Tuesday, September 11, 2007

Gargoyle


I like this one, very creepy, strange creature ready to jump.
In architecture, gargoyles are the carved terminations to spouts which convey water away from the sides of buildings. The term originates from the French gargouille, originally the throat or gullet.
A local legend that sprang up around the name of St. Romanus ("Romain") (631 – 641 A.D.), the former chancellor of the Merovingian king Clotaire II who was made bishop of Rouen, relates how he delivered the country around Rouen from a monster called Gargouille, having the creature captured by the only volunteer, a condemned man. The gargoyle's grotesque form was said to scare off evil spirits so they were used for protection. In commemoration of St. Romain the Archbishops of Rouen were granted the right to set a prisoner free on the day that the reliquary of the saint was carried in procession.

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Very interesting. I love Gargoyles and Paris! Here is a very cool black and while silhouette of a Notre Dame imp made into a wall mural. Check it out

Stephane said...

Thanks for your comment.
This picture is a great and famous picture, I wish I could go up there to take some pictures.
I'll be in Paris at the end of the month, I might try.

photolicious said...

Yup I love Gargoyles too. Too bad we don't have any of these in Singapore. It's a very industrialised country and construction's going on everywhere. There's no space for history or nostalgia unlike many beautiful cities in Europe.

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