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| From the Peace Tower, at Canada's Parliament Building in Ottawa. |
These were normally ugly looking faces, with a trough in the back and water coming out the open mouth.
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| From the Basilica of Sacré Coeur, Paris, France. Note the water trough at the back. |
Gargoyles, usually made of granite, were put on the rooves of ancient billings (particularly churches) to convey "water from a roof and away from the side of a building thereby preventing rainwater from running down masonry walls and eroding the mortar between."(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gargoyle)
Usually these gargoyles were quite visible to people on the ground, even though they could not see the detail. In some cases, though, gargoyles could not be seen from the ground, in places where water dumped from one roof to another. But in each case, the gargoyles were done in meticulous detail — the obvious work of a craftsman who took pride in his activity. (Oh, to have more of those craftsmen today!)
These are interesting creatures. But I would not want to meet one at night — whether in my dreams or awake.
Do you have a gargoyle on your house? Have you seen them other places?
