Laon Cathedral | Symbolism of forms in the Middle Ages

In the Middle Ages, religious sculpture used animals to strike a chord. Everywhere, the most incredible legends were depicted to symbolise the fear of the devil and God's victory over evil.
In the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, artists often used the Miroir de l'Église by Honorius of Autun as a reference. This book classifies animal figures according to their significance.

The dragon is considered an evil beast, while the unicorn symbolises the purity of the Virgin. On the sculptures of the portals, the same symbols from the religious bestiary are associated from one cathedral to another: the gorgons of the Apocalypse, the serpent of Genesis, the dove of the Holy Spirit.
At a time when the vast majority of the population could neither read nor write, animal symbolism was a simple way for the Church to spread the message of Christ.