European Gargoyles
A gargoyle is a decoration around a rain pipe which leads rainwater from a church away from it. Gargoyles are often fictional or mythological creatures or regular people - with very large mouths.
This first gargoyle is found on the North side of the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, France. Notice the telltale wide open mouth. Behind it is a bare pipe from which the gargoyle has withered away and dissappeared - it's the bare innards of what used to be a gargoyle.
This is a gargoyle from the Nidaros Dome in Trondheim, Norway. He's apparently growing out of the stone and has the characteristic wide mouth.
This gargoyle is also found on the Nidaros Dome in Trondheim. It is a mythical creature, somewhat resembling a baboon, with a kid hanging below it. Imagine water spouting out from its mouth, right over the kid's head - very dramatic.
In the inner courtyard of the Frederiksborg Castle in Hillerød, Denmark, you find these unusual gargoyles along the South wall.
The rainwater tube is the obvious base, but split in half with jagged edges like teeth, and attached to the pipe are two sets of wings and a small crown on top. It is a fictional creature according to tradition, but here it has become a royal fictional creature thanks to its location inside a royal castle and the addition of the tiny crown.
Gargoyles from the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, France
![[Nice curvy line]](./grafik/niceline.gif){kind=small}