Where do gargoyles originate?

Answer 1

In the Middle Ages, it was the superstitious belief of many that if you put gargoyles on buildings, it would ward off evil spirits. They were also used for water drainage, because rain gutters such as we have today did not exist then.

Answer 2

Answer:

Gargoyles may stem from the Cherubim who stood guard at the entryway to the garden of Eden following Adam and Eve's expulsion. Ezekiel describes these angelic creatures as having four faces and four wings (Ezek.10).

The faces are of an ox (cherub), an eagle, a lion, and a man.

These creatures stood sentry duty until the flood... swords of fire swinging and turning, keeping anyone from accessing the Tree of Life. (Gen.3:24)

Nearly two-thousand years passed as those generations of men saw them and feared them. And the memory and legend of them was carried across the flood with Noah and his children.

Later, in Babylonian architecture, elements of these creatures are seen... lions, oxen, eagles and men. The Sphinx in Egypt is a lion's body with a man's head. Cultures throughout the world sport the features of these guardians of Eden. Even China uses the dragon symbol.

Gargoyles are bizarre looking winged guardians that peer straight ahead with piercing stares on endless sentry duty. Maybe they originated in Eden.

Answer 3

The word "gargoyle" comes from the Old French "gargouille" and the Late Latin "gurgulio", both meaning throat.

Gargoyles are used like rain spouts, and the design of gargoyles causes them to make a gargling sound in their throats when rain rushes through.