Gargoyles :: in architecture, gargoyles are the carved terminations to spouts which convey water away from the sides of buildings. Gargoyles are mostly eerie figures. Statues representing gargoyle-like creatures are popular sales items, particularly in goth and New Age retail stores. A chimera, or a grotesque figure, is a similar type of sculpture that does not work as a waterspout and serves only an ornamental or artistic function. These are also popularly referred to as gargoyles. The term gargoyle is most often applied to medieval work, but throughout all ages some means of throwing the water off roofs, when not conveyed in gutters, was adopted. In Egypt, gargoyles ejected the water used in the washing of the sacred vessels which seems to have been done on the flat roofs of the temples. In Greek temples, the water from roofs passed through the mouths of lions whose heads were carved or modeled in the marble or terra cotta cymatium of the cornice. At Pompeii, many terra cotta gargoyles were found that are modeled in the shape of animals >> more..

Medieval Period :: the Middle Ages formed the middle period in a traditional schematic division of European history into three "ages": the classical civilization of Antiquity, the Middle Ages and Modern Times. The Middle Ages of Western Europe are commonly dated from the 5th century division of the Roman Empire (into the Western Roman Empire and the Eastern Roman Empire) and the barbarian invasions until the 16th century schism of Christianity during the Protestant Reformation and the dispersal of Europeans worldwide in the start of the European overseas exploration. These various changes all mark the beginning of the Early Modern period that preceded the Industrial Revolution. The Middle Ages are commonly referred to as the medieval period >> more..