Antique Stone Gargoyle

An antique sandstone grotesque from Nottinghamshire, the deeply carved stylised lion with a rebated square base. The mouth of this lion is not carved as a waterspout so it is technically a grotesque rather than a gargoyle. It was formerly built into a stone wall near Retford, Nottinghamshire, but its original provenance would have been as an architectural embellishment on a large building such as a church or monastery. It is relatively large and probably much earlier than we have indicated but it is impossible to be sure of it's age without knowing it's full history. 

18th century or earlier.