What were gargoyles used for in medieval times?
They were simply decorative (despite the ugly faces!) water-spouts. When rainwater collected on the roof of an ancuient building (eg a church tower) it had to drain away somewhere. By including simple drains on the parapet of a tower, this would drain away the water, but it would result in trickling down the walls and splashing into open windows further down the tower. Therefore spouts were used to direct the water away from the walls of the tower to protect he floors below from splashing water. Occasionally some gargoyles were carved in the images of the foremen who were in charge of the masons – both as a mark of respect but more often so the mason could get his own back a foreman had been a little too severe!
