Dragons of Peru

Dragons of Peru

Bodie Hodge, M.Sc., B.Sc., PEI

Biblical Authority Ministries, July 5, 2025 (Donate) 

Peru is a fascinating country! They have mountains, rainforest, coasts, and deserts (in fact, it is one of the driest deserts in the world). But another exciting aspect of Peru is dragons. 

Like many other countries around the world, there is evidence that dragons have had something to do with their past. In some cultures, there are legends, in others there are pictographs or petroglyphs (such as cave art or wall etchings), and in Peru there is pottery (among other things). 

During my trip to Peru and viewing ancient ruins like Machu Picchu, the Nasca Lines, and Sacsayhuaman, my tour guides often stressed that these cultures only drew things they saw. Hence, we found many items with birds, monkeys, spiders, and so on, on pottery, clothing, and even the famous Nasca Lines that could only be seen from high above.

Pictures by Bodie Hodge

These pieces of pottery from the Museum of the Nation in Peru (Museo de la Nacion) comes from the Moche Culture, (as does each specific item in that same display).  The Moche Culture was estimated to be around A.D. 400-1100 (d.C. in Spanish, the primary language in Peru).[1] 

So when we come across pottery with dragons, the logical conclusion is that they saw these too. Of course, people often scoff that dragons may have been real…but considering the connection between dinosaurs and dragons it is not so hard to fathom[2]. 

Being land animals, dinosaurs, a subset of land dragons, were created on Day 6 (Genesis 1:24-31), went aboard Noah’s Ark (Genesis 6:20) and then came off the Ark to a post-Flood world (Genesis 8:16-19). It makes sense that many cultures would have seen these creatures from time to time before they died out. The ancients in Peru were no different. 

When researchers began digging up these reptilian bones about 200 years ago, I’ve always wondered how the world would view dinosaurs had they simply called them dragons.[3] Instead, Sir Richard Owen coined the word “dinosaur” which means “terrible lizard” in 1841. If “dragon” was used would there even be a controversy today?

For more see:

Dinosaurs, Dragons, and the Bible by Bodie Hodge

Bodie Hodge, Ken Ham's son in law, has been an apologist since 1998 helping out in various churches and running an apologetics website. He spent 21 years working at Answers in Genesis as a speaker, writer, and researcher as well as a founding news anchor for Answers News. He was also head of the Oversight Council.  

Bodie launched Biblical Authority Ministries in 2015 as a personal website and it was organized officially in 2025 as a 501(c)(3). He has spoken on multiple continents and hosts of US states in churches, colleges, and universities. He is married with four children. 

Originally at Answers in Genesis; Edited; Republished by permission.

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[1] The Moche culture would have been between the Nasca culture and the Incan culture.

[2] Keep in mind that “dragon” was the word used of large reptilian creatures before the word dinosaur was invented in 1841.

[3] The dinosaur bones being dug up were the ones that died in the Flood and were buried in Flood sediment about 2348 BC according to Archbishop Ussher.