The materials used in medieval sculpture were wood, bone, ivory and stone; occasionally bronze sculptures were made but these were relatively rare. Cathedrals, churches, chapels and monasteries were often decorated with stone sculptures; the overhanging blocks at the top of the wall lines, supporting the roof, were called corbels and in the 12th century these were often used as an opportunity to carve all kinds of grotesque faces, imaginary beasts and comical combinations of figures.
Corbels gradually evolved into the familiar grotesque heads termed gargoyles, used as water-spouts to shed water away from the walls beneath.
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