by Windstone Editions
The Hyena Gargoyle was created by M. Peña for Windstone Editions. In medieval times, gargoyles adorned many churches and buildings, serving functional, as well as spiritual, purposes. Functionally, their gaping mouths and long tongues served as waterspouts, sending rivulets of rain water streaming off the high roofs to splatter on the ground below. The spiritual role played by these fierce and wide-eyed -- but truly good-hearted -- creatures was that of sentinels, perched high to ward off evil spirits and guard against misfortune. Now, M. Peña has taken this historic background, added a pinch of fantasy from her childhood, and applied her own modern artistic twist to create this Old World Gargoyle. The sculpture is 9 in. high.