Although I've made several visits to Ely Cathedral this year, I would always take this shot - framing the entire church in the camera lens. Thinking I had taken a nice photo, I then walked to the right of the building and followed the path into the High Street. I had quite a small shock this time, when I wandered to the left path and discovered all of the gargoyles and chimeras, perched high on the ledges and windows. The very long, detailed history of this medieval building can be found on the link above. Hundred of years ago, this area of England (flatland) was under water - Ely Cathedral was on a virtual island which could only be accessed by boat. If I'm wrong about this (don't think I am though) - please correct me. The land was drained and the city sprang up around this ancient structure.
These are not gargoyles - they are two lovely English ladies in their Sunday hats, enjoying the beautiful summer day. They'd just ordered tea and scones and were waiting to be served. So English - this scene !
This cafe used to function as a rectory and the interior architecture is quite lovely. I don't have a photo of it but will take one next time I have one of their delicious sandwiches. We're having a bad year for wasps in this area of England and they were quite the little pests this day, wanting to sample everything on my plate.
The word "gargoyle" is derived from Old French: gargouille "throat" and also a latin word , meaning "to gargle." The gargoyle's purpose, in addition to ornamentation, was to chiefly serve as a rain spout. Thus associating the name to the passing of water through the throat and mouth of the gargoyle/gargle.
Not all of these ornaments are gargoyles - only the ones that are water spouts. Otherwise, they're called "chimeras" - a mythical Greek monster made up of all different sorts of creatures. The chimeras and gargoyles have roots as far back as Greece, Egypt, India and finally in France, where the demonic looking things then spread to the rest of Europe.
Notice the sculpture on the left - how the elements and centuries have eroded it's surface.
Some of the sculptures are modern - replaced by contemporary artists. I guessed this to be one of them. Wonder what the significance would be - picking his nose ?
The image below - these two also look contemporary to me.
This chimera below - reminds me of an illustration from the children's book: "Where the wild things are"
The headless water spout !
Do you see the little flecks on the image above ? A family of wasps have built a nest in the mouth of this sculpture. I found this one and the image below to be the most disturbing of all of them. The demonic looking creatures are holding on to humans - is this to protect them ? All of the research I did on gargoyles and chimeras were the opposite of what I believed. I always thought they were put up to intimidate the uneducated populace - an image insinuating a torturous demise if they do not come to worship. Instead, they are meant to be signs of luck and protection. To the peasants, it planted the belief that buildings with gargoyles and chimeras were a safe haven, one where the sculptures warded off evil spirits. Very bizarre !
This posting was a bit disturbing and heavy - even for me ! Imagine that, coming from someone who loves cemeteries and even has a book called from "From Death To Dust" in her bookcase. Whew ! Let's lighten this up and look at some lovely flowers from cathedral's gardens.
The field next to the church had several small horses and this gigantic old tree. The branches were so wide and long that they had wired the heavy limbs to keep them from breaking off. It must have been several hundred years old. The horses loved it's shade !
Thanks for reading Prairie !
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