Atop a Scottish church can be seen the gargoyle of a mysterious creature that appears to have originated from other world. This accompanies the 12th century enclosure and has recently sparked controversy.
There Paisley Abbey is a church located on the east side of the White Cart Water in the center of Paisley, a town near Glasgow. The place was already known in the past, but social networks made it viral for the strange “alien statue”.
A creature “from another world”?
The church is believed to have been built on a sacred place in the seventh century. Its founder was St. Mirinan Irish missionary monk who helped establish his religious community around the abbey.
Unlike the other gargoyles, the one that “protects” this monument has a rather particular shape. At first glance, it looks a lot like xenomorph from the movie Alienthe famous film by director Ridley Scott, released in 1979.
The extraordinary similarity of the piece of stone attached to the facade of the church with the alien monster of the film is admirable.
The gargoyle, very similar to the xenomorph from the movie Alien, adorns the historic 13th century abbey.
First of all, you should know that the gargoyles had a function architectural. These creatures were designed to empty stagnant water above the buildings, thus avoiding erosion of the masonry and its bonding mortar.
As a result, rows of these creatures were often created, which served as channels. Similarly, gargoyles usually have a “stretched” design, because the longer the figure, the more water it is able to drain.
Of course, they also have a religious application. According to ancient beliefs, the function of gargoyles was show evil as a tormented creature. It was believed that this was how they scared away evil spirits and protected the church.
Why did the gargoyle at Paisley Abbey have alien gaze?
Close-up of the curious gargoyle.
Well, your story could be something different.
Everything seems to indicate that in 1997 the story of the gargoyle was already known, thanks to photos and videos published in various media at the time, and many theories arose from its figure.
BBC News, trying to clarify the matter, interviewed in 2013 to the reverend of the church, Alan Birs, who said that in the early 1990s the abbey was remodeled. A company from Edinburgh has been hired and everything seems to indicate that the artists had a rather quirky sense of humorso they designed the gargoyle with the mythical appearance of the Alien.
As Birss explained, the statue is a “modernization” of the old gargoyles, whose visual purpose was to be recognizable by passers-by in the distance.
The Other Mysteries of the Church of Paisley
It should be mentioned that this is not the only mystery that the church of Paisley houses, since in the 90s a arched drain of the thirteenth century.
Its construction is almost perfect and it ran from the Abbey to the White Cart River. According to a document from Historic Environment Scotlandthe drain is approximately 90 meters long, 2 meters wide and 2.2 meters high.
The walls contain traces left by the masons, in addition to housing numerous objects, including a blackboard marked with musical notation, which is on display in the church. This blackboard is the example oldest of polyphonic music Found in Scotland.
Also, according to the book Musical slate: the fragments of Paisley Abbeywritten by Kenneth Elliot in 2000, also found imported cloth seals, 15th century chamber pots, tongs and carved bone handles.
The abbey also houses a severe in the chancel, which has a female effigy believed to be Marjorie Brucemother of King Robert II of Scotland. Opposite are the tombs of King Robert III of Scotland and simon fitz alanbrother of Walter Fitz Alan, the English baron who became a magnate in Scotland and was part of the High Stewards of Scotland.
Marjorie Bruce’s grave at Paisley Abbey. Credit: Stephencdickson/Wikimedia Commons
Another church with a “xenomorph gargoyle”
A similar creature can be found guarding the chapel of Bethlehem Saint-Jean-de-Boiseauin France, you can see a gargoyle similar to the xenomorph in the movie ‘Alien’.
It was designed by the architect Gwenole Congard and the sculptor Jean-Louis Boistelwho decided to take advantage of the renovation of the church carried out between 1993 and 1995, to incorporate this creature and other recognized creatures into the design of the 15th century chapel.
One of the gargoyles that adorn the chapel of Bethléem Saint-Jean-de-Boiseau.
The exposure it has achieved through social media has made the church in Paisley one of the most visited places in Scotland. The mysterious “alien gargoyle” remains vigilant and protective atop the church, waiting for anyone to visit.
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