In ancient times people might wear a dragon charm to ward off a bad dragon or to pay tribute to another.  A Lord might commission a dragon painting, to tell a story of an ancestor (or himself) and how the dragon was defeated.  Because the dragon is a powerful symbol another powerful Lord might have a dragon sculpture or even a dragon fountain in the courtyard.  Back then it was all about perception.  You needed a strong symbol to show the people who was in charge.  If it was frightening, all the better.

The reasons people collect dragons today is just as varied.  The Chinese dragon for example, still holds great power in Chinese culture.  people in India still perform rituals in honor of the dragon.  Today we have many more choices in the type of dragon we collect.  You might find a stained glass dragon at a craft show.  You might find a dragon painting at a yard sale.  or, you could buy some dragon art prints (those are cheaper than the original paintings).  Just a side note on that – prints have come a long way in quality – check some out if you haven’t recently.  There are many more types of dragon collectibles, plush, stuffed, carved… Go… find them.