| Oxford's Shiel-Na-Gig By Mary Karmers The Shiel-na-gig, a pre-Saxon fertility carving, was found on one of the building stones at St. Michael's in the North-Gate tower, in Oxford, England in 1928. Many mysteries surround this stone. Upon being discovered, it was removed and placed under the Ashmolean Museum's study and care. Recently, it was returned to St. Michael's, where it is now stored in their back office. Although returning it to the tower location was debated in the past, it has been remarked that this last century of pollution would have caused more damage to the image than all the previous centuries of exposure to the elements. What exactly is the Shiel-na-gig? Unfortunately, not much has been ascertained about this particular image, although origins of similar ones can be satisfactorily traced. The Ashmolean Museum in Oxford, England will resume studying the stone soon, which hopefully will shed new light on why it was placed on St. Michael's tower. The Shiel-na-gig has proven to be of Celtic origin. This type of image is not native to England. Several have been found in Ireland, one in Guernsey, and one in the Hebrides. The Irish fertility images were still being produced up to the 16th century. A date has not been placed on this stone, although it is definitely at least as old as the tower, which was built between 980 and 1040 A.D. This particular stone carving possibly dates back to the Roman evacuation of England, thus it is pre-Saxon. The image on the stone is that of a woman, with the genital region exposed and accentuated. It was quite common in the past to have fertility images connected to churches, for as the Pagan rites became Christianized, many elements of Pagan worship remained within the Christian faith. In addition, many churches were built over Pagan temples and energy sites. Women wishing to conceive often sat in front of other fertility images, notably phallic stones and holy wells. Hence, the Shiel-na-gig is known as a fertility carving. But, as mentioned earlier, these particular carvings are rare indeed. What is more, they were usually associated with Church gateways, a very feminine symbol. Therefore, it is unknown why this particular stone was found halfway up the Church tower, in a barely visible location. This syndicated article provided through the WPPA. | 
