Gargoyle Facts for Kids

A Gargoyle is a grotesque statue that is attached to a building. It is carved out of stone, usually granite. It is used to get water away from the building when it rains. Gargoyles are often made to look like animals or people. The collected water comes out of their mouths. Most gargoyles were made a long time ago. People used to believe that they scared away evil spirits. Many cathedrals have gargoyles.

New buildings use rain gutters instead of gargoyles to move water. There are not many gargoyles in America.

Gargoyles are often confused with grotesques. They are similar, but only gargoyles get rid of rainwater through their mouths what's in the mouths I don't know .

Gargoyles at Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, France
Gargoyle at the cathedral in Pisa, Italy
A gargoyle in Antwerpen, Belgium
A gargoyle on the Mausoleum for Queen Loise-Marie, in Oostende, Belgium

Images for kids

Gargoyles of Notre-Dame de Paris
Dragon-headed gargoyle of the Tallinn Town Hall, Estonia
Gargoyle of the Vasa Chapel at Wawel in Kraków, Poland
Chimera of Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary Chapel in Flagstaff, Arizona
A gargoyle on the Basilique du Sacré-Cœur, Paris, France, showing the water channel
Gargoyle at the St. John's Church, Helsinki, Finland
One of four gargoyles atop the Peace Tower, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Gargoyle of Notre-Dame d'Amiens, France
Notre Dame Church in Dijon, France
Gargoyle on Zagreb Cathedral, Croatia
Gargoyle from Cologne Cathedral under reconstruction
Gargoyle showing carver Roger Morigi with carver's tools, Washington National Cathedral, Washington D.C., USA
Gargoyle from Rosslyn Chapel, Roslin, Scotland.
Gargoyle from the Château de Blain, France
Original Old City Hall, Toronto gargoyle
Replica gargoyles at Old City Hall, Toronto
A 1st century BC Hellenistic gargoyle representing a comical cook-slave from Ai Khanoum, Afghanistan
During a refurbishment of Paisley Abbey in the early 1990s, twelve gargoyles were replaced. One of them is modeled on the titular creature from the 1979 film Alien.
Gargoyle spewing water as part of a fountain Prčice, Sedlec-Prčice, Příbram District, Central Bohemian Region, the Czech Republic. Vítek's Square
Gargoyle representing a comical demon at the base of a pinnacle with two smaller gargoyles, Visby, Sweden

Gargoyle facts for kids

Images for kids

See also