Boa Island Janus Figures
Boa Island stone figures · Caldragh Idol · Lusty More figures
Iron Age (Celtic)·Pre-Christian Celtic / Iron Age Ireland·🇬🇧 County Fermanagh, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom
About
About Boa Island Janus Figures
Two mysterious Iron Age anthropomorphic janus stone idols in Caldragh cemetery on Boa Island, Lower Lough Erne, Fermanagh: Blade Idol (1.2 m sandstone, two faces back-to-back with interlaced belt and hands on hips) and the larger badly weathered Lustymore figure moved to Caldragh, plus associated Lusty More stone. Dated c.400 BCE–800 CE (broad Iron Age). Enigmatic Celtic religious idols with no exact British parallels, resembling continental double-headed deities. Cemetery otherwise contains early Christian cross slabs.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Janus meaning — all-seeing god or boundary guardian? Date spans 1200 years
Theories
- 01Celtic Lugus/British crossroads deity predecessor; later Christianity folded idols into cemetery
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c. 400 BCE – 800 CE (broad)
- Period
- Iron Age (Celtic)
- Culture
- Pre-Christian Celtic / Iron Age Ireland
- Purpose
- Janus deity idols in cemetery context
- Abandoned
- Christianized 6th century (cemetery continues)
- Rediscovered
- Recorded 1939; described by Raftery
- Excavation
- Unexcavated
c. 400 BCE – 800 CE (broad)
Initial construction
c. 1037 CE
Abandonment
On the ground
Structures & features
54.5150° N · 7.8300° W · 40 m · 2 mapped features
Blade Idol (Caldragh Janus)
idol1.2 m double-faced idol with belt and hands
54.5150° N · 7.8300° WLustymore (Lusty More) figure
idolLarger weathered janus figure relocated to Caldragh
54.5148° N · 7.8302° W
Gallery