Gargoyles of Notre-Dame: Pelican and Feline

The image captures two stone sculptures positioned on the parapet of Notre-Dame de Paris, with the out-of-focus city skyline visible in the background. On the right, a pelican is carved in a downward-facing posture with its long beak pressed against its breast, a traditional motif representing self-sacrifice. To its left sits a feline chimera, captured in profile, facing right with its mouth slightly agape. The sculptures are weathered, grey stone, and are set against a bright, sun-drenched sky.

The pelican depicted is a 'pelican in her piety,' a common medieval symbol for Christ's sacrifice, based on the belief that the bird fed its young with its own blood. These figures reflect the 19th-century Neo-Gothic restoration by Eugène Viollet-le-Duc, which sought to revive medieval architectural iconography.