A grotesque scene Oct 28, 2020

A grotesque scene

"Goofy" might be a better descriptor, but these seabird statues lining an outer wall of an Ecuadorian cathedral are called "grotesques"—the architectural term for a statue ornamenting the side of a building. But hang on…don"t we call those "gargoyles"? Not exactly. Gargoyles are simply grotesques that boast a specific, practical feature: spouts that convey water from rain gutters away from the building.

© Henri Leduc/Getty Images

palette

Today in History

Oct 28, 2018Do spirits haunt the Gardens of Versailles?
Oct 28, 2019A night on the (ghost) town
Oct 28, 2021Necropolis of Dargavs
Oct 28, 2022Frankenstein Friday
Oct 28, 2023Castilla-La Mancha, Spain
Oct 28, 2024Pumpkin field, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada
Oct 28, 2025The Gothic Gate in the Adršpach-Teplice Rocks, Czechia

More Desktop Wallpapers:

Sep 13, 2021Sand, sun, and sk8ers
Apr 15, 2022World Art Day
Apr 21, 2018Celebrating National Park Week, April 21-29
Jul 28, 2026World Nature Conservation Day
May 7, 2022Astronomy Day
Mar 20, 2018Celebrating the first day of spring
Jul 19, 2019A place fit for the gods
Dec 21, 2022Winter solstice
Jul 19, 2020Venice by night
Oct 29, 2022Sea Slug Day
Apr 28, 2021Coming home to roost
Dec 2, 2018Winter in Old Nuuk
Feb 22, 2020It s not always sunny in Abu Simbel…
Jun 18, 2021A city of bridges
Mar 25, 2021There was gold in them there hills…
Jan 6, 2021Travels to the Oregon deep
May 17, 2022Salt ponds of Maras, Peru
May 25, 2023Saksun, Faroe Islands, Denmark
Jul 21, 2025Coral Reef Awareness Week
Mar 4, 2020A different kind of dive
Jul 8, 2026Sunrise at Lake Atitlán, Guatemala
Sep 29, 2024West Cornwall Covered Bridge, Connecticut
Jul 25, 2020Going with the floe
Jul 9, 2024Talampaya National Park, Argentina
Oct 9, 2021Birds of a feather
Oct 31, 2022Wychwood Forest, Oxfordshire, England
Jul 15, 2018GOAL!
Oct 17, 2023Spreadsheet Day
Apr 7, 2020Once in a pink moon
Aug 22, 2021A wild, craggy corner of the United States