Chinese culture
Chinese dragons are legendary creatures in Chinese mythology, Chinese folklore, and East Asian culture at large. Chinese dragons have many animal-like forms such as turtles and fish, but are most commonly depicted as snake-like with four legs. They traditionally symbolize potent and auspicious powers, particularly control over water, rainfall, typhoons, and floods. The dragon is also a symbol of power, strength, and good luck for people who are worthy of it in East Asian culture. During the days of Imperial China, the Emperor of China usually used the dragon as a symbol of his imperial power and strength. They are also the symbol and representative for the Son of Heaven, the Mandate of Heaven, the Celestial Empire and the Chinese Tributary System during the history of China.
Chinese dragon
The early Chinese dragons can be depicted with two to five claws. Different countries that adopted the Chinese dragon have different preferences; in Mongolia and Korea, the four-clawed dragons are used, while in Japanese dragon three-clawed dragons are common. By the Yuan dynasty, the five-clawed dragons became reserved for use by the emperor while the princes used four-clawed dragons. The usage of the dragon motif was codified during the Yuan dynasty, and phoenixes and five-clawed two-horned dragons may not be used on the robes of officials and other objects such as plates and vessels. It was further stipulated that for commoners, "it is forbidden to wear any cloth with patterns of Qilin, Male Fenghuang (Chinese phoenix), White rabbit, Lingzhi, Five-Toe Two-Horn Dragon, Eight Dragons, Nine Dragons, 'Ten thousand years', Fortune-longevity character and Golden Yellow etc."