European dragon than with a lizard-like or dinosaur-like body as in later belief (though the dragon of Beowulf does show several features that would later become popularized with dragons–namely, it breathes fire–lives underground, and collects treasure). The most famous lindworm in Norse and Germanic mythology is Fafnir The Germanic stories of lindworms have them guarding a treasure hoard. The Fafnir lindworm guarded earthen mounds full of ancient treasure. The treasure was cursed and brought ill to those who later possessed it. Sea serpents are also called orms in Nordic languages, wyrms in Old English and worms in Middle English. These "dragons" are
Frankish mythology from elsewhere, and belongs to a wide artistic usage of bulls in pre-historic European art. The Frankish mythology that has survived in primary sources is comparable to that of the Aeneas and Romulus myths take in Roman mythology, but altered to suit Germanic tastes. Like many Germanic peoples, the Franks told a founding myth story to explain their connection with peoples of classical history. In the case of the Franks, these people were the Sicambri and the Trojans. An anonymous work of 727 called "Liber Historiae Francorum" states that following the fall of Troy, 12,000 Trojans led by chiefs Priam