I have always loved and been inspired by church architecture, and one feature of churches that I love above all others are grotesques.
Grotesques are stone carvings, often strange, distorted or fantastical in appearance. Their purpose was said to be twofold: to protect a building by frightening away evil spirits and to serve as a reminder to parishioners of the ever-present danger of falling into evil.
I took this photo of the grotesque in St Michaels and All Angels, Edmondthorpe, Leicestershire a couple of weeks ago. This church is in the care of The Churches Conservation Trust.
Gargoyles are a form of grotesque, the difference that separates them is that a gargoyle will have a water spout coming out of its mouth in order to direct water away from the sides of a building, where over time it will cause damage.
This is one of the gargoyles from St Peters church in Tempsford, Bedfordshire. You can just see the start of the water pipe protruding from its mouth…
The same carving as above, showing the water spout and face of the gargoyle…
Sammi Cox 
Wells Cathedral just outside of Bath has Green Men faces worked in throughout the architecture. It sounds like it might be well worth the visit if that is the sort of thing that interests you.
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I love green men! 🙂 I have added that to my list of places to visit. Thank you so much for the recommendation. Have a great day!
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Hey Sammi,
A brief line to pass on the details of the book on Gargoyles and Grotesques I mentioned elsewhere. I thought my entry better suited this comments box 🙂 I’ve included the relevant book details, and a link to Amazon for your perusal.
Nightmares in the Sky – Gargoyles and Grotesques – Text by Stephen King – ISBN0-670-82307-4
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Nightmares-Sky-Grotesques-Stephen-King/dp/0670823074/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1440285617&sr=1-1&keywords=nightmares+in+the+sky
Sadly my copy has always been missing the cover, but does not detract from the contents which is worthy of ownership on any high standing bookshelf that towers overhead 🙂
Hoping all is well and your weekend progressing as intended.
Namaste
DN – 23/08/2015
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Hey Dewin,
I hope you are well and that the sun is shining wherever you are 🙂
Thank you so much for the book link. The cheeky chappie on the front cover is adorable!! I will be sure to get hold of a copy 🙂
Have a great day, and Brightest Blessings!
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Good afternoon Sammi 🙂
Thank you for best wishes, my weekend has been enjoyable, yet largely without sunshine…this is Wales after-all. A thick layer of light grey cloud blew in from someplace last Thursday and has been most reluctant to leave all weekend. The rain has been seemingly relentless confining all but those who wear wetsuits or swim in water to their respective homes for the duration! If not for the Seagulls who brave all but the worst of the downpour, the skies have been quiet and the rooftops distinctly bear of feathered forms, and I miss them all. as one might good friends. I’m hoping my time-off in September will be an improvement on this weekend…even Wales must get a small dry spell at some point in the year! 🙂
I hope your sunshine never left you following your Friday excursion 🙂
Pleased to hear the book details presented you with a possible purchase opportunity…I thought the prices very reasonable. And yes, the delightfully cheeky chappie who adorns the front cover adds a wonderful touch of panache to a darkly bound book. There are some great images to be found within the covers 🙂
Enjoy your Sun-day and the slow slide into another new week full of promise and potential.
Namaste
DN – 23/08/2015
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