Queen Maeve still has us enchanted

QUESTION evidence Is there any for the existence of Queen Maeve? QUEEN Maeve may have been the legendary warrior queen of Connacht in prehistoric times, but there’s little or no evidence, apart from ancient manuscripts, to show she was a real person rather than a fable handed from generation to generation to the present day.

While history says she was buried in a stone cairn on the summit of Knocknarea Mountain in Co. Sligo, her tomb there has never been opened.

Some historians say she could have been buried at her home place at Rathcroghan, Co. Roscommon, but again no physical evidence of her has been found there either.

Despite the absence of proof, the story of Queen Maeve continues to inspire and intrigue readers right up to the present day. She was the ultimate warrior queen and the stories about her exploits are some of the most striking in ancient Irish literature.

She is depicted as the ultimate image of women’s power and sexuality. After all, she had many husbands and lovers and it was written on many occasions in ancient manuscripts she rewarded her bravest soldiers with sexual favours.

The many men who fought on her behalf did so with the utmost valour in the hope and expectation, to quote ancient manuscripts again, they would be able to enjoy Queen Maeve.

The story of Maeve is an extraordinary tale that highlights the fact the ancient Celts loved magic and the supernatural; Maeve was embellished with these super powers, becoming much more than Queen of Connacht, turning into an immortal goddess.

Even if it’s impossible to prove today that Maeve was a real person, the many stories woven around her have turned her into such a powerful mythological figure that she still draws readers to her exploits.

Was she a real person or a figment of the imagination? We’ll never know for sure.

Finn Maguire, Dublin.