Per-Ankh Feed
Saturday, 17 April 2021
Gargoyles

Gargoyle
A grotesque carved human or animal face or figure projecting from the gutter, especially of Gothic buildings, used as a spout to carry water clear of a wall. The word Gargoyle is derived from an old French word gargouille, meaning throat.
La Gargouille, was a legendary dragon that lived in the River Seine, which in the 7th Century was ravaging the town and people of Rouen. It was slain by St Romanus, the Archbishop of Rouen. After the dragon was slain its body was set ablaze, its body was consumed by fire but the head and neck survived and was mounted on a building.
Technically an architect calls a waterspout on a building a gargoyle. If a stone carving does not carry water and has a face that resembles a creature, it is technically called a grotesque. A strange beast which combines several different animals is called a chimera.
Chimæra (From Greek khimaira, 'she-goat')
Was a fabulous monster in Greek mythology. According to Homer it has a lion's head, a goat's body, and a dragon's tail. It was born in Lycia and was slain by Bellerophon.
Gargoyles - Protectors from Evil.
There are many theories has to how and why medieval architects and stone carvers developed gargoyles. It is believed that they were used to ward of evil and to act as guardians of the church to keep the terrible spirits of evil away and were inspired from a passage written in the bible. Adrienne Mayor believes they were inspired by the skeletal remains and bones of dinosaurs, found by Greek and Roman palaeontologists. Many gargoyles are similar to the legends and figures of the ancients Celts, such as the Green Man or Jack of the Green ... the god of tree worship. The Pagan artists who carved these were inspired by their culture and were the last vestiges of paganism from an age when god would be heard in trees and river plains. Or are they representations of deep rooted elements within human nature and expressions of man's subconscious fears or attempts to define or embody evils of the world into manageable elements.
Whatever their true origins these awesome visual images have been with man for hundreds of years and they still seem to catch and inspire the imagination of modern society. Maybe they do, indeed, have a spirit of their own!
Articles
- More Sections »
- Articles
- General Pagan
- Ancient Egypt
- Mythology and Folklore
- History
- Mythology and Folklore
- More Pages »
- Gargoyles
- Owls
- Mistletoe
- Sumerian Mythology
- Unicorns
- Dragons
- Chinese Dragons
- Garden Of The Hesperides
- The Wren - King of Birds
- Old Mother Shipton
- Dryads and Other Faery Folk
Social Stuff
Quote of the DayQuote Of The Day: Saturday, 17 April 2021
Instruction ends in the schoolroom, but education ends only with life. - F.W. Robertson
Colour and Incense of the Day:
Saturday, 17 April 2021
Todays Colour is: Jade
Todays Incense is: Peony
TWG Newsletter
The Newsletter is due to be published in -44303 days, on the .
Enter your email to subscribe to the TWG Newsletter.
Quick Links
Moon Phases
Saturday, 17 April 2021
Last Quarter 6 Jan 09:37
New Moon 13 Jan 05:00
First Quarter 20 Jan 21:01
Full Moon 28 Jan 19:16
Sabbats
Northern Hemisphere
Imbolc - Feb 2nd
Ostara - Mar 21st/22nd
Beltane - April 30th/May 1st
Lithia - June 21st/22nd
Lammas - July 31st/Aug 1st
Mabon - Sept 21st/22nd
Samhain - Oct 31st
Yule - Dec 21st/22nd
The Next Sabbat is: Beltane in 14 days.
Northern Hemisphere
Imbolc - Feb 2nd
Ostara - Mar 21st/22nd
Beltane - April 30th/May 1st
Lithia - June 21st/22nd
Lammas - July 31st/Aug 1st
Mabon - Sept 21st/22nd
Samhain - Oct 31st
Yule - Dec 21st/22nd
The Next Sabbat is: Beltane in 14 days.
Southern Hemisphere
Imbolc - August 1st
Ostara - September 21st/22nd
Beltane - Oct 31st/Nov 1st
Lithia - Dec 21st/22nd
Lammas - Feb 1st/2nd
Mabon - March 21st
Samhain - April 30th/May 1st
Yule - June 21st
2021 Solstices and Equinoxes
Spring Equinox: 20th Mar 22:45
Summer Solstice: 21st June 16:38
Autumn Equinox: 23rd Sept 08:20
Winter Solstice: 22nd Dec 04:38
Latest Blog Entries
Aug
23
Jul
8
Dec
22
Oct
25
Sep
12
Widget Box
Events
Week: 16Day: 107 of 365
April - 2021 | ||||||
M | T | W | T | F | S | S |
1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | |||
5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 |
12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 |
26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 |
Starsign: Aries

21st Mar - 20th Apr
The Ram.
A Masculine, Cardinal Fire Sign.
The first sign of the zodiac is Aries. In the esoteric tradition Aries represents the fire of the spirit.