Owl Statue

Owl Statue
Artwork of an Owl Statue from Link's Awakening
First appearance	Link's Awakening (1993)
Appearances	Link's Awakening Majora's Mask Oracle of Ages Oracle of Seasons Twilight Princess
Use	Various uses

"Before coming here, had you not seen any of the stone statues that bear close resemblance to me? I have placed those throughout the land to aid the one with the power to change the destiny of this land... Wherever he may appear."

— Kaepora Gaebora

Owl Statues are a recurring feature in the Legend of Zelda series. Their function varies from game to game, though their appearance is always that of a statue carved in the image of an owl, as the name implies. Often, the statues resemble an actual character found in the game in which they appear.

Appearances

The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening

"The Wind Fish in name only, for it is neither."

— Owl Statue

Owl Statues are found in various locations across Koholint Island. Link is able to approach the statues and receive information of varying degrees of usefulness, as well as occasional foreshadowing of the game's plot. However, nearly all of the information offered by Owl Statues are worded in a cryptic manner.

In the Game Boy Color version of the game, a different type of Owl Statues are found inside each dungeon on Koholint Island. Link has to find the statue's beak, which has become separated from the rest of the statue, and return it to its correct place; the statue then provides information on how to succeed in some aspect of solving the dungeon. This replaced the stone slabs found in the dungeons in the original edition.

The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask

"Ye who hold the sacred sword, leave proof of our encounter."

— Inscription

Owl Statues are found all over Termina and bear the likeness of Kaepora Gaebora, who has placed them to aid the one with the power to save Termina. When an Owl Statue is struck with Link's sword, a flash of light appears and its wings unfold, indicating that it has been "activated". Once he has learned the "Song of Soaring", Link can use these Owl Statues as warp points to travel throughout Termina. Owl Statues are found in South Clock Town, Milk Road, Southern Swamp, Woodfall, Mountain Village, Snowhead, Great Bay Coast, Zora Cape, Ikana Canyon, and Stone Tower. Interestingly, Owl Statues remain active even after Link goes back in time using the "Song of Time", which resets everything, with few exceptions.

Owl Statues can also be used to save the game without returning to the First Day with the "Song of Time". Saving in this way will return the player to the title screen, and an owl symbol will appear next to the save file; however, this save is deleted upon reloading the file, meaning Link must play the "Song of Time" in order to make a permanent save. The original Japanese version of the game did not have this feature, and Owl Statues served no purpose except as warp points.

In Majora's Mask 3D, these statues permanently save the game, as the Song of Time no longer saves in this version. They can also be activated by checking them.

The Legend of Zelda: Oracle of Ages and Oracle of Seasons

"Do not forget to give me Mystery Seeds."

— Owl Statue

Owl Statues are found both in Labrynna and Holodrum, primarily in dungeons. If Link uses a Mystery Seed on one, the statue will raise its wings and provide him with a clue as to how to solve a portion of the adventure taking place in the nearby area.

The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess

An Owl Statue from Twilight Princess

Owl Statues are found throughout Hyrule, but their purpose is not revealed until late into the game. In order to restore Ilia's lost memory, Link finds the Hidden Village, where he meets Impaz. Impaz sees that Link is in possession of the Dominion Rod, and gives him the Ancient Sky Book. Upon returning to Kakariko Village, Link shows the Ancient Sky Book to Shad, who is performing research in the Sanctuary. Shad recites a passage from the book, but is disheartened to find it has seemingly no effect. However, his doing so inadvertently restores power to the Dominion Rod. To find the lost Sky Characters that are missing from the Ancient Sky Book, Link must find all six Owl Statues and direct them away from the pedestals on which they sit, which is where the Sky Characters are found:

• Faron Province: behind the rock near Coro's house.
• Kakariko Gorge: just before the bridge is a small ledge with an alcove where this statue is.
• Bridge of Eldin: the Owl Statue is on the parapet opposite the Bulblin Archer.
• Lanayru Province: Western Hyrule Field; activate the statue, climb on it, and then claim the Character.
• Great Bridge of Hylia: activate the statue, lower it off its ledge, use the Clawshot on the vines above, then drop onto the statue, and claim another Character.
• Gerudo Desert: there is a collection of blocks, and the Statue sits on one. Use the Dominion Rod to pull the statue to the ground, maneuver it between the block it was sitting on and a block that Link can access.

Additionally, moving each of the Owl Statues will reveal a Treasure Chest containing either an Orange Rupee or a Piece of Heart.

Several more Owl Statues can also be found in the Temple of Time, Hyrule Castle and the Cave of Ordeals. Interestingly, the shape of an Owl Statue from Majora's Mask can be found atop the pillar concealing Renado's hidden basement.

Non-canonical appearances

Non-canon warning: This article or section contains non-canonical information that is not considered to be an official part of the Legend of Zelda series and should not be considered part of the overall storyline.

Hyrule Warriors

"If you win a battle on a map square with an owl statue, the statue will activate and spread out its wings. If the moon falls and resets the map, any owl statues you've activated will remain activated, as well as any map squares connected or adjacent to them."

— Owl Statues Tutorial Description

As part of the Majora's Mask DLC, Owl Statues appear on the Termina Adventure Mode Map. Activating them is essential to progressing on said Adventure Map as they will keep any nearby open map squares open even if the Moon crashes and resets the map.

With the Twilight Princess DLC, Owl Statues in their Twilight Princess appearance are one of two statues controlled by Princess Zelda with her Dominion Rod moveset along with the Hammer Guardian Statue. Either statue can be placed under control and summoned using the Rod's Strong Attack. Under the Rod's Control Gauge (which fills and slowly drains when a statue is summoned) is an icon that shows the certainly controlled statue. During her Focus Spirit Attack, Zelda will summon a giant Owl Statue to attack enemies with.

Hyrule Warriors Legends

"Use the ocarina to warp to active owl statues. To activate an owl statue, approach the statue and press the button displayed on the screen."

— Ocarina Tutorial Description

The Owl Statue in the Ocarina Tutorial from Hyrule Warriors Legends

Owl Statues (based on their appearance from Majora's Mask) appear as warp points in the Nintendo 3DS revision of Hyrule Warriors. Collecting an Ocarina allows the player to warp to any activated Owl Statues. Both Owl Statues and the Ocarina are introduced in The Sorceress of the Woods story scenario. Owl Statues and the Ocarina allow the player the ability to travel across the battlefield move quickly and even to areas that have been cut off by gates and other obstructions. It is also a helpful way to transport other playable characters (part of the new mid-battle character swapping function) to where they are needed.

Non-canon warning: Non-canonical information ends here.

Gallery

Render of an inactive Owl Statue from Majora's Mask

An inactive 8-Bit Owl Statue Adventure Mode sprite from the Hyrule Warriors series.

An activated 8-Bit Owl Statue Adventure Mode sprite from the Hyrule Warriors series.

An inactive Owl Statue from Hyrule Warriors Legends

An activated Owl Statue from Hyrule Warriors Legends

See also

• Bird Statue
• Quill Statue
• Weather Vane