dragon mask was first sketched on paper, and then we planned where we wanted the folds. We chose a 5 to 6 ounce piece of leather so it would not be too heavy to sculpt or wear. Once the piece was cut out and carved, we sculpted it into the form you see in the picture. Sculpting the mask took around four hours, followed by an overnight drying period so it could be coloured.

We dyed parts of it to create textured dragon scales, then blended acrylic paint to achieve smoother areas on the snout and horns. Once the paint was completely dry, which can take up to 24 hours, we painted the inside of the mask, allowed it to dry, and sealed it to protect the surface and make it easier to clean. After that, we sprayed the outside with an acrylic finish to give it a shine and add protection. We then added the finishing touches, such as metal horns and spikes. The entire process, from start to finish, can take up to six days. Many of our other masks take a similar amount of time, depending on how many colours, layers, or additional elements are involved.

The mask was inspired by our travels, as well as Smaug, and was dyed a deep red. The horns were created using a process called fold forming, a forging technique that produces interesting shapes. We used a fairly thin copper so the horns would remain lightweight while still having a bold presence. The blue colouring on the horns is a patina that took over 20 hours to develop. If you are interested in this technique, feel free to leave a comment and we may create a video showing the process in the future. Once the patina was complete, we sealed it with an acrylic spray and attached the horns. The mask is now ready to display or wear. This post also features several dragon masks in different colours.

Some of our other dragon inspired items are below.

handmade leather and metal dragon journal

Our large dragon book with copper shield front and the Archangel Michael hand carved on the back of the book. This book is sold.

handmade leather and metal archangel michael journal

Archangel Michael book with hand carved dragon on the back. This book is sold!

One of our antiqued leather dragon journals with wheat straw paper.

Our dragon based on the heraldic dragon.

A viking form of dragon on a copper pendant

handmade archangel michael leather journal

The back of the copper shield dragon plate book. This book is sold.

Archangel Michael book with hand carved dragon. This book is for sale in our online store.

Our historic version of a dragon on one of our shield rings.

Our version of a historic dragon on earrings

Another one of our dragon masks made from leather. This dragon mask is completely wearable and can be displayed as a piece of art for dragon and mask collectors. This mask is sold.

Copper dragon cufflinks with black inlay.

While traveling, we have come across dozens of different styles of dragons, each with its own meaning. One image that has really stood out to me, which we have seen in several museums, cathedrals, and churches, is the depiction of St. George fighting the dragon. In some cases, it is the Archangel Michael instead.

In a simplified version of the legend of St. George, he saved a town from a dragon that demanded the villagers sacrifice their family members to appease it. The story of Archangel Michael and the dragon, often seen in iconography, describes the battle between Michael and his angels against the dragon and its followers. You can usually tell the difference between the two because Michael is sometimes depicted with wings and is not on horseback.

A little history about dragons:

The English word “dragon” is derived from a Greek word meaning “serpent of huge size” or “water snake.” A dragon is a mythological representation of a reptile. In antiquity, dragons were mostly envisioned as serpents, but since the Middle Ages, they have commonly been depicted with legs, resembling a lizard.

In modern depictions, dragons are often shown with a body like a large lizard, or a snake with two pairs of lizard-like legs, and the ability to breathe fire. The European dragon typically has bat-like wings growing from its back. A dragon-like creature with wings but only a single pair of legs is known as a wyvern.. (1)

While going through our pictures we found dozens of historical dragons. We chose several that we based our items on. In this post we also feature some of our items that we made inspired from these photographs.

Massive sculpture of St. George fighting the dragon. Photographed in Copenhagen, Denmark.

We took this video in Copenhagen of St. George and the dragon for our fans or customers to see the exquisite wooden carving and the sheer size of this carving.

Beautiful hand carved wooden icon based on St. George fighting the dragon. Unfortunately there was no date tied to this piece. It was photographed in Copenhagen, Denmark.

Incredibly beautiful handmade dragon chalice. This chalice, from my understanding of our tour guide, is several hundred years old. To me this looks like a modern fantasy dragon. Photographed in Rostock, Germany.

Tanner photographed this dragon from our first trip to Rome, Italy on the roof of a building. The date of the carving is unknown.

Another stylized version of the dragon, but found on one of the old wooden stave churches. We were told by a credible source that the dragons were on the churches as a form of protection. That with the cross it was considered twice as strong of protection as opposed to just having a cross. Photographed in Oslo, Norway.

There are hundreds of dragons in viking culture. Many of them are so stylized and different from the modern fantasy style dragon they are almost unrecognizable. This one was found with a viking ship and is on display in Oslo, Norway at the Viking ship museum.

Other dragon items can be view here.

Do you want a custom dragon order? click here to contact us.

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