Gardaí in Co Kerry are hoping a serial number may provide a clue to who owns a prosthetic hip joint found at the bottom of a popular fishing lake.
The ball-and-socket item which was likely at one stage to have been attached to a hip was found by a diver at the bottom of Lough Currane near Waterville.
The salmon and trout lake is regarded as the best sea trout fishery in Ireland and is favoured by international anglers and even some celebrities.
Famous names such as Charlie Chaplin and golfers Tiger Woods, Mark O’Meara and the late Payne Stewart have fished there.
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A search was being conducted for bait and equipment lost from the boat of a local ghillie when the steel ball object was recovered.
It was mistaken at first for a ball-and-socket attachment such as would attach to a trailer or a pipe fitting. However, on Friday it was realised the object was in fact a hip joint and gardaí were alerted.
Gardaí in Cahersiveen are now hoping the serial number on the joint will help them solve the mystery.
The investigation is not criminal but one of tracing lost property.
Local councillor Norma Moriarty said people are “intrigued” and it is the talk of south Kerry.
“There’s great local interest,” she said of the story which is on the front page of the Kerry South edition of the Kerryman on Wednesday morning.
“‘Garda are hoping the serial number will be able to add clarity as to its provenance,” she said.
Locally, people are speculating whose the hip joint might be, noting that many French, German and British anglers come to Waterville year after year to fish. There is also a strong connection with Cork anglers. One theory runs that the joint may have been placed deliberately in the lake by a loved one.
The Garda press office has been asked for a statement.