Pagan whodunnit grips village

[emad]

Times
Pagan whodunnit grips village
By Adrian Lee



IT IS a whodunnit worthy of Agatha Christie. The tiny English village, the victim found lying on the floor of its isolated church and everyone in the community under suspicion.

No murder was committed. In this mystery, the figure on the floor was that of an erotic pagan carving that had stood undisturbed in the church for eight centuries. It was attacked with a chisel and left in more than a hundred pieces. .....................

So, as they ponder the puzzle, the would-be Miss Marples in the 200-strong community of Wiston, West Sussex, have taken up the case. One parishioner has deduced, from the chisel marks, that the culprit must have been left-handed.

The rare stonework, of a figure with its genitals exposed, is believed to have served as a warning against lust. It is not clear whether the 8in figure, carved over an archway at All Saints Church, Buncton, was male or female.

http://www.timesonline.co.uk/newspaper/0,,170-1409682,00.html

[Zenlitened]

1. How very... Taliban-ish of the person or people who did this.

Ugh.

[nostamj]

2. uh..... "genitals exposed" AND

they don't know if it's male or female? :shrug:

sheltered englishpeople I guess

[spinbaby]

3. Could have been ambiguous

Could have had parts belonging to both sexes.

On edit: typo

[lectrobyte]

5. if this is the carving in question, I have trouble comprehending

the "genitals exposed" part.

http://www.crsbi.ac.uk/ed/sx/bunct/i4572.htm

http://www.crsbi.ac.uk/ed/sx/bunct/i4576.htm

unless these pics are from after the damage.

On edit: seems "female" to me.

[lectrobyte]

7. a better picture and description here

http://www.jharding.demon.co.uk/index.htm#http://www.jharding.demon.co.uk/SheelaNaGigIndex.htm

The sheela itself is situated on the left side of the chancel arch. It is quite high up and unusually it lies on it's side. (see below). A note in the church describes the carving as being that of the mason and makes no reference to it being a sheela or even female. There may be some doubt as to whether this carving is a sheela or not. There are no obvious genitals on display but there does seem to be some indication of toolwork where the genitals should be. If there were carved genitals at some time then the carving would be similar to the one at Oaksey in Wiltshire. This similarity is further borne out by the fact that stances of the figures in both carvings are very similar. The carving also has two very small breasts or nipples which are not obvious in the photograph above.

[Stinky The Clown]

6. hahahaha

That tidbit caught my eye, too!

"Now Johnny, the male part is like the electrical plug at the end of the lamp cord. The female part is like the plug in the wall. In fact, that is where the terms "male" and "female" come from."

[Redneck Socialist]

4. Has anyone seen Ashcroft lately? n/t