What is recorded here

Hollymount Village holds a sheela-na-gig moved from levelled farm buildings in 1993. She may have guarded a lost castle near Lehinch Demesne, but that much is still conjecture. Her exposed form turns every passing person into a witness, forcing attention instead of inviting pity.

This record refers to a sheela-na-gig which, according to local information, was found at roughly this location amongst old farm buildings, now levelled. In 1993 it was moved to its present location (MA110-087----) in Hollymount Village. Its exact provenance remains uncertain. Sheela-na-gigs are commonly associated with castles or churches. The Strafford Inquisition of Co. Mayo lists '…the moiety of the castle town and lands of Lehinch…' (O' Sullivan 1954, 70). However, the exact location of this castle (MA111-072001-) and deserted settlement (MA111-072002-) are unknown. A castle (MA111-018----), shown on the 1837 OS 6-inch map as ‘Castle (ruin)’ and on the 1930 edition as ‘Castle (site of)’, is located in Knockalegan townland which borders the E side of Lehinch Demesne. A castle in Lehinch Demesne or the castle in Knockalegan is a likely provenance for the carving. Compiled by: Jane O'Shaughnessy Date of upload: 6 April 2015

A Sheela-na-gig is typically associated with medieval rather than prehistoric periods; its figurative carvings, often depicting a female figure with exaggerated genitalia, are thought to have had apotropaic, fertility, or symbolic functions.

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