Stone head in Saggart

A carved stone head of granite was found in Saggart graveyard (DU021-034003-) (dims. H 0.4m x Wth 0.35m x D 0.15m) (Fitzgerald 1906-8, 15, 114; Ó Ríordáin 1947, 77, 86). Described by Ó Ríordáin (1947, 85-6) as follows; 'The stone shown was found some years ago in the digging of a grave in the cemetery at Saggart. Through the courtesy of the caretaker, Mrs. Birmingham, we were able to remove it temporarily for photography. The height of the stone is about 53 cm., its maximum breadth 26 cm., and in general the thickness is about 15 cm. The upper part of the stone represents a carved head, the features of the face being extremely rude and primitive in character. The forehead slopes back to the level of the flat lower portion of the stone, while the chin projects about 6 cm. The coarse nature of the granite makes the features difficult to distinguish, and, because of the rounded character of the carving and the lack of definition, photography is not satisfactory though we experimented with the most varied types of lighting. The eyes (the right is better preserved than the left) are protruding circular bosses set high in the head and below them are heavy, curved ridges. The deep grooves below these and the other deep grooves which curve down from the nose delimit and accentuate the bulging cheeks between them. The face narrows in the region of the mouth which is a long broad groove that curves back to the flat surface of the stone. The lower lip is well marked, and helps to emphasise the grinning mouth. Near the bottom of the flat surface of the stone is a curved groove and below this is a slight stepping of the surface; these may possibly be an attempt to represent arms across the body of the figure. One corner is cut away in a manner that suggests that the stone was originally held in a socket'. See attached image taken from Ó Ríordáin 1947, Plate XIX Compiled by: Geraldine Stout Revised by: Caimin O'Brien Date of revised upload: 24 March 2023

Likely dating to the early medieval period, the stone head may have originally formed part of a high cross or memorial monument. Its presence in a graveyard suggests a possible Christian association, though its exact meaning or function remains unclear.