In architecture, a gargoyle is a carved stone grotesque with a spout designed to convey water from a roof and away from the side of a building. The term originates from the French gargouille, originally "throat" or "gullet";[1] cf. Latin gurgulio, gula, and similar words derived from the root gar, "to swallow", which represented the gurgling sound of water (e.g., Spanish garganta, "throat"; Spanish gárgola, "gargoyle").
A chimera, or a grotesque figure, is a sculpture that does not work as a waterspout and serves only an ornamental or artistic function. These are also usually called gargoyles in laypersons' terminology,[1] although the field of architecture usually preserves the distinction between gargoyles (functional waterspouts) and non-waterspout grotesques.
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