The Corleck Head (Irish: ''Sliabh na Trí nDée'', or ''Sliabh na nDée Dána'') is a 1st or 2nd century AD carved stone found c. 1855 on Corleck Hill in the townland of Drumeague,

County Cavan County Cavan ( ; gle, Contae an Chabháin) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster and is part of the Border Region. It is named after the town of Cavan and is base ...

, Ireland. It is carved from a single block of local

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

, and shows a three-faced (

tricephalic Polycephaly is the condition of having more than one head. The term is derived from the Greek stems ''poly'' (Greek: "πολύ") meaning "many" and ''kephalē'' (Greek: "κεφαλή") meaning "head". A polycephalic organism may be thought ...

) stone god or idol with closely set eyes, broad and rounded noses, and simply drawn mouths. These features give the faces expressionless but enigmatic facial expressions. The head has a short neck or base carved from the same block of stone. As with most stone artifacts from the European

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...

period, its cultural origin, significance and function are unknown. It probably represents a

Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language * Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Fo ...

god and was probably once part of a larger shrine associated with

Lughnasadh Lughnasadh or Lughnasa ( , ) is a Gaelic festival marking the beginning of the harvest season. Historically, it was widely observed throughout Ireland, Scotland and the Isle of Man. In Modern Irish it is called , in gd, Lùnastal, and in gv, ...

, a three day

harvest festival A harvest festival is an annual celebration that occurs around the time of the main harvest of a given region. Given the differences in climate and crops around the world, harvest festivals can be found at various times at different places. ...

. Its design is influenced by contemporary

Romano-British The Romano-British culture arose in Britain under the Roman Empire following the Roman conquest in AD 43 and the creation of the province of Britannia. It arose as a fusion of the imported Roman culture with that of the indigenous Britons, a ...

iconography Iconography, as a branch of art history, studies the identification, description and interpretation of the content of images: the subjects depicted, the particular compositions and details used to do so, and other elements that are distinct fro ...

of a trinity representing the unity of the past, present and future, such as the three female deities known as the

Matres and Matronae The Matres (Latin for "mothers") and Matronae (Latin for "matrons") were female deities venerated in Northwestern Europe, of whom relics are found dating from the first to the fifth century AD. They are depicted on votive offerings and altars th ...

who are often represented as ancestral mothers representing "strength, power and fertility", O'Toole, Fintan.
A history of Ireland in 100 objects: Corleck Head
. ''

The Irish Times ''The Irish Times'' is an Irish daily broadsheet newspaper and online digital publication. It launched on 29 March 1859. The editor is Ruadhán Mac Cormaic. It is published every day except Sundays. ''The Irish Times'' is considered a newspaper ...

'', 25 June 2011. Retrieved 4 February 2022 or an all-knowing god with "all-seeing eyes". The head was discovered around 1855Waddell (1998), p. 360 during the excavation of a large

Neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several parts ...

site but was not reported to archeologists until 1948 after its prehistoric dating was realised by the historian Thomas Barron; until then it had been placed on top of a

gatepost A gatepost is a structure used to support gates or crossbars which control entry to an area, such as a field or driveway. Purpose If the gatepost is utilitarian in purpose then gateposts will be made as strictly functional structures; however ...

. Today it is on permanent display at the archaeology branch of the

National Museum of Ireland The National Museum of Ireland ( ga, Ard-Mhúsaem na hÉireann) is Ireland's leading museum institution, with a strong emphasis on national and some international archaeology, Irish history, Irish art, culture, and natural history. It has thre ...

in Dublin. The head was included as #19 in the 2011 book ''

A History of Ireland in 100 Objects ''A History of Ireland in 100 Objects'' was a joint project by ''The Irish Times'', the National Museum of Ireland, and the Royal Irish Academy to define one hundred archaeological or cultural objects that are important in the history of Ireland ...

''.

Discovery

The date and exact circumstances of the head's discovery are unknown but estimated to have occurred as around 1855 or at latest 1900. It was found at a

quarry A quarry is a type of open-pit mine in which dimension stone, rock, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, gravel, or slate is excavated from the ground. The operation of quarries is regulated in some jurisdictions to reduce their envi ...

on Drumeague Hill during the disassembly of a

passage grave A passage grave or passage tomb consists of one or more burial chambers covered in earth or with stone, and having a narrow access passage made of large stones. These structures usually date from the Neolithic Age, and are found largely in Wester ...

located within a

stone circle A stone circle is a ring of standing stones. Most are found in Northwestern Europe – especially in Britain, Ireland, and Brittany – and typically date from the Late Neolithic and Early Bronze Age, with most being built from 3000 BC. The be ...

and 64 meter circular embankment complex on the nearby Corleck Hill.Kelly (2002), p. 142 The site is sometimes known as Sliabh na Trí nDée, or Sliabh na nDée Dána, which translates to "hill of the three gods". It was traditionally associated with the

, a

Gaelic Gaelic is an adjective that means "pertaining to the Gaels". As a noun it refers to the group of languages spoken by the Gaels, or to any one of the languages individually. Gaelic languages are spoken in Ireland, Scotland, the Isle of Man, and Ca ...

harvest festival, suggesting that the head was one of a series of objects placed at the site during the festival. The head was probably hidden at the same time as the "Corraghy Head", a nearby found carved stone

bust Bust commonly refers to: * A woman's breasts * Bust (sculpture), of head and shoulders * An arrest Bust may also refer to: Places * Bust, Bas-Rhin, a city in France *Lashkargah, Afghanistan, known as Bust historically Media * ''Bust'' (magazin ...

of a bearded man. After its discovery, the head time was placed on top of a

in the Hall family farm. A family friend recalled spending "days as children on a day visit" throwing stones at the head.Smyth (2012), p. 24 It was first recogonised as ancient in 1935 by the local historian Thomas Barron. He contacted the

in 1937, and it was brought to Dublin for study by the Austrian archaeologist

Adolf Mahr Adolf Mahr (7 May 1887 – 27 May 1951) was an Austrian archaeologist, who served as director of the National Museum of Ireland in Dublin in the 1930s, and is credited with advancing the work of the museum substantially. Through his leadership ...

, then the museum's director. Mahr later secured funding to acquire it into the museum's collection. Study of the object preoccupied Barron until his death in 1978 and became closely associated with him.

Description

The Corleck head is a relatively large example of the type, being 33 cm high and 22.5 cm at its widest point. Each face has very simple and only slightly individualised features. Each has, according to the archeologist Eamonn P. Kelly, "bossed eyes, a broad nose and slit mouth", but they are given equally enigmatic but slightly different facial expressions; one face is heavily browed and another has a small hole at the center of its mouth—a feature of several contemporary carved heads found in

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...

. The small mortise hole under the statue's base suggests it was placed on a pedestal, probably as part of a shrine, cult center, or another type of larger display.Waddell (1998), p. 362 While its function is unknown, it probably represents a

Celtic god The gods and goddesses of the pre-Christian Celtic peoples are known from a variety of sources, including ancient places of worship, statues, engravings, cult objects and place or personal names. The ancient Celts appear to have had a pantheon ...

, in a format derived from contemporary

and symbolism.Kelly (2002), p. 132 The triple-head motif seems to indicate an "all-knowing", "all-seeing" god, that according to writer Miranda Aldhouse-Green, was "used to gain knowledge of places or events far away in time and space".Aldhouse-Green (2015), "The Seeing Stone of Corleck" File:Corleck Head.jpg, The sculpture with two faces in view File:Testa in pietra con più facce, da corleck hill, co. di cavan, I-II secolo dc. 02.jpg, View of the sculpture's faces File:Testa in pietra con più facce, da corleck hill, co. di cavan, I-II secolo dc. 01.jpg, Another view Dating isolated pieces of Iron Age sculpture of this kind is extremely difficult and is often based on their resemblance to other similar examples.Morahan (1987–1988), p. 149 While the majority of the stone heads found in the northern Irish counties since the 19th century are now believed to be prehistoric, a number have been identified as either

Medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...

or 17th or 18th century

folk art Folk art covers all forms of visual art made in the context of folk culture. Definitions vary, but generally the objects have practical utility of some kind, rather than being exclusively decorative art, decorative. The makers of folk art a ...

Idolatry function

The head is one of the earliest known of a number of Iron Age

anthropomorphic Anthropomorphism is the attribution of human traits, emotions, or intentions to non-human entities. It is considered to be an innate tendency of human psychology. Personification is the related attribution of human form and characteristics t ...

stone carvings found in Ireland although it post-dates, by around a millennium, the c. 1,000 BC Tandragee Idol found in

County Armagh County Armagh (, named after its county town, Armagh) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland and one of the traditional thirty-two counties of Ireland. Adjoined to the southern shore of Lough Neagh, the county covers an area of and ha ...

. All of the faces in contemporary examples have closely set but staring eyes,Ross (1958), p. 24 simple grooved mouths and flat,

wedge A wedge is a triangular shaped tool, and is a portable inclined plane, and one of the six simple machines. It can be used to separate two objects or portions of an object, lift up an object, or hold an object in place. It functions by converti ...

-shaped noses.Rynne (1972), p. 80 The hole at its base indicates that it was once attached to a larger structure, perhaps a much longer pillar, comparable to the 6-foot wooden carving found in the 1790s in a bog near

Aghadowey Aghadowey ()Placenames NI
County Londonderry County Londonderry ( Ulster-Scots: ''Coontie Lunnonderrie''), also known as County Derry ( ga, Contae Dhoire), is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the thirty two counties of Ireland and one of the nine counties of Ulster. B ...

, which is now lost but known from a 19th drawing which shows an idol with four faces. Of the Iron Age three-faced stone idols to survive, most are also cut from a single limestone blocks.Rynne (1972), pp. 79-93 Of these the Corleck Head is widely considered the finest in both its simplicity of design and complexity of expression. Other examples include a triple-head from in Cortynan,

found before 1935, an object found in Glejbjerg, Denmark, and two carved triple-heads from

Greetland Greetland is a small village in the metropolitan borough of Calderdale in West Yorkshire, England. The appropriate Calderdale Ward is called Greetland and Stainland. The population of this ward at the 2011 Census was 11,389. It is located w ...

, England.Paterson (1962), p. 82

References

Citations

Sources

* Aldhouse-Green, Miranda. ''The Celtic Myths: A Guide to the Ancient Gods and Legends''. London: Thames and Hudson, 2015. * Armit, Ian. "Headhunting and the Body in Iron Age Europe". Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2012. * Duffy, Patrick. "Reviewed Work: Landholding, Society and Settlement In Ireland: a historical geographer's perspective by T. Jones Hughes". ''Clogher Record'', volume 21, No. 1 (2012). * Gleeson, Patrick.
Reframing the first millennium AD in Ireland: archaeology, history, landscape
. ''Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academ'', 2022 * Kelly, Eamonn. "The Iron Age". In Ó Floinn, Raghnall; Wallace, Patrick (eds). ''Treasures of the National Museum of Ireland: Irish Antiquities''. Dublin: National Museum of Ireland, 2002. * Kelly, Eamonn. "Treasures of Ireland: Catalogue entries, Late Bronze Age and Iron Age Antiquities". Treasures of Ireland: Irish Art 3000 BC – 1500 AD. Dublin: Royal Irish Academy, 1983 * Morahan, Leo. "A Stone Head from Killeen, Belcarra, Co. Mayo". ''Journal of the Galway Archaeological and Historical Society'', volume 41, 1987–1988. * Ó Hogain, Dáithí. "Patronage & Devotion in Ancient Irish Religion". ''History Ireland'', volume 8, no. 4, winter 2000. * Paterson, T.G.F. "Carved Head from Cortynan, Co. Armagh". ''The Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland'', volume 92, No. 1, 1962. * Raftery, Barry. ''Pagan Celtic Ireland: The Enigma of the Irish Iron Age''. London: Thames & Hudson, 1994 * Ross, Anne. "The Human Head in Insular Pagan Celtic Religion". ''Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland''. Volume 91, 1958 * Rynne, Etienn. "Celtic Stone Idols in Ireland". In: Thomas, Charles.
The Iron Age in the Irish Sea province
'. London:

Council for British Archaeology The Council for British Archaeology (CBA) is an educational charity established in 1944 in the UK. It works to involve people in archaeology and to promote the appreciation and care of the historic environment for the benefit of present and futu ...

, 1972 * Rynne, Etienn. "The Three Stone Heads at Woodlands, near Raphoe, Co. Donegal". ''The Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland'', volume 94, no. 2, 1964. * Smyth, Jonathan. "Gentleman and Scholar: Thomas James Barron, 1903 - 1992". Cumann Seanchais Bhreifne (Breifne Historical Society), 2012. * Waddell, John. ''The Prehistoric Archaeology of Ireland''. Galway: Galway University Press, 1998. {{refend Celtic stone heads Collection of the National Museum of Ireland Irish art Prehistoric Ireland Stone objects