Hunky punks are grotesque carvings found on the outside walls of buildings, usually churches. They differ from gargoyles because they are purely decorative: gargoyles drain water off roofs through their mouths. The purpose of hunky punks seems to have been to break up long straight sections of stone walls and to ornament corners.
Hunky punks are particularly numerous in Somerset. The term hunky punk is thought to have originated from the words hunkers and punchy. Hunkers means "squatting on haunches" and punchy means having "short legs and a thick set body".
Most hunky punks were carved between 1450 and 1550, during the second half of the Perpendicular period. Parapets, pinnacles and window tracery were also often decoratively carved at this time. The church towers built in Somerset in this period were mainly funded by the wealth generated by the wool trade. The carving of hunky punks would have taken place on the ground (probably in the carvers' workshops) and not in situ. They were carved using chisels and mallets. The hunky punks on a particular church may not all have been carved by the same stone mason.
The subjects carved were rarely Christian symbols. They were often mythological or heraldic creatures and occasionally humans. Dragons, goats, dogs and griffins are the most common subjects. Life in medieval times was greatly influenced by the Christian church, but also by superstition and folklore. This may explain why so many hunky punks depict mythological and heraldic creatures.
My thanks to Nigel Stone for allowing me to use some of his photographs.
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