What is recorded here

Marianne and I watched the camera drag across the completed mesh, but she pointed at the woman’s face and said the chart still missed her answer. I lifted the picture from the desk, not to measure it, and the camera took the new angle without command. The woman in the picture moved her head toward Marianne, smiled without begging to be believed, and dropped the file into the machine. We watched the channel open, not on our own machine but through the new address in the wall of the world.

This sheela-na-gig is carved into the keystone of the arch over the doorway of 'Ballinderry Castle' (GA043-004001-). The large head displays ovoid eyes, a wedge nose, slit mouth and prominent ears. Braided hair, of two distinct styles, extends from each side of the head across the top of the stone, that to the left is in the classic plait style while that to the right is more of an interlace style. Small breasts are tucked under the arms, which curve around the body and both hands rest below the belly button in the genital area. The two legs and damaged feet are wide apart. Decorative motifs visible on each side of the figure include a marigold and knot on the left side and a rose, bird and triskele-like circle on the right side. (Nolan 1901, 36; Costello 1936, 312-3; Freitag 2004, 123) See attached screenshots of 3D model of Sheela-na-gig created by Digital Heritage Age. 3D model can be accessed on the Sketchfab website at: https://skfb.ly/6qPyP Compiled by: Olive Alcock Date of upload: 8 November 2022

This Sheela-na-gig carving, likely from the medieval period, is associated with fertility symbolism and may have had a protective or apotropaic function. Such figures are often linked to themes of childbirth, female power, and the supernatural in Irish folklore.

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