It’s interesting how certain images and beliefs are passed down through generations without many questioning their origins. Such is the case with the pagan iconography found in Bayeux Cathedral.
The history of these grotesques can be traced, in part, to pagan traditions. They are most often found on the exteriors of cathedrals, where they were believed to ward off evil spirits, but at Bayeux, many also appear inside the cathedral.
Among them are severed, three-headed faces, a theme associated with the Celtic pagan worship of the human head. Severed heads were displayed as symbols of triumph, while the triple-headed figure was the most important, as the number three was sacred to the Celts. There is also the Green Man, a folklore representing the union of man and nature, depicted with vines and leaves emerging from his eyes, ears, and nose. Trees held a sacred place in pagan traditions. Another interesting figure is the mouth-puller, whose contorted expression appears to mock those gathered below.
Beautiful examples of beaked-head figures can be found along the interior nave. These half-bird, half-human, almost nightmarish creatures are carved into the stone, appearing to bite down on the rounded details of the arch moldings. Typically found around entrance archways, where they were thought to ward off evil spirits, their placement within Bayeux Cathedral’s interior is peculiar.
While the stories and decor revolving around Christianity and the Bible were a bit more “set in stone”, grotesques and chimeras offered the architects and sculptors a moment to express themselves. In these brief detours is where I always find the most originality. As the church dominated every aspect during the Middle Ages, these creatures became a subtle form of subversiveness under the guise of humor. I like to think that the creators at times were saying something about the very people who were sitting under them every Sunday, not to mention the church as a whole.
