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Title: Wakeman's handbook of Irish antiquities : Third Edition
Author: Cooke, John Esten
Language: English
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ANTIQUITIES ***
WAKEMAN’S
HAND-BOOK OF IRISH ANTIQUITIES.
[Illustration: Knockmany Chamber (see p. 75).]
WAKEMAN’S HANDBOOK OF
IRISH ANTIQUITIES
THIRD EDITION
BY JOHN COOKE, M.A. (DUB.),
FELLOW OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY OF ANTIQUARIES OF IRELAND;
EDITOR OF ‘MURRAY’S HANDBOOK FOR IRELAND.’
DUBLIN:
HODGES, FIGGIS, & CO., LTD.
LONDON: JOHN MURRAY, ALBEMARLE STREET.
MCMIII.
_Printed by_ PONSONBY & GIBBS, _University Press, Dublin_.
PREFACE.
It was not without hesitation that I undertook, at the request of the
proprietors and publishers, the task of revising the previous edition
of this work. To enter upon the wide field of Irish archæology I
thought no easy task; but it was all the more difficult, to my mind,
from a sense of the qualifications required for revising the work of
one who was an acknowledged authority on the subject. Every student
of Irish archæology is well aware of the extent of the valuable
contributions, by pen and pencil, of the late Mr. W. F. Wakeman to
our knowledge of that subject, to the study of which he devoted the
whole of his long life. That his ‘Handbook’ so quickly grew out of
date, and that a revision was thus rendered necessary, is due, partly
to the results of the stimulus given to the students of the present
generation by the school of archæology to which he belonged; but more
especially to the work of British and European archæologists, and the
general application of the comparative method of treatment to the whole
field of archæological science.
I found on entering on the work of revision that the book required much
in the way of recension, but still more in the way of addition. While
adhering to the general plan and spirit of the book, and retaining
as much as possible of Mr. Wakeman’s work, I have made changes in
the arrangement which I thought advisable, and enlarged the scope
of the book, so that, as far as possible, it might cover the whole
of Ireland. The greater portion of the book has, in consequence,
been largely re-written and expanded throughout; and the chapters on
Burial Customs and Ogam Stones, Stone Forts, Lake-dwellings, Stone and
Bronze Ages, Early Christian Art, are practically new. I have tried,
as far as the limits of such a work would permit, to bring the book
into line with recent research at home and abroad. The chapter on
Raths and Stone Forts was written before the publication of Mr. T. J.
Westropp’s valuable work on the _Ancient Forts of Ireland_; and it
was satisfactory to me to find that in such general conclusions as, in
the present stage of our knowledge, it is possible to arrive at, I was
substantially in agreement with him.
It has been too much the custom in the past to look upon Ireland as
being especially favoured with a wealth of antiquities, Pagan and
Christian, more or less indigenous to the soil, and independent of
the successive waves of influences sweeping from the Mediterranean
littoral, and from Central Europe, ever westward and northward. Light
can be thrown on problems still unsolved only by following the more
scientific method of inquiry pursued, and by applying to them the
knowledge gained in the wider field of European research.
Much yet requires to be done in the way of scientific exploration in
Ireland; research work to be of any real value should be carried on
only under expert supervision. That so much has been accomplished in
the past is creditable to individual enterprise; but the time has
surely come, with such examples before us abroad, that all further and
extended investigation should be conducted under the superintendence of
some recognised archæological authority. An Archæological Department
is much needed in Ireland; and valuable scientific work of the kind
in question should no longer be left to the haphazard enterprise of
the amateur, however laudable that enterprise might be. Still more
is it necessary that some check should be put on such mischievous
undertakings as the exploration of Tara Hill by those absolutely
unskilled in archæological work, and for the fanciful object, too,
of discovering the ‘Ark of the Covenant’! Such ‘Remains’ as Tara are
a national possession, a great trust from the past; and the sense of
enlightened public opinion should make itself felt, in demanding such
a protective measure as would ensure that the passing custodians, for
their own day, of all like antiquities should not be allowed to injure
them with impunity.
Over sixty new illustrations have been added to the present edition of
this book. I am especially indebted to the Council of the Royal Irish
Academy for the use of a large number of illustrations in the chapters
on the Stone and Bronze Ages, Burial Customs, and Lake-dwellings;
to the Council of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland, for
permission to use and reproduce several illustrations and plans; to
Colonel Wood-Martin, for the use of illustrations from his several
works on Irish Archæology; to Mr. John Murray, for the illustration
and plans of Newgrange; to Mr. Edward Stanford, for permission to
use the plan of Tara from my edition of _Murray’s Handbook for
Ireland_; to the Secretary and Board of Education (England), for the
illustration of Monasterboice High Cross; to them and to Dr. Joyce,
for the illustrations of the Chalice of Ardagh, the Cross of Cong,
and Tara Brooch; and to the Rev. Maxwell Close, for details as to the
measurements of several of the cromlechs and weights of the covering
stones; also for the photograph from which the block of Kernanstown
cromlech has been prepared. Some of the plans, and the illustrations
of the Clonmacnoise Crosses (taken from Petrie’s _Christian
Inscriptions_), are the work of Miss Ivy H. Cooke; the wood-blocks from
these have been prepared by Mrs. Watson. To my friend Mr. S. A. O.
Fitz Patrick I am again indebted for his great kindness in reading the
proof-sheets of this book.
It is hoped that it will supply the want felt by many interested in
Irish archæology--an interest evidenced by the maintenance of their
usual high standard, in the publications of the Royal Irish Academy
and the Royal Society of Antiquaries, and by the foundation in recent
years of five provincial Archæological Societies, whose excellent
publications deal more especially with their several fields of
research. My indebtedness to the publications of the two former Bodies
is apparent by references in the footnotes.
For the sake of convenience of reference, I have referred throughout to
the publications of the Kilkenny Archæological Society, later the Royal
Historical and Archæological Association, and now the Royal Society
of Antiquaries, under the last-named title, giving the year in each
instance. An Index to the whole series of their _Journal_ has just been
completed by the Society.
JOHN COOKE.
66, MOREHAMPTON ROAD, DUBLIN,
_January, 1903_.
CONTENTS
PAGE
PREFACE, v
CHAPTER I.
STONE MONUMENTS, 1
CHAPTER II.
STONE MONUMENTS--_continued_, 48
CHAPTER III.
STONE MONUMENTS--_continued_, 80
CHAPTER IV.
STONE MONUMENTS--_continued_, 108
CHAPTER V.
BURIAL CUSTOMS: OGAM STONES, 132
CHAPTER VI.
RATHS AND STONE FORTS, 159
CHAPTER VII.
THE STONE AGE, 187
CHAPTER VIII.
THE BRONZE AGE, 202
CHAPTER IX.
LAKE-DWELLINGS, 251
CHAPTER X.
ORATORIES: EARLY CHURCHES, 277
CHAPTER XI.
EARLY DECORATED CHURCHES, 308
CHAPTER XII.
CROSSES, 319
CHAPTER XIII.
ROUND TOWERS, 333
CHAPTER XIV.
EARLY CHRISTIAN ART: METAL WORK, 345
CHAPTER XV.
ABBEYS AND LATER CHURCHES: FONTS, 362
CHAPTER XVI.
CASTLES, 383
CHAPTER XVII.
TOWN GATES AND WALLS: BRIDGES, 396
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
FIG. PAGE
KNOCKMANY CHAMBER (_see_ p. 75), _Frontispiece_
1 PILLAR-STONE AT TARA, 9
2 PILLAR-STONE NEAR NEWGRANGE, 12
3 ‘TOMB OF DATHI,’ RATHCROGHAN, 14
4 HOLED-STONE AT TOBERNAVEAN, WOODVILLE, NEAR SLIGO, 18
5 HOLED-STONE AT MAINISTER, ARAN MÓR, 20
6 HOLED-STONE AT THE ‘CHURCH OF THE MEN,’ INISMURRAY, 21
7 ROCK-SCRIBINGS, MEVAGH, CO. DONEGAL, 28
8 SCRIBINGS ON SIDES OF KNOCKMORE CAVE, NEAR DERRYGONNELLY,
CO. FERMANAGH, 29
9 ‘SHIELD PATTERN’ ROCK-SCULPTURE, FROM BROUGHSHANE,
CO. ANTRIM, 31
10 ‘THE HAG’S CHAIR,’ LOUGHCREW, 39
11 ‘DRUID’S JUDGMENT SEAT,’ KILLINEY, 40
12 ANCIENT STONE, KILLINEY, 41
13 GRAIN-RUBBER, 44
14 POT-QUERN, 45
15 KERNANSTOWN CROMLECH, CARLOW, 57
16 LEGANANNY CROMLECH, CO. DOWN, 62
17 BALLYMASCANLAN CROMLECH, 63
18 SEPULCHRAL CHAMBER, PHŒNIX PARK, 64
19 CROMLECH IN HOWTH DEMESNE, 67
20 KILTERNAN CROMLECH, 68
21 MOUNT VENUS CROMLECH, 69
22 SHANGANAGH CROMLECH, 70
23 BRENNANSTOWN CROMLECH, 72
24 THE TUMULUS OF NEWGRANGE, CO. MEATH, 82
25 PLAN AND SECTION OF NEWGRANGE TUMULUS, 83
26 ENTRANCE TO THE PASSAGE LEADING TO THE GREAT CHAMBER,
NEWGRANGE, 84
27 PLAN AND SECTION OF CHAMBER IN NEWGRANGE TUMULUS, 85
28 CARVING ON A STONE AT THE WEST RECESS, 86
29 ORNAMENT ON THE ROOF OF THE EAST RECESS, 86
30 ORNAMENT ON THE ROOF OF THE EAST RECESS, 87
31 SCORING ON STONE IN WEST RECESS, 87
32 CARVED STONE IN EAST RECESS, 88
33 CARVED STONE IN EAST RECESS, 88
34 CARVED STONE ABOVE THE ENTRANCE, 89
35 TUMULUS OF DOWTH, FROM THE SOUTH, 92
36 ENTRANCE TO THE PASSAGE LEADING TO THE CHAMBER OF
DOWTH, 94
37 CARVING ON A STONE AT DOWTH, 95
38 CARVING ON A STONE AT DOWTH, 95
39 ORNAMENTED BONE-FLAKE FROM SLIEVE-NA-CALLIAGHE, 107
40 PLAN OF THE DEERPARK MONUMENT, CO. SLIGO, 109
41 CAIRN, ON CAIRN’S HILL, CO. SLIGO, 112
42 STONES OF THE CIRCLE AT NEWGRANGE, 123
43 REMAINS OF STONE CIRCLE NEAR DOWTH, 124
44 STONE CIRCLE, BALLYNOE, NEAR DOWNPATRICK, 126
45 STONE CIRCLE AT SLIEVE NA GREIDLE, CO. DOWN, 127
46 BIRD’S-EYE VIEW OF CALLERNISH CIRCLE AND LINES, 130
47 CINERARY URN FROM ONE MAN’S CAIRN, NEAR MOYTURA, 144
48 CINERARY URN FROM CO. CARLOW, 145
49 CINERARY URN, CO. WICKLOW, 146
50 CINERARY URN, CO. CAVAN, 146
51 URNS FROM CO. DOWN, 147
52 FOOD-VESSEL FROM CIST IN THE PHŒNIX PARK, DUBLIN, 148
53 SMALL CINERARY URN, CO. CARLOW, 148
54 FOOD-VESSEL FROM GRAVE NEAR BALLYMOTE, CO. SLIGO, 149
55 OGAM STONE (CO. KERRY) IN TRINITY COLLEGE, DUBLIN, 152
56 OGAM STONE, MONATAGGART, CO. CORK, 154
57 PLAN OF SOUTERRAIN, GURTEEN RATH, NEAR MULLINGAR, 164
58 PLAN OF TARA, 166
59 THE FORRADH, TARA, 167
60 RATH OF DOWNPATRICK, 170
61 STAIGUE FORT, CO. KERRY, 173
62 DUNAMOE FORT, CO. MAYO, 180
63 THE ‘SCHOOL HOUSE’ (BEE-HIVE HUT), INISMURRAY, 181
64 SECTION OF AN ORDINARY UNDERGROUND BEE-HIVE-SHAPED
HUT, 182
65 SPEAR- OR JAVELIN-HEAD, 190
66 SPEAR-HEAD--SCALE, TWO-THIRDS, 190
67 LEAF-SHAPED ARROW-HEADS, 192
68 TRIANGULAR ARROW-HEADS--FIRST TYPE, 192
69 TRIANGULAR ARROW-HEADS--SECOND TYPE, 193
70 VARIOUS TYPES OF STEMMED ARROW-HEADS, 193
71 MOUNTED ARROW-HEAD, 194
72 FLINT KNIFE, 195
73 POLISHED CELT OF FELSTONE--SCALE, TWO-THIRDS, 197
74 VARIOUS TYPES OF STONE CELTS--SCALE, ONE-EIGHTH, 198
75 MOUNTED CELT, 198
76 SUPPOSED CHAMPION-STONE FOR CASTING, 199
77 PERFORATED AXE-HAMMERS OF STONE, 200
78 PERFORATED STONE AXE-HAMMERS, 201
79 FLAT BRONZE CELT, 207
80 CELT WITH LUNETTE-SHAPED EDGE AND RECURVED POINTS, 207
81 FLAT AND FLANGED CELTS WITH STOP-RIDGES, 208
82 WINGED OR FLANGED CELTS, 208
83 DOUBLE-LOOPED FLANGED CELT WITH STOP-RIDGE, 209
84 LOOPED CELT WITH ORIGINAL HANDLE, 209
85 VARIETIES OF LOOPED SOCKETED CELTS, 211
86 CELT MOULD, CO. LEITRIM, 212
87 CELT MOULD, CO. DOWN, 212
88 VARIETIES OF BRONZE SWORDS FOUND IN IRELAND, 214
89 DAGGER HAFTED WITH BRONZE, 216
90 UPPER AND LOWER PORTIONS OF SWORD-SHEATH OF BRONZE
FROM LISNACROGHERA (NOW IN THE GRAINGER COLLECTION), 219
91 UPPER AND LOWER PORTIONS OF SWORD-SHEATH OF BRONZE
FROM LISNACROGHERA (NOW IN THE BRITISH MUSEUM), 220
92 UPPER AND LOWER PORTIONS OF SWORD-SHEATH OF BRONZE
FROM LISNACROGHERA (NOW IN GRAINGER COLLECTION), 220
93 VARIETIES OF SPEAR-HEADS OF BRONZE, 223
94 ORNAMENTS ON SPEAR-HEADS, 225
95 BUTT MOUNTING OF CRANNOG SPEAR-SHAFT, 226
96 BRONZE SHIELD FROM LOUGH GUR, 228
97 BRONZE BRIDLE-BITS, 231
98 TRAPPINGS OF BRONZE, CALLED ‘HEAD-STALLS,’ FOUND WITH
BRONZE BRIDLE-BITS, 232
99 BRONZE CALDRON, ACADEMY COLLECTION, 233
100 BRONZE DISH FROM CLOONFINLOUGH CRANNOG, CO. ROSCOMMON, 235
101 BRONZE TRUMPETS, ACADEMY COLLECTION, NATIONAL MUSEUM, 236
102 DISC AND PENANNULAR TYPES OF RING-PINS, 238
103 BRONZE FIBULA, 239
104 BRONZE HINGE-BROOCH, 239
105 BRONZE ARMLETS, 240
106 GOLD TORQUES, ROYAL IRISH ACADEMY COLLECTION, 244
107 GOLD LUNETTE, OR MIN, ROYAL IRISH ACADEMY COLLECTION, 246
108 GOLD TIARA, OR DIADEM, ROYAL IRISH ACADEMY COLLECTION, 247
109 GOLD FIBULA, TRINITY COLLEGE, DUBLIN, 248
110 LAKE-DWELLINGS IN LOUGH EYES, CO. FERMANAGH, 253
111 BONE PINS, &C., FROM LAKE-DWELLINGS IN COUNTIES SLIGO,
LEITRIM, AND ROSCOMMON, 260
112 GLASS BEADS FROM LAKE-DWELLINGS, 261
113 COMB FROM LAGORE LAKE-DWELLING, 261
114 COMB FROM BALLINDERRY LAKE-DWELLING, 261
115 COMB (RESTORED) FROM ARDAKILLIN LAKE-DWELLING, 262
116 SECTION OF ARDAKILLIN LAKE-DWELLING, CO. ROSCOMMON, 262
117 COOKING-VESSEL FROM LOUGH EYES, CO. FERMANAGH, 273
118 HORN DRINKING-CUP, 274
119 WOODEN METHER, OR DRINKING-CUP, 274
120 ‘DUG-OUTS,’ OR CANOES, 275
121 CLOCHAUN NA CARRIAGE, ARAN ISLAND, 278
122 PLAN OF MONASTIC SETTLEMENT, SKELLIG MICHAEL, 280
123 THE GREAT SKELLIG, OR SKELLIG MICHAEL, 281
124 BEE-HIVE CELLS, SKELLIG MICHAEL, 281
125 ORATORY OF KILMALKEDAR, 283
126 BEE-HIVE HOUSE, ON BISHOP’S ISLAND, NEAR KILKEE, 284
127 ST. SENAN’S ORATORY, ON BISHOP’S ISLAND, NEAR KILKEE, 285
128 PLAN OF CASHEL AND MONASTIC SETTLEMENT, INISMURRAY, 287
129 DOORWAY, CHURCH OF ST. COLMAN MAC DUACH, ARAN ISLAND, 289
130 WINDOW, TEAMPULL CEANANNACH, OR KILCANANAGH, ARAN, 290
131 WINDOW, TERMONCRONAN, CO. CLARE, 291
132 CHANCEL ARCH OF THE OLD CHURCH OF KILLINEY, CO. DUBLIN, 293
133 DOORWAY IN KILLINEY CHURCH, CO. DUBLIN, 294
134 POINTED DOORWAY IN KILLINEY CHURCH, 294
135 ST. MAC DARA’S CHURCH, 296
136 DOORWAY OF THE CHURCH OF OUR LADY, GLENDALOUGH, 299
137 CHANCEL ARCH, TRINITY CHURCH, GLENDALOUGH, 302
138 ST. COLUMBA’S HOUSE AT KELLS, CO. MEATH, 305
139 WINDOW IN ST. COLUMBA’S HOUSE (FROM THE INTERIOR), 306
140 CAPITALS AT KILLESHIN, 311
141 CAPITALS AT KILLESHIN, 311
142 WINDOW AT KILLESHIN, 312
143 THE ROCK OF CASHEL, 313
144 INTERIOR VIEW OF KING CORMAC’S CHAPEL, 314
145 DOORWAY AT FRESHFORD, CO. KILKENNY, 317
146 EARLY CROSSES ON SEPULCHRAL SLABS AT CLONMACNOISE, 320
147 CROSS ON SLAB, CLONMACNOISE, 321
148 CROSS ON SLAB, CLONMACNOISE, 322
149 CROSS ON SLAB, CLONMACNOISE, 322
150 GREAT CROSS OF MONASTERBOICE, 324
151 ORNAMENT BENEATH ARM OF THE GREAT CROSS, MONASTERBOICE, 325
152 CROSS OF MUIREDACH, SOMETIMES CALLED THE SMALLER CROSS,
MONASTERBOICE, 326
153 PORTION OF THE SCULPTURE ON THE CROSS OF MUIREDACH, 327
154 BOSS OF THE THIRD CROSS, MONASTERBOICE, 329
155 INSCRIBED TOMBSTONE, INISCALTRA, 330
156 PLAN OF CEMETERY, KILNASAGGART, NEAR JONESBOROUGH,
CO. ARMAGH, 331
157 DOORWAY, ROUND TOWER, GLENDALOUGH, 336
158 CROSS OVER THE DOORWAY OF ANTRIM TOWER, 337
159 DOORWAY, DONAGHMORE TOWER, CO. MEATH, 337
160 WINDOW, ROUND TOWER, CASHEL, 338
161 CLONDALKIN ROUND TOWER, 339
162 DOORWAY OF CLONDALKIN TOWER, 340
163 DOORWAY OF KILDARE TOWER, 342
164 ROUND TOWER, DEVENISH, 343
165 BELL OF CHUMASCACH MAC AILELLO, 348
166 THE CROSS OF CONG, 354
167 CHALICE OF ARDAGH, 357
168 THE TARA BROOCH, 360
169 NEWTOWNTRIM ABBEY, CO. MEATH, 367
170 BECTIVE ABBEY, NEAR TRIM, CO. MEATH, 369
171 CHOIR ARCH OF CANNISTOWN CHURCH, 371
172 ST. DOULOUGH’S CHURCH, CO. DUBLIN, 373
173 ST. DOULOUGH’S WELL, 375
174 KILCARN FONT, CO. MEATH, 380
175 KILCARN FONT--NO. 1, 381
176 KILCARN FONT--NO. 2, 381
177 KILCARN FONT--NO. 3, 382
178 KILCARN FONT--NO. 4, 382
179 MALAHIDE CASTLE, CO. DUBLIN, 385
180 CASTLE OF TRIM, CO. MEATH, 387
181 SCURLOUGHSTOWN CASTLE, 393
182 BULLOCK CASTLE, NEAR KINGSTOWN, CO. DUBLIN, 394
183 ST. LAURENCE’S GATE, DROGHEDA, 397
184 THE WEST GATE, DROGHEDA, 398
185 THE ‘SHEEP’ GATE AND YELLOW STEEPLE, TRIM, CO. MEATH, 399
HANDBOOK OF IRISH ANTIQUITIES
CHAPTER I
STONE MONUMENTS.
INTRODUCTION--PILLAR-STONES--HOLED-STONES--ROCK SCRIBINGS AND CUP
MARKINGS--ROCKING-STONES--DRUIDS’ CHAIRS OR SEATS--BULLÁN-STONES.
Ireland is, perhaps, more remarkable than any other country in the
West of Europe for the number, the variety, and, it may be said, the
_nationality_ of its antiquarian remains. An archæologist upon arriving
in Dublin will find, within ready access of that city, examples, many
of them in a fine state of preservation, of almost every structure
of archæological interest to be met with in any part of the kingdom.
Sepulchral tumuli--several of which, in point of rude magnificence,
are admitted to be unrivalled in Europe--cromlechs, pillar-stones,
cairns, stone circles, and other remains of the earliest archæological
periods in Ireland, lie within a journey of a couple of hours of the
metropolis. The cromlechs of Howth, Kilternan, Shanganagh, Mount Venus,
Hollypark, Shankill, and Brennanstown (Glen Druid) are within easy
reach of the suburbs of Dublin. The county has several round towers,
and many churches of a very primitive type. An hour’s journey by the
Great Northern Railway to Drogheda, with a car drive of about twenty
miles, affords not only an opportunity of seeing the great prehistoric
remains of Newgrange, but of viewing at Monasterboice, amongst other
remains, two crosses, which are amongst the finest in Christendom. In
the National Museum, Dublin, will be found the Royal Irish Academy
collection of weapons and implements of the New Stone and Bronze
periods, gold ornaments, crannog remains, Ogam stones, and relics of
early Christian Art, which, we think it is not too much to say, is one
of the finest and most representative that any country in Europe can
show.
Irish Antiquarian remains may be generally classified under three
heads:--I. Prehistoric, embracing those which are considered to have
existed previous to, or within a limited period after, the introduction
of Christianity in the fifth century; II. The Early Christian; and III.
The Anglo-Irish.
The Prehistoric remains consist of cromlechs, pillar-stones, cairns,
stone circles, tumuli, raths, stone forts, beehive huts, rock-markings,
weapons, &c. They are found in considerable numbers particularly in
the more remote parts of the island, where they have been suffered to
remain, many more or less unmolested, save by the hand of time.
Early Christian remains are very numerous, and consist of oratories,
churches, round towers, Ogam stones, and crosses. Of the early churches
of Ireland--structures of a period when the ‘Scotish (Irish) monkes in
Ireland and Britaine highly excelled in their holinesse and learning,
_yea, sent forth whole flockes of most devout men into all parts of
Europe_’[1]--there are examples in a sufficient state of preservation
to give a good idea of architecture, in what may be considered its
second stage in Ireland.
The remains of what may be termed ‘Anglo-Irish’ structures were
erected about the period of the English invasion, and although of
Irish foundation, they appear generally to have been built upon
Anglo-Norman or English models. The great barons who, in the time of
Henry the Second, or of his immediate successors, received grants of
land from the Crown, erected fortresses of considerable strength and
extent, in order to preserve their possessions from the inroads of
the native Irish, with whom they were usually at war. The castles of
Howth, Malahide, Maynooth, Trim, Carlow, and many others, are silent
witnesses to the fact that the early invaders were occasionally obliged
to place some faith in the efficacy of strong walls and towers to
resist the advances of their restless neighbours, who, for several
centuries subsequent to the Invasion, were rather the levellers than
the builders of castles. Of the massive square keep, so common in
every part of the kingdom, but especially within the English Pale,
the Dublin neighbourhood furnishes several examples. As, except in
some minor details, they usually bear a great resemblance to each
other, an inspection of one or two will afford a just idea of all.
They were generally used as the residence of a chieftain, or as an
outpost dependent upon some larger fortress in the neighbourhood. Many
appear to have been erected by English settlers, and they are usually
furnished with a bawn, or enclosure, into which cattle were driven at
night, a precaution very significant of the times.
The abbeys, though frequently of considerable extent and magnificence,
are in general more remarkable for the simple grandeur of their
proportions. The finest exhibit many characteristics of Transition
style; but Early Pointed is also found, and in great purity. There are
in Ireland but few very notable examples of the succeeding styles.
Decoration, indeed, was not so much desired as strength and security;
and we do not require the testimony of the ‘Irish Annals’ to show that
the church buildings had occasionally to stand upon their defence: the
bartizans surmounting the doorways of some, and the crenellated walls
of many, are sufficient evidence of this.
There are certain antiquities which cannot well be classed with the
remains referred to in the three preceding headings. Many of the
lake-dwellings, or crannogs, for instance, are believed, with good
reason, to have been in use even in pagan times in Ireland; some of
these artificial islets were used in mediæval times, and several are
recorded to have been occupied as places of human habitation so late as
the seventeenth century. It would, therefore, be hazardous to classify
them with either pagan or Christian remains, and it is certain that
they are not Anglo-Irish. A description of these will, however, be
given in a subsequent chapter.
_Pillar-stones_ or _Dallans_ are found in many parts of Ireland, and
particularly in districts where stone circles, cairns, and cromlechs
occur. They are usually rough monoliths, and evidently owe their
upright position, not to accident, but to the design and labour of
a primitive people. They are usually called by the native Irish,
‘Gallauns’ or ‘Leaghauns,’ and in character they are precisely similar
to the hoar-stone of England, the hare-stane of Scotland, the maen-qwyr
of Wales, and the Continental menhir.
Many theories have been advanced with respect to their origin. They are
variously supposed to have been idol-stones, to have been erected as
landmarks, and as monumental stones recording the scene of a battle,
or the spot upon which a warrior had fallen. The name ‘cat-stone,’ by
which some examples are known in Scotland, would well warrant such an
idea, the word ‘cath’ in the Gaelic language signifying a battle. At
either end of the historic ford over the river Erne, at Ballyshannon,
may be seen two remarkable examples--to that on the northern side other
stones would seem to lead. This is a significant fact in favour of the
landmark theory. At the same time, we learn from the later writers
of the life and labours of St. Patrick in Ireland, that he found the
people worshipping certain idols in the form of stone pillars, some
of which he caused to be overthrown, while upon one purposely left
standing he inscribed the name of Jesus. There can be little doubt that
the saint and his immediate followers, in their horror of all that was
idolatrous, destroyed a large number of the pillar-stones which had
been venerated and worshipped in pagan Ireland; but, nevertheless,
a considerable number still remain. These, in some instances, would
seem to have been consecrated to the Faith, and from having been idols
were transformed into memorials of the triumph of Christianity. We
are not without satisfactory evidence of such adaptation having been
effected. Several, and apparently the oldest, lithic monuments may be
observed rudely punched, not carved, with the figure of a primitive
cross, accompanied by one or other of the inscriptions DNI, DNO, or
DOM. Todd, in his _Life of St. Patrick_, has, we believe, conclusively
shown the generally received idea of the sudden, and, it may be said,
miraculous conversion of Ireland in the days of the saint, and in
those of his immediate successors, to be wholly erroneous. Pagan
practices and beliefs long remained, and to-day many myths, legends,
and superstitions attest, as dying remnants, how deeply rooted were the
‘elder faiths.’
The Pillar-stone is the simplest form of all memorials; it is found in
other countries in connection with ancient burial mounds or barrows.
Such memorials to a departed hero, chief, or monarch were not confined
to savage peoples, for the custom has descended through all stages of
civilization, and the commemorative use of the pillar-stone is frequent
in biblical history. Ancient Egypt furnishes notable examples of
monoliths such as Cleopatra’s Needle; while the metropolis of Ireland,
not to mention other cities, exhibits stupendous pillar monuments
showing the ‘hero-worship’ of our forefathers, to the dead leaders
Wellington and Nelson.
In several parts of the country the gallaun is still considered by
many of the people to be something weird, and, ‘to be let alone.’ The
late E. A. Conwell, in his work on the supposed tomb of Ollamh Fodhla,
points out that, about two miles north-west of Oldcastle, there is a
townland called Fearan-na-gcloch (from _fearan_, land, and _cloch_,
a stone), so called from two remarkable stone flags, still to be
seen standing in it, popularly called Clocha labartha, the ‘Speaking
stones’: and the green pasture-field in which they are situated is
called Pairc-na-gclochalabartha, the ‘Field of the speaking stones.’
‘There can be little doubt,’ he proceeds, ‘the pagan rites of
incantation and divination had been practised at these stones, as
their very name, so curiously handed down to us, imports; for, in the
traditions of the neighbourhood, it is even yet current that they have
been consulted in cases where either man or beast was supposed to
have been “overlooked”; that they were infallibly effective in curing
the consequences of the “evil eye”; and that they were deemed to be
unerring in naming the individual through whom these evil consequences
came. Even up to a period not very remote, when anything happened to be
lost or stolen, these stones were invariably consulted; and in cases
where cattle, &c., had strayed away, the directions they gave for
finding them were considered as certain to lead to the desired result.
There was one peremptory inhibition, however, to be scrupulously
observed in consulting these stones, viz. that they were _never_ to
be asked to give the same information a second time, as they, under
no circumstances whatever, would repeat an answer.’ These conditions
having, about seventy or eighty years ago, been violated by an ignorant
inquirer who came from a distance, the ‘speaking stones’ became
dumb, and have so remained ever since. There were originally four of
these stones: of the two that remain, the larger may be described as
consisting of a thin slab of laminated sandy grit. Its dimensions are
as follows: total height above ground, very nearly 7 feet; extreme
breadth, 5 feet 8 inches; breadth near summit, 3 feet 6 inches; average
thickness, about 8 inches. In no part does it exhibit the mark of a
chisel or hammer. The height of the second remaining stone, above the
present level of the ground, is 6 feet 4 inches; it is in breadth, at
base, 3 feet 4 inches, and near the top 1 foot more; thickness at base,
14 inches. The material, unlike that found in the generality of such
monuments, is blue limestone.
[Illustration: Pillar-stone at Tara.]
Perhaps the most noted example of the pillar-stone, as found in
Ireland, occurs on the celebrated Hill of Tara, Co. Meath. This
interesting monument at present occupies a position in the centre of
the _Forradh_, one of the principal earthworks still remaining on
that memorable site. The stone formerly stood upon, or rather by the
side of, a small mound lying within the enclosure of Rath-na-Riagh,
and called Dumha-na-nGiall, or the ‘Mound of the hostages.’ In 1824
it was placed in its present position, to mark the grave of some men
who were slain in 1798 in an encounter with the king’s troops. It was
suggested by George Petrie that this pillar, or menhir, was no other
than the celebrated _Lia Fail_, or ‘Stone of Destiny,’ upon which,
during many ages, the monarchs of Ireland were crowned, and which,
according to the early bardic accounts, ‘roared’ beneath them at
their inauguration. The Coronation Stone at Westminster was generally
supposed to have been removed from Ireland to Scotland, in the
beginning of the sixth century, for the coronation of Fergus Mac Earc,
a prince of the blood-royal of Ireland, there having been a prophecy
that in whatever country this famous stone was preserved, a king of
the Scotic race should reign. In the MSS. to which Petrie refers, one
of which is probably of the tenth century, the stone is mentioned as
still existing at Tara; and ‘it is,’ he writes, ‘an interesting fact,
that a large obeliscal pillar-stone, in a prostrate position, occupied
till a recent period the very situation on the hill pointed out as the
place of the Lia Fail by the Irish writers of the tenth, eleventh, and
twelfth centuries.’ After remarking upon the want of agreement between
the Irish and Scottish accounts of the history of the Lia Fail, and on
the questionable character of the evidence upon which the story of its
removal from Ireland rests, he further observes: ‘That it is in the
highest degree improbable, that, to gratify the desire of a colony,
the Irish would have voluntarily parted with a monument so venerable
for its antiquity, and deemed essential to the legitimate succession
of their own kings.’ We cannot here enter into a discussion of this
question, in which numerous conflicting traditions are involved. The
removal of the Coronation Stone from Tara to Scotland is now generally
admitted. The use of the present pillar-stone at Tara for the purpose
of inauguration has not been established: its very shape is strongly
presumptive against any such theory, as the custom usually was for the
king or chief to stand upon the stone. That the monument is an original
relic, raised for some memorial use, may reasonably be accepted.
Some of our finest and perhaps oldest pillar-stones bear cup-and-circle
markings, similar to those found upon the face of undisturbed rocks
in various parts of Ireland, Britain, the European Continent, and
other parts of the world. A very remarkable example occurs at Muff,
about five miles from Londonderry. This stone, which stood 8 ft. in
height, and measured 4 ft. 6 ins. across at the base, by 2 ft. 6 ins.
in thickness, was on one of its faces covered with cup-and-circle
markings, some of which exhibited the central channels which appear on
the rock sculptures in Kerry. This was examined by the late Rev. James
Graves, who wrote: ‘Where the soil had covered the base, two of the
cups, with their concentric circles, were very plain and unworn; but
the water trickling from a hollow on the top of the stone, had injured
some of those above. Excavations were made to a depth of four feet
round its base, but no trace of interment, or relic of any kind, was
discovered. Close to the stone was found a kind of bone earth, or soil
mixed with minute fragments of bone, apparently not human, but from
their minute and decomposed state identification was impossible.’[2]
Mr. G. H. Kinahan, in pages of the _Journal_ here referred to,
figures and describes a remarkable pillar-stone which he found near
Kilmacrenan, Co. Donegal. In this instance four of the cups are so
arranged that the channels extending from them form a perfect cross
of the Roman character.[3] Here the likeness to the Christian symbol
cannot be considered other than accidental. A device, almost precisely
similar, is found upon a rude stone monument in Scotland; and we know
that upon the bases of some of the cinerary urns, formed of baked clay,
discovered in cists in Ireland, and found to contain calcined human
bones, flint arrow-heads, and bone implements, a cruciform ornament
may be noticed. This, at least as so placed, cannot be considered a
Christian symbol.
Several pillar-stones yet _in situ_, and a great many others overthrown
or removed, present Ogam inscriptions, a subject that will be found
treated of in a subsequent chapter. Immediately near Kesh, a station on
the railway line between Enniskillen and Bundoran, occur a cairn, an
earthen sepulchral mound, and a pillar-stone of great size. The latter,
upon its south-western angle, bore a legend in Ogam characters, which
some years ago, when an expert from the south was expected to come and
examine it, was, by a local worthy, whose intentions were no doubt
laudable, so scraped, cleaned, and ‘improved,’ that little trace of the
inscription remained.
Of the ordinary plain gallaun, or pillar-stone, the annexed
illustration, representing one of several remaining in the vicinity
of the tumulus of Newgrange (hereafter to be noticed), will afford a
good idea. It measures 10 feet in height, and in circumference 17. A
similar monolith, in the village of Ballynacraig, _i e._ ‘Rock town,’
to which it probably gave its name, about half a mile from Newgrange,
measures 24 feet in girth, but its present height above ground is only
about 6 feet. There are monuments of a similar class in the valley of
Glenasmole, ‘Valley of the thrushes,’ beyond Rathfarnham, about five
and a half miles from Dublin.
[Illustration: Pillar-stone near Newgrange.]
Some of these remains, whether monuments, boundary stones, or idols,
appear to have been known by particular names, as, for instance, a
fine example standing, amongst a group of megalithic structures,
in the sandhills of Finner, a wild district lying towards the sea,
between Ballyshannon and Bundoran. It is called ‘Fleatuch,’ and what
that appellation means we have failed to ascertain. Nor were we more
successful in a search after the significance of ‘Eglone,’ the name by
which a boulder near Highwood, rising 18 feet in height, and measuring
on two sides 7 feet 6 inches, and 11 feet 6 inches on the others,
is known amongst the peasantry of Moytura, Co. Sligo. This massive
monolith stands perfectly upright, is rudely symmetrical in form, and
has the appearance of a pillar-stone. It is in all probability by the
agency of ice that this mass of grey magnesian limestone was torn from
its natural bed and deposited as we now find it. No legendary tale
concerning the ‘Eglone’ at present remains, but the stone, or rather
rock, is regarded by many of the neighbouring people as possessed
of mysterious attributes, of some kind or other, which they cannot
explain: it may have been an idol. At a place called Keimaneigh, the
fine mountain pass between Macroom and Bantry, is a true pillar-stone,
which is supposed by natives of the locality to represent a woman who,
for her numerous sins and scorn of repentance, had been thus petrified
by St. Fiachna in the sixth century. The pillar, which is about 6 feet
high, bears a rude resemblance to a female human figure; hence, no
doubt, the origin of the legend.
Of the hundreds of pillar-stones remaining in Ireland the great
majority are prehistoric. The date of one example, however, has been
satisfactorily settled. Cruachan, or Rathcrogan, situated about five
miles from Carrick-on-Shannon, consists of a stone ditch, circular
in form, but greatly defaced. ‘Within this,’ writes George Petrie,
‘are small circular mounds, which, when examined, are found to cover
rude sepulchral chambers formed of stone, without cement of any
kind, and containing unburnt bones.’ Outside the rath, or enclosure,
in the centre of a small tumulus, is a pillar, referred to in the
following notice of it by Duald Mac Firbis: ‘The body of Dathi was
brought to Cruachan, and was interred at Relig-na-Riogh, where most
of the kings of the race of Heremon were buried, and where to this
date the red pillar-stone remains on a stone monument over his grave,
near Rath-Cruachan, to this time (1666).’[4] Dathi was the last pagan
monarch of the Milesian race. He died in the beginning of the fifth
century from the effects of lightning while leading his army on a
continental raid. The scene of his death was in the neighbourhood of
the Alps.
[Illustration: ‘Tomb of Dathi,’ Rathcroghan.]
* * * * *
_Holed-stones._--Perforated stones, very similar to the ordinary
pillar-stone, are found in many parts of Ireland, Scotland, France,
and, as appears from Wilford’s _Asiatic Researches_, in India. Abroad,
as well as at home, their origin has been a matter of much speculation,
and it is not likely that any definite solution can ever be arrived
at. Colonel Wood-Martin, speaking on the subject, says:--‘The original
purpose for which the larger apertures were utilised seems to have
been a literal as well as a symbolic means whereby an ailment, disease,
or sin might be left behind or got rid of, also as a symbol by which a
compact could be ratified, or an oath taken, by a well-known and public
act. The postulants, at first, probably crawled through the orifice;
then when it, through change in custom, became diminished in size,
they probably passed a hand, or if a compact was to be made, clasped
hands through it.’[5] Wilford[6] states that perforated stones are not
uncommon in India, and devout people pass through them when the opening
will admit, in order to be _regenerated_. If the hole be too small,
they put the hand or foot through it, and with a sufficient degree of
faith it answers nearly the same purpose.
In Ireland they are generally associated with prehistoric remains,
and are occasionally found in connection with church buildings of the
earliest type. It is probable that, dating from prehistoric ages, they
were in time pressed, as it were, like the holy wells, into association
with Christian rites. The following are some of the many places
where holed-stones may be found in connection with our old churches:
Kilmalkedar, Co. Kerry; Castledermot, Co. Kildare; Inismurray, Co.
Sligo; Roscam, near Galway; Mainister, on Aran Mór, Co. Galway; Layde,
Co. Antrim; Holy Island, Lough Derg; Glendalough; and on the Island of
Devenish in Lough Erne, Co. Fermanagh.
We have perhaps lived beyond the age when legends referring to this
class of monument were still generally current. The virtue of the
Kilmalkedar stone was some fifty years ago equal in repute to that
conceded to the Stennis example, and even, in some respects, superior;
for, it was further firmly believed by many of the old inhabitants
of Kerry, that persons afflicted with chronic rheumatism, ‘falling
sickness,’ or some other ills, might, by passing three times round
it (with faith, and by the offering of certain prayers), be restored
to health. In the parish of Aghade, Co. Carlow, is a stone called
Cloghafoyle, the ‘Stone of the hole.’ ‘It projects in a semi-recumbent
position 7 feet 6 inches above ground, is 5 feet 8 inches in width,
1 foot 6 inches in its thickest part, and is pierced--nearly equally
distant from the sides and top--with a round hole 11½ inches in
diameter. Formerly children were passed through this aperture, either
as a cure for, or a preventive against, the malady called rickets.’[7]
A similar custom, as Colonel Wood-Martin points out, was observed at
St. Madron’s well in Cornwall, Minchen Hampton in Gloucestershire, and
Fyvie in Aberdeenshire.[8] A famous stone exists on Ardmore Strand,
Co. Waterford, beneath which pilgrims on St. Declan’s day (22nd Dec.)
crawled on completing their devotions.
The most celebrated holed-stone in the British Isles is doubtless that
of Stennis, near Kirkwall in Orkney. It has been rendered famous in
his tale of _The Pirate_, by Sir Walter Scott. Fergusson, in his _Rude
Stone Monuments_, says--‘It is quite certain that the oath to Woden
or Odin was sworn by persons joining their hands through the hole in
this ringstone, and that an oath so taken, although by Christians, was
deemed solemn and binding’ (page 255). This ceremony was held so very
sacred that anyone breaking it was accounted infamous and a party to
be shunned. In his _Journey to the Orkney Islands_ (1781), Principal
Gordon gives the following anecdote: ‘The young man was called before
the session, and the elders were particularly severe. Being asked by
the minister the cause of so much severity, they answered, “You do
not know what a bad man this is; he has broken the promise of Odin,”
and further explained that the contracting parties had joined hands
through the hole in the stone.’ All this does not serve to indicate the
original character of the Stennis monument. That it was at one time
sacred to Odin, or Woden, and reverenced by pagan northmen and their
successors, perhaps for many generations, and that even Christians
used the stone on certain solemn occasions, is no doubt interesting.
The Scandinavian occupiers of Orkney may have, as it were, adopted a
pillar-stone which they found associated with old-world customs and
memories, dedicated it to Odin, and sealed their oaths upon it.
[Illustration: Holed-stone at Tobernavean, Woodville, near Sligo.]
Few who have paid even passing attention to the subject of Irish
antiquities, recognising the fact that several holed-stones,
bearing apertures of considerable size, and found in the immediate
neighbourhood of remains universally acknowledged to belong to
prehistoric days, will assume, we think, that the former do not partake
of the same primeval character as cromlechs, stone circles, and
cairns. Fergusson was mistaken in stating that there is no proof of
a holed-stone being used in any Celtic cemetery for purposes similar
to those practised at the Stennis example. Unquestionably some of
the holed-stones are of doubtful character, inasmuch as they may be
classified either as prehistoric, or belonging to an early period of
Christianity. We may perhaps assign to one of the finest monuments of
this class remaining in Ireland a degree of antiquity equal at least to
that acknowledged to be possessed by the cromlechs, circles, and other
megaliths of Carrowmore, immediately adjoining. Of this stone Colonel
Wood-Martin, in _Rude Stone Monuments in Sligo_, gives the following
description: ‘It marks the point of junction of the three parishes of
the district formerly, and still by the country people, designated
Cuil-Irra. This boundary mark is a thin limestone flag, set on edge;
it is 9 feet in height and 10 feet in breadth above ground. The little
stream which issues from Tobernavean, or Tobar-na-bhFian, the “Well
of the warriors,” laves its base, which must be deeply buried in the
earth. Toward the east side this flagstone is pierced by a squarish, or
rather an oblong, perforation, 3 feet in length by 2 feet in breadth.
From its mottled appearance this slab is popularly called Cloch-bhreac,
or the “Speckled stone”; also Cloch-lia, or the “Gray stone”’ (page 99).
Another example, standing upwards of five feet in height above the
level of the ground, with a round hole sufficiently large to admit the
hand, may be seen upon an eminence in the immediate vicinity of Doagh,
a village in the county of Antrim. In the same district, on a hill near
Cushendall, a second fine holed-stone until lately existed. Probably
one of the most curious monuments of the class under notice, in
Ireland, formerly stood in the early Christian cemetery of Inniskeen,
close to the cloictheach, or round tower, Co. Monaghan. This relic,
which was of porphyry, had an aperture through it sufficiently large
to admit the insertion of a full-sized human arm. In modern times it
was the custom at Easter to fix in the stone a pole, up which the
neighbouring young people used to climb for a prize. The stone is
said to have been formerly used for superstitious purposes, but no
particulars of the rites or customs once practised have been handed
down.
[Illustration: Holed-stone at Mainister, Aran Mór.]
The holed-stone of Castledermot is a very remarkable one, and the
following particulars are from a description of it by Lord Walter
FitzGerald: ‘It stands at the head of a modern grave in the south-east
side of the churchyard, and is known locally as the “swearing-stone.”
It is 3 feet long, 1 foot 2 inches wide, and 5½ inches thick. The
hole is at the junction of the arms of a ringed cross, and measures
5 inches in diameter. The cross, which is much worn, was mistaken by
Vallancey for Ogam scores, and his misrepresentation was copied by
subsequent writers.’[9] It is probable that the holed-stones found in
connection with church buildings date from ante-Christian times, and
were consecrated by the emblem of the cross to the religious services
of a people recently won to Christianity, but who still possessed some
lingering reverence for the idols of their forefathers.
The holed-stone at Mainister on Aran Island stands 3½ feet above
ground, and the hole is 2 inches wide. It is curiously incised with a
double circle and ringed cross, the top of the latter ending in small
spiral pattern. It is held in great reverence, and small articles of
clothing of sick persons are drawn through the orifice in hope of their
recovery.
[Illustration: Holed-stone at the ‘Church of the Men,’ Inismurray.]
The following particulars of holed-stones, to which popular
superstitions are attached, are derived from _A Survey of Antiquarian
Remains in Inismurray_[10] by Mr. Wakeman. This island, off the coast
of Sligo, presents three fine specimens of the pillar-stone, two of
which must be considered valuable, and probably unique examples of
the ‘holed’ class. These are sometimes called ‘Praying stones’ by
the natives of the island. The more important stands on the southern
side of Teampull-na-bfear, or the ‘Church of the men,’ at a little
distance from that structure. It measures 4 feet in height, 11½ inches
in breadth at top, 1 foot 1 inch at base, and about 7 inches in
thickness. The monument faces east and west; its edges and eastern
side are plain. The western face, on which a graceful cross has been
incised, exhibits two holes of a size just large enough to admit the
insertion of a thumb. It may be observed that the arms and head of
the symbol terminate in spirals like those found upon the celebrated
‘Alphabet Stone’ at Kilmalkedar, the work upon which has been held, by
acknowledged authorities on such matters, to belong to the sixth, or at
latest to the seventh century of the Christian era. The orifices extend
through the adjoining angles of the stone, and open out at its sides in
apertures sufficiently spacious to receive the fingers of a full-sized
hand. In connection with this pillar-stone, as also with a similar
monument situated close to Teampull-na-mban, or ‘Church of the women,’
a custom which is worthy of record, very generally prevails. Women who
expect shortly to become mothers are wont to resort to these stones,
for the purpose of praying for a happy issue from the perils of their
impending travail. The natives assert that death in childbirth is an
unknown calamity upon the island. The postulants kneel, passing their
thumbs into the front, and their fingers into the side openings, by
which means a firm grasp of the angles of the pillar is obtained. They
are thus enabled to rise from their act of obeisance with a minimum of
strain or difficulty. A pillar-stone, unperforated and uninscribed, of
about the same dimensions as that just noticed, is seen immediately
beside it. The two stand in line at right angles with the northern wall
of the very ancient church almost immediately adjoining.
The second holed-stone, to which we have already referred, bears upon
its eastern face a plain Latin cross. It is 5 feet high, 10½ inches
broad at base, 11½ inches at top, and 4½ inches in thickness. Like its
fellow at the ‘Church of the men’ it is held in profound veneration,
especially by the women of the island. The pillar may indeed be
prehistoric, and the cross an addition. The type of cross which it
exhibits is characteristic of the earliest Christian times in Ireland;
this being so, the monument in its present style may be assigned to a
period not later than the close of the sixth century.
* * * * *
_Rock Scribings, Cup-and-Circle Markings._--This subject has proved of
considerable interest to archæologists everywhere. Rock scribings or
markings, whether noticed upon European, Asiatic, or American rocks
or monuments, often in their general features bear so strong a family
likeness that it is at first sight difficult to believe that they have
not been executed by one and the same race of people. But we know that
the minds of savages or semi-savages, situated widely apart, and placed
under somewhat similar environment, will instinctively run in parallel
grooves of thought; and thus, in the form, material, and ornamentation
of their objects of veneration, arms, and implements of everyday life,
as well as in their personal decorations, present a like development.
It need be no wonder then that, far and near, over the surface of the
Old and of the New World, rock and stone scribings are to be found, and
that they should frequently have many common characteristics. Until
recently these antiquarian puzzles have received but little attention
from Irish archæologists. Petrie does not seem to have noticed their
existence; O’Donovan and O’Curry make no mention of them; nor do
the older writers, except in one or two instances, where a single
stone or so is referred to as bearing work of a mystic and barbarous
character. The forms of these markings to be met with in Ireland are
these: cups; cups and rings; the same with radial channel; concentric
rings; penannular rings; spirals; stars; triangles and wheels; zigzag
and other lines. Considerable attention has been given in recent years
to the elaborate scorings on the rocks forming the great chambers at
Newgrange, Dowth, and Loughcrew, Co. Meath, to which we shall refer in
a subsequent chapter. In these ‘Ireland,’ as Colonel Wood-Martin says,
‘possesses a collection of this species of prehistoric ornamentation
which, in singularity, number, and quaintness of design, is approached
in point of interest only by some of the great stone chambers of the
district of Morbihan.’
The late Dr. Graves, Bishop of Limerick, in the publications of the
Royal Irish Academy, appears to have been the first to draw attention
to sculpturings of this class found in Ireland. Subsequently the
subject was taken up by inquirers, in various parts of the world, who
found in their own countries kindred rock carvings. In Ireland the
groups of designs found upon the surface of our undisturbed rocks
exhibit in many instances characteristics almost, if not entirely,
peculiar to themselves. For instance, the incomplete concentric
circles with a central cup, from which extends a straight or slightly
curved stroke, called ‘the channel,’ through and sometimes beyond the
outermost gap in the curved lines, are absent from the varied figurings
found in the great sepulchral chambers. Again, the spirals of the
stone sepulchres are, as far as we are aware, invariably absent in
the array of designs found upon the undisturbed or natural rock. This
circumstance was not left unobserved by Dr. Graves when describing his
discoveries in Kerry. But upon one small stone in the neighbourhood
of Tullakeel, near Sneem, he found a rude carving of a short portion
of a spiral. This stone lay set in a fence; it may have belonged to
some tomb of which no other relic is known to remain, so that little
argument can be based on the character of its scribing. Although
antiquaries are not yet in a position to pronounce authoritatively on
the precise significance of our rock markings, a glance at some early
speculations as to their nature may not here be out of place. It has
been suggested that the circular markings were intended to represent
shields. ‘This notion,’ says Dr. Graves, ‘seems inconsistent with
the fact that the same stone presents so many circular symbols of
different sizes, varying from the small shallow cup of an inch or two
in diameter to the group of concentric circles two feet across. It also
seems probable that, as shields in general used to bear distinctive
devices, these would appear in the inscriptions; but the inscribed
circles exhibit no such variety as might have been expected on this
hypothesis. Again, if the circles represented shields, what could be
meant by the openings in the circumference of so many of them? Lastly,
what connection could there be between the idea of shields and the
long lines appearing in the Staigue monument, or the short ones on
that of Ballynasare? Another idea was that these figures were designed
to represent astronomical phenomena.’ For several reasons he rejected
that theory, particularly as it failed to account for the openings in
the circles, the absence of figures indicating the sun and moon, and
not even the rudest attempt at the phases of the lunar body. It was
also suggested that the circles were intended for moulds to cast metal
rings. The fact of the circles so often occurring on a sloping face
of a rock renders this untenable. That the circles were used for some
game was rejected from the varying sizes of the circles on different
stones. ‘The idea which occurred to my own mind,’ he continues, ‘was,
that the incised circles were intended to represent the circular
buildings of earth or stone, of which the traces still exist in
every part of Ireland. This conjecture is supported by the following
considerations:--1. The circles are of different sizes, and some are
disposed in concentric groups. The ancient dwellings and fortified
seats of the ancient Irish were circular; they were of various sizes,
from the small cloghan, or stone house, of ten feet in diameter, to the
great camp including an area of some acres; and the principal forts had
several concentric _valla_. 2. The openings in the inscribed circles
may have been intended to denote the entrances. 3. The other inscribed
lines may have represented roads passing by or leading up to the forts.’
Discouraged by the reception with which his theory was received, he
laid his drawings aside for many years. Returning again to the subject,
he gave it further examination, which confirmed his original opinion.
He says: ‘The centres of the circles and the neighbouring cups and dots
arrange themselves generally three by three in straight lines. This
disposition of the symbols could not be said to be perfectly accurate;
but I thought I could observe close and designed approximation to
it. If, then, the circles represent forts, and are disposed three by
three in straight lines on the inscribed stones, I saw that we might
expect to find the forts disposed in like manner over the surface
of the country; and I think that I have succeeded in verifying this
inference. The ancient raths have fortunately been laid down on the
six-inch Ordnance Survey maps of Ireland; and unless I am deceived by
fortuitous collineations, I find that the forts are actually arranged
three by three in straight lines. The discovery of this fact, if it be
a fact would be of much more consequence than the explanation of the
meaning of the inscriptions of which I have just given an account. But
this further inquiry must be conducted with care. Large portions of the
country must be examined, and those difficulties must be confronted
which the disappearance of ancient remains must inevitably give rise
to.’[11]
It has been objected to the map theory that in the parts of Scotland
and England where circle-and-channel scorings occur most numerously, no
raths or forts, or, if any, very few, are to be found. But it may be
urged that the early British strongholds, corresponding to our raths,
duns, and stone forts, were very frequently composed of perishable
materials, such as timber stockades, or the interwoven branches of
trees, of which, in the course of a few centuries at most, no trace
would remain.
[Illustration: Rock Scribings, Mevagh, Co. Donegal. (Scale,
one-fourth.)]
[Illustration: Scribings on sides of Knockmore Cave, near
Derrygonnelly, Co. Fermanagh.
(Scale, one-third.)]
Only a small portion of the rubbings and drawings made of the rock
scribings by Bishop Graves was published by him. Mr. Robert Day has
published some interesting examples taken from a scored rock of red
sandstone on the road between Bantry and Ballydehob. The scribings
consist of circles, cup-shaped cavities, penannular rings, and V-shaped
markings.[12] The late George Du Noyer describes at length some which
he found in various parts of the country[13]; and other antiquarians
have largely added to the list. Amongst these is Mr. G. H. Kinahan,
whose descriptions and illustrations of the scribings on rocks in
Wicklow and Wexford, and in the Mevagh and Barnes districts (Co.
Donegal), deserve attention.[14]
A stone now in the Grainger collection of the Museum, Belfast, and
which once stood on a hill near Broughshane, Co. Antrim, furnishes an
instance of elaborate scoring within a roughly shield-shaped outline.
The stone is stated to have been originally found covering a cist.
A similar example of scorings was found in a sepulchral chamber at
Cloverhill, near Sligo.[15] Mr. Wakeman discovered, near Boho, Co.
Fermanagh, about nine miles from Enniskillen, a cluster of large rocks
bearing a number of the cup-and-circle devices.[16] In the same
neighbourhood were similar markings on the living rock. They occur a
little to the south of Lough Blocknet, on the slope of the hill.
[Illustration: ‘Shield pattern’ Rock-sculpture, from Broughshane, Co.
Antrim.]
Important examples of rude sculpturings appear upon the walls of
certain natural, or perhaps semi-artificial, caverns occurring at
Knockmore, close to the village of Derrygonnelly, Co. Fermanagh. The
chief of these is the ‘Lettered Cave,’ so called from the carvings
of an early date with which its sides are scored. The dimensions of
this singular retreat are as follows:--Height, at the mouth, 10 feet 5
inches; these proportions gradually lessen to a distance of about 18
feet from the external opening. There the passage takes an oblique
turning to the southward, and continues to a distance of about 9 feet
further into the heart of the limestone. The height of the chamber at
its extreme end is about 5 feet. The opening faces north-east, and is
well sheltered from the wind by a grassy knoll, which extends, right
and left, in front. There is every reason to believe it was long used
as a habitation or place of retreat. The markings are placed, without
any attempt at symmetrical arrangement, upon almost every smooth
portion of the rocky surface of the interior. Many are extremely well
marked; others have become all but obliterated through the influence
of time, the efflorescence of the stone, and the action of persons who
have in many places scraped away the ancient figurings, or portions of
them, in order to find space for inscribing their respective names;
but, nevertheless, a considerable portion of the old markings remain in
excellent condition. These scribings consist for the greater part of
a number of figures and designs usually considered, by archæologists,
as prehistoric. But whatever may be the age and character of
such carvings, there can be no doubt amongst antiquaries that an
elaborately-formed interlacing cross, which may be seen engraved upon
the left-hand side of the entrance to the cave, must be referred to an
early Christian period.
Knockmore contains on its northern side, in a situation rather
difficult of access, a second scored and partially artificial cavern.
This little eyry, which is only large enough to retain in a recumbent
position two, or at most three, persons of ordinary size, must, while
yet the slopes of the knock were covered with trees and brushwood,
have formed a very secure retreat. That it was inhabited in early days
is certain, as upon digging up a considerable portion of the floor,
indications of fires having been used were traceable on at least
three separate levels. At a little distance from the surface, amongst
burnt-looking earth and particles of wood charcoal, Mr. Wakeman found
some bones of animals which had been used as food. They were generally
very small, and difficult of identification, but amongst them occurred
those of the red deer. The carvings here are rather of an elaborate
character, and form an interesting combination of the older style of
sepulchral rock-sculpture with what is generally considered early Irish
work, but of a period subsequent to the spread of Christianity in this
country.[17]
A third cave, situated three and a half miles from that of Knockmore,
and over four from the police station of Boho, contains some very
interesting examples of cavern scorings. This weird spot is worth
visiting, though there is no road running nearer to it than at a
distance of four miles. The name of the place is Loughnacloyduff, or
‘Lake of the dark trench.’ The lake, or lough, which covers about one
acre, is bounded on its northern side by a shattered cliff of yellowish
sandstone, rising to a height of perhaps thirty feet above the level
of the water. Within the face of this rock are several caverns, two of
which present every appearance of being, in part at least, artificial.
The largest measures about 6 feet in height, by about the same in
breadth, and 10 in depth. The sides and roof are extremely rugged,
except here and there where some little care appears to have been
exercised for the reception of a series of scorings of various kinds,
any notice of which, up to the time of our visit, had not, as far as
we are aware, been published. The principal cave is connected with a
second and smaller one, lying upon its western side, by an aperture
in the partition of rock, by which, but for this provision, the two
chambers would be completely severed. The lesser cavern is small, rude
and uninscribed, but sufficiently large and dry to have been used
as a sleeping apartment by the primitive occupants. The carvings at
Loughnacloyduff consist chiefly of crosses enclosed within an apparent
lozenge; of starlike designs; and of strokes which look very like a
species of Ogam writing. The caverns, once perhaps the home of the
cave-dweller, are now the dens of wild animals--the fox and the brock
or badger, as the bones of other animals and the tattered plumage of
birds testify.
In our observations on Caves, we have confined ourselves to those which
are natural, or partly artificial, rock-caverns, and in no instance
referred to the souterrains--underground passages and chambers,
lined with drystone masonry and roofed over with flags, found very
plentifully in various parts of the country, and too carelessly or
vaguely described by some writers under the title of ‘Caves.’ These
will be dealt with in a subsequent chapter.
As we have already intimated, in the present state of our knowledge it
is impossible to dogmatize upon rock markings. Caution must be used in
any attempt to interpret them. Many are no doubt due to natural causes.
The familiar water-marks on the Old Red Sandstone formation may too
readily be taken for cuttings made by the hand of man. The late Richard
Rolt Brash once observed, in the sections of vertical rock strata in
the quarries of South Wales, cup-like holes, with corresponding bosses
on the opposing layers, and was of opinion that these were sometimes
taken for artificial hollows. The late Dr. Frazer, following on the
lines of M. Valenciennes, found the _Echinus lividus_ lodged in a
cup-like hollow burrowed for itself in the rocks on the sea-shore of
Bundoran. Dr. Frazer expressed his opinion that the cup-markings on the
rocks round the shore of Lough Melvin, once probably an arm of the sea,
were due to the same cause; and further, that some of the markings on
rocks described by Sir James Simpson in _British Archaic Sculpturings_
were pittings of the _Echinus_.[18] Many of the cup-like indentations
in the limestone rock are, in the opinion of some scientists, due to
acid secretions of the snail, notably the _Helix aspersa_. Making due
allowance for these natural causes, yet a mass of rude markings by
the hand of man remain, difficult to interpret as to their origin,
their meaning, and the people to whom they are to be assigned. In many
districts of this country, and some of them widely apart, we find
upon the sides of caves and rocks, and within the enclosure of pagan
sepulchral tumuli, a certain well-defined class of markings, often
arranged in groups, and with few exceptions, presenting what may be
styled a family type: we can hardly imagine them to be the result of
caprice. In ancient and in modern times, men confined by necessity to
a listless existence, in an inhospitable district, or when tending
flocks and herds, might very naturally have beguiled their hours by
carving with a stone or metallic instrument such figures as their fancy
prompted, upon the nearest object which happened to present a surface
more or less smooth. Scorings or patterns made under such circumstances
would be, in character, as various as the skill or humours of the
designers.
* * * * *
_Rocking-stones._--In a field situated not far from the ‘Eglone’ (see
page 12) occurs a huge mass of the same lithic character. It is known
as the Rocking-stone, and, although some tons in weight, may be swayed
some eighteen inches on either side by very slight exertion of the
hand. These so-called ‘Rocking-stones’ are to be met with in various
parts of Ireland and Great Britain. Up to a comparatively recent period
they had been supposed to have been associated in some way with the
celebration of druidical rites or mysteries. That idea is no longer
held, except, indeed, by some old-fashioned or superstitious people.
Upon the borders of Fermanagh and Cavan, about three miles along the
mountain road from the village of Black Lion, in the direction of the
Shannon Pot, may be seen a very characteristic example of the kind of
remains under notice. It consists of an immense block of stone, six
feet high, somewhat globular in shape, and weighing several tons. The
stone rests upon a rock, and is so poised that a moderate pressure of
the fingers will suffice to move it. From the position of the mass it
would seem to be artificial. It may be that the stone was originally
placed where it at present stands in memory of some now long forgotten
hero or event, and, owing to an accidental peculiarity, existing either
in its own configuration or in that of the supporting rock, was so
imposed that it may be thus shaken a few inches backwards and forwards.
On the slope of a hill, on the old battle-field of Northern Moytura, is
a fine boulder, which we failed to stir, and we were informed by our
guide that sometimes the stone rocked, and sometimes it was immovable.
The cause of the latter state may probably be due to the clay which
is washed down the slope, and rests in the socket on which the rock
is balanced. Not far from this, and near the village of Highwood,
is another rocking-stone which can easily be moved. On the shore of
Brown’s Bay, north of Island Magee, is a larger rocking-stone, weighing
about 10 tons, which was once believed to tremble at the approach of a
criminal.
Rocking-stones are simply erratic blocks dropped into their present
positions in the decline of the Ice Age. A similar phenomenon may be
witnessed in the ‘tables’ of a glacier, where the pedestal of ice under
the shadow of the rock perched upon it, melts less rapidly than the
surrounding surface. Rocking-stones were no doubt looked upon with
superstitious awe by the worshippers of stocks and stones, during the
dark ages preceding the introduction of Christianity in these islands.
* * * * *
_Druid’s Chairs, or Seats: Inauguration Stones, &c._--Other rude stone
monuments which we thus classify occur in Ireland. In an article on
this subject in the _Gentleman’s Magazine_,[19] Richard Rolt Brash
says: ‘The class of monument now under consideration has been found
in countries widely apart. Examples of the stone chair in its most
ancient types have been met with in Ireland, Wales, Greece, and South
America.’ The examples found in Ireland have been generally speaking
of two classes--those associated with the Druids or Brehons exercising
their respective priestly or judicial functions, and those used in the
inauguration of a chief of a great sept. The so-called ‘Coronation
Chair’ of the O’Neills of Clandeboye, after various vicissitudes
and wanderings, is now once again in Belfast. It consists of a rude
quadrangular block of common whinstone, from one side of which,
slightly sloping backwards, rises a somewhat thin back, in form and
size very similar to that of a plain oak chair of the seventeenth
century. The Chair is entirely of natural formation, and has evidently
never been touched by a tool. In ancient times the chiefs on the
occasion of their inauguration were not seated. On the contrary they,
as Spenser describes, stood ‘uppon a stone allwayes reserved for that
purpose, and placed commonly uppon a hill.’ Their feet rested within
certain sculptured hollows the shape of a man’s foot, and which were
supposed to indicate the shape and size of the sole of the foot of
the first great captain of the reigning race. The great Chair of the
Tyrone O’Neills stood on the Rath of Tullahogue when the chiefs were
inaugurated, the last occasion on which it was used being that of the
inauguration of Hugh O’Neill in 1595. The chair, as Fynes Moryson tells
us, Mountjoy ‘brake down’ in 1602.
[Illustration: ‘The Hag’s Chair,’ Loughcrew.]
A great boulder on Slieve-na-Calliaghe, one of the Loughcrew hills,
near Oldcastle, Co. Meath, is called the ‘Hag’s Chair.’ It stands a few
feet within the line of great stones which formed a circle enclosing
the principal cairn of that locality. The late Eugene Conwell conceived
the visionary idea that he had discovered in it the judicial seat of
no less a person than Ollamh Fodhla, whom he describes as ‘Ireland’s
famous monarch and law-maker, upwards of three thousand years ago’!
The stone weighs about 10 tons, and measures 10 feet by 6, and 2 feet
6 inches thick; the ends are raised about 9 inches above the level,
forming a rude seat. It has rude markings similar to those already
described, but the crosses on the seat and elevated ends were made
during the trigonometrical survey. The hag is traditionally said to
have broken her neck in attempting a flying leap from one hilltop to
another, when depositing cairns upon their summits.
[Illustration: ‘Druid’s Judgment Seat,’ Killiney.]
[Illustration: Ancient Stone, Killiney.]
A singular pile of stones, usually called the ‘Druid’s Judgment Seat,’
furnishes a good instance of a popular error. This structure stands
near the village of Killiney, not far from the Martello Tower, upon the
opposite side of the road. It was formerly enclosed within a circle
of great stones and a ditch. The circle has been destroyed, and the
ditch so altered that little of its original character remains. ‘The
Seat’ is composed of large, rough granite blocks, and if really of
the period to which tradition refers it, an unusual degree of care
must have been exercised for its preservation. The stones bear many
indications of their having been at least re-arranged at no very
distant time. Small wedges have been introduced as props between the
greater stones. The right arm is detached from the other part, to which
it fits but clumsily. The whole, indeed, bears the appearance of a
modern antique, composed of stones which once formed a portion of some
ancient monument. One great evidence of its being a forgery consists in
the position which it occupies near the eastern side of the enclosure,
while the back of the seat is turned towards the west and towards
the centre of the space originally enclosed by the stone circle. The
following are its dimensions: breadth at the base, 11½ feet; depth of
the seat, 1 foot 9 inches; extreme height, 7 feet. Of several detached
stones remaining in the enclosure one is remarkable, as the engraving
on this page shows, for the form into which it has been cut. It is a
work probably coeval with the original stone circle, and it has been
suggested to be symbolical of the sun and moon.
A ‘Brehon’s Chair,’ so called by Beranger, an artist and archæologist
who during the latter half of the eighteenth century paid much
attention to the subject of Irish antiquities, may be seen on the lands
of Glensouthwell, near Hollypark, about three miles and a half from
Rathfarnham, Co. Dublin. This monument has been most absurdly misnamed.
It is in fact a very remarkable example of the cromlech, or dolmen,
and bears no resemblance to a chair of any description. The table, or
covering, which had fallen, until a few years ago lay on the ground
beside it. This, unfortunately, no longer exists, the stone having been
wantonly broken to pieces and used for building purposes.
Legend and tradition associate many such objects with the saints and
mythical heroes of the past, and it is only necessary to indicate
one or two examples. On the shore of the pilgrim-visited Lough
Derg, Co. Donegal, may be seen a large block of stone, which has
always been known as ‘St. Brigid’s Chair.’ It is simply a boulder,
fashioned by nature into what is at present a very chair-looking
object. In the neighbourhood of Letterkenny, in the townland of
Lacknacor, is a flagstone upon which St. Columba is said to have
been born: the peasantry believe that whoever sleeps upon it for a
night will not suffer from home sickness, and it has consequently
been frequented by emigrants on the eve of their departure from their
native land. Elevated on a circular piece of masonry, in the grounds
of Ballyconnell, Falcarragh, Co. Donegal, is a mass of quartz rock,
associated with Balor of the ‘mighty blows,’ chief of the Fomorians,
one of whose strongholds was Tory Island. Balor stole Glasgavlen, a
celebrated cow, from a chief on the mainland named MacKineeley; the
latter planned revenge, but before he could execute it Balor landed on
the mainland with his followers, seized MacKineeley and cut off his
head on the stone, hence called Cloch-i-neely, ‘Kineely’s Stone.’ In
local tradition to this day the natural red veins in the stone point to
the sanguinary nature of the deed.
* * * * *
[Illustration: Grain-rubber.]
_Bulláns or Rock Basins._--Throughout Ireland, and particularly in
districts of the north-west, basin-like hollows may be found sunk in
boulders or cut into the undisturbed rocks, or in the sides or shelving
portions of natural caves: these are called ‘Bulláns’, or ‘Bullauns.’
In size and section they vary considerably; some examples, in extreme
diameter, measuring four feet or so, while others are scarcely bigger
than a small breakfast saucer. The average diameter might be taken as
fourteen inches. In section they present three distinct varieties:
the most usual is that of an inverse cone; many are bowl-shaped;
and not a few simply shallow depressions with vertical sides. Many
theories have been advanced as to their origin and uses, but as their
purpose was doubtless varied, no definite rule can be laid down upon
the subject. It has been urged that some of these bulláns may have
been associated with pagan sepulchral rites; while evidence seems to
warrant a conclusion that, occasionally at least, some were utilized
as baptismal fonts, or at any rate, as receptacles for holy water.
They have been considered ‘mortars’ by some archæologists, and that
they were used for pounding grain by the priests living in, or in
the cells adjoining, ancient churches. This may apply to some, but
not to all, for the hollow is frequently in section an equilateral
triangle, with a very acute lower point. It is evident that a bullán
thus shaped could never have been intended for pounding purposes. Other
examples, which are found on the vertical sides of boulders, or on
the almost perpendicular face of the natural rock, could not possibly
have been designed for a moment to hold anything like grain. Mr. G. H.
Kinahan, however, found bulláns used in Co. Donegal for pounding corn
for illicit distilling.[20] Primitive man no doubt used, as occasion
required, such natural rock-hollows as he could find for the purpose of
pounding corn or roots for food. A more accessible article, however,
was the _Grain-rubber_; this was generally a flat stone, the upper
surface of which was hollowed out for holding the material to be
prepared for food. A large stone with rounded surface was used for
pounding or crushing. A more advanced step in milling was the _Quern_;
this has been found in most countries and stages of civilization; and
has been used in Ireland down to our own day. Fine examples of it and
the grain-rubber may be seen in the Royal Irish Academy collection,
National Museum, Dublin.
[Illustration: Pot-Quern.]
Bulláns are found far apart from churches, on mountains, in valleys,
by the banks of rivers and shores of lakes, and in the chambers of
sepulchral mounds. Bulláns placed in the face of the rock occur at
Garranbane, near Tempo, Co. Fermanagh; and on a great erratic boulder
lying by the side of the road leading from that townlet to Enniskillen,
at a distance of about one mile from the former place, two well-defined
specimens appear. In the townland of Standingstone, within the demesne
of Castlecool, close to Enniskillen, a fine pillar-stone, bearing at
least two bulláns, may be seen. The stone is at present prostrate; but
that it was not always so, is indicated by the name of the surrounding
land. Within the great sepulchral chambers of Newgrange, Dowth, and
Slieve-na-Calliaghe, Co. Meath, are large examples; and when exploring
the pagan cemetery at Drumnakilly, near Omagh, Co. Tyrone, Mr. Wakeman
unearthed two bullán stones which had sustained cinerary urns,
placed mouth downward upon them. These stones were deposited in the
Archæological Museum of Kilkenny, together with the fictilia referred
to.[21]
As in the case of other rocks, traditions of heroes and saints are
sometimes attached to these stones. The late Rev. F. Sherman gives the
following instance: Mesgegra, king of Leinster in the first century
of the Christian era, was slain and decapitated by Conal Cearnach,
the champion of Ulster. The head was laid upon a stone, and the tale
records ‘that the blood flowed through it to the ground.’ The stone
is said still to remain in the stream opposite the ruins of the
Franciscan church of Clane. ‘It is a bullán stone, and has an inverse
conical cavity eighteen inches deep, and as many wide, on its upper
surface.’[22] An interesting legend is attached to the ‘Deer-stone’
in Glendalough, Co. Wicklow. It is said that St. Kevin once found an
infant abandoned by its mother; his anxiety to procure it food was
relieved by the appearance of a beautiful white doe, that was then, and
afterwards daily, milked into the ‘Deer-stone.’ The antiquity of the
stone is doubted.
Bulláns are found in pairs, as at Kill o’ the Grange, near Blackrock,
Co. Dublin; in threes, as close to the ancient church of Templenaffrin,
adjoining Belcoo, Co. Fermanagh; and in numbers up to nine. Of the
large number that are to be found scattered throughout the country,
two very striking examples of the class deserve special notice. In
the townland of Meelehans, about three miles from Tullamore, is
a _nine-holed_ bullán. This is a fossiliferous limestone boulder,
differing from the limestone of the surrounding district. On the
face of the rock from which the earth had been removed, in a radius
of three feet, circular hollows were found. Four of these measured
one foot in diameter; two were smaller, and the depth was about half
the diameter; a seventh was but partially cut: the dressing of these
being smooth. The remaining two were natural depressions.[23] Another
nine-holed bullán lies upon the shore of Upper Lough Macnean, near
the ancient church of Killinagh, and in the immediate vicinity of a
well called ‘Tober Brigid,’ formerly, and we believe still, held very
sacred by many of the neighbouring peasantry.[24] The bullán is a
round boulder of red sandstone, measuring 5 feet 9 inches by 5 feet
2 inches. On its somewhat table-like surface are nine hollows placed
somewhat irregularly, one being nearly in the centre of the group.
Each of the depressions contained a stone, generally of an oval form,
and nearly filling the hollow. Superstitious beliefs and practices
still linger round many of these stones; and many bulláns are found
associated with certain springs or wells usually esteemed holy, but the
special significance of these associations it is now difficult, if not
impossible, to determine.
CHAPTER II
STONE MONUMENTS--_continued_.
SEPULCHRAL REMAINS--CISTS--THE CROMLECH--KERNANSTOWN--LABBACALLEE--
MONASTERBOICE--GREENMOUNT--CROMLECH OF THE FOUR MAOLS--BLACK
LION--LEGANANNY--BALLYMASCANLAN--PHŒNIX PARK CISTS--HOWTH--
KILTERNAN--MOUNT VENUS--SHANGANAGH--BRENNANSTOWN (GLEN DRUID)--
GLENSOUTHWELL--GLENCULLEN BALLYEDMOND--SHANKILL--KNOCKMANY--
CLOGHTOGH--SLIEVEMORE--LENNAN--CASTLEDERG.
It is now admitted by all competent authorities that the works
scattered throughout Ireland, varying from the rude structures known as
cromlechs and the gigantic chambered cairns, like those of Newgrange
and Dowth, down to the simplest cist, alike varieties of the cromlech
idea, are graves of a primitive people. But we may go a step further
than this. It is perfectly evident that the people who erected the
cromlechs and tumuli were far more solicitous about the abodes of the
dead than they were regarding their own dwellings, built as these were
of wood and wattles, covered with turf and earth, and subject to ready
decay. ‘On the other hand,’ as Dr. Munro well says, ‘the tomb was
constructed of the most durable materials, and placed on an eminence,
so as to be seen from afar, and to be a lasting memorial among
succeeding generations.’[25]
Towards the close of the Stone Age the custom of burning the bodies of
the dead was practised by the inhabitants of the British Isles. The
dead were also disposed of by ordinary burial, by placing the body in
either a horizontal, sitting, or perpendicular position. Both methods
were practised throughout the whole succeeding archæological period, or
Bronze Age, as numerous remains testify. When cremated, the calcined
remains were placed in an urn, and then deposited, often with a small
food-vessel, within an artificial chamber. This is called a _Cist_,
or _Kistvaen_, and is usually a small rectangular chamber made of
flags or rude stones. Over these chambers it was often customary to
raise a cairn of stones or earthen mound. The cist has, however, been
frequently found in open fields and other unexpected places. Cinerary
urns, too, have been found within an area of stone circles, in tumuli
not many feet from the surface, and in mounds that in their centre
contained other, and probably more ancient, burial deposits.
In case of interment the grave was sometimes formed of flags, often
of considerable size, placed edgeways, and enclosing a space, covered
with stones, barely sufficient to contain the body, and over which a
cairn or mound was raised. The body was also deposited in a chamber
formed of large rude stones, often found standing free; but sometimes
the chamber was covered by a mound or cairn, and was accessible by
a passage from without. To the uncovered remains of these burial
structures the name _Cromlech_ is generally applied. The cairn or mound
was often surrounded by a circle of stones, and traces of this still
exist in some of the sepulchral monuments. Sometimes the space in which
the remains of several bodies have been found is barely sufficient for
one body, and it is supposed that they were broken before interment.
Cremated remains are often found with the remains of an interred body;
and this may have been the result of human sacrifices offered to the
manes of the dead.
An interesting account of burial in an upright position is referred to
in the _Book of Armagh_, where King Laoghaire is represented as telling
St. Patrick that his father Niall used to exhort him never to believe
in Christianity, but to retain the ancient religion of his ancestors,
and to be interred in the Hill of Tara, like a man standing up in
battle, with his face turned to the south, as if bidding defiance to
the men of Leinster.
‘Cremations and bodily interments,’ says Colonel Wood-Martin, ‘have
been found intermixed in a manner to lead to the belief that both forms
of burial prevailed contemporaneously. Urns to contain the ashes of the
dead were, possibly, used as a special mark of honour; also, perhaps,
to facilitate the conveyance of the human remains from a distance to
the chosen place of interment. In a country wherein were thick woods
and long stretches of bog to be traversed, the passage of funeral
processions must have been attended with delays and difficulties.’
The ordinary _Cromlech_, when perfect, or nearly so, consists of three
or more stones, unhewn, and generally so arranged as to form a small
enclosure. Over these a large and usually thick stone is placed, the
whole forming a kind of vault or rude chamber. It is generally rude in
appearance, the stones often consisting of mere amorphous blocks. In
Clare, where the limestone is found more or less in a laminated form,
the cromlech becomes more symmetrical, and is often very perfect in
shape.
The cromlech is usually styled ‘Dolmen’ by English and Continental
writers. Our peasantry, however, as a rule, call them ‘Giants’ Graves,’
or not unfrequently, when retailing a tradition and speaking in Irish,
‘Leaba Diarmida agus Graine,’ or the Beds of Dermot and Graine, from
two historical personages who, according to an old legend, eloped
together, and flying through the country for a year and a day, erected
these ‘beds’ wherever they rested for a night. Graine, or Grace, was
the betrothed wife of Fin Mac Coul, and daughter of King Cormac Mac
Art, who lived about the middle of the third century A.D.; her lover
was Diarmid O’Duibhne, of whom several stories are still current.
According to this legend there should be just 366 cromlechs, or ‘beds,’
in Ireland. But mythical as the story is, it is nevertheless of some
interest, as it connects the monuments with pre-Christian events. In
parts of the north and west of the country they are sometimes styled
‘griddles.’
The true _Chamber Monument_ is an extended form of the cromlech,
and differs from it in that the roof is formed by a succession of
overlapping slabs resting on the stones forming the walls, and
gradually rising from the lower end. The top cap-stone, while resting
on the uprights, not only closes the chamber, but by its weight keeps
in position the overlapping stones which help to support it.
In some cases the covering stone of the cromlech seems to have slipped
from its original position, and will be found with one end or side
resting upon the ground. Du Noyer was of opinion, shared by the late
Mr. Borlase, that this was originally the case in some examples, the
builders having failed in their efforts to raise the ponderous table or
covering stone, or to procure suitable supports. The position of the
upper stone, or roof, is usually sloping; but its degree of inclination
does not seem to have been regulated by any intention or design. This
general disposition of the ‘table’ has been largely seized upon by
advocates of the ‘Druids’ Altar’ theory, as a proof of the soundness
of their opinion that these monuments were erected by the Druids for
the purpose of human sacrifice. Some, indeed, have gone so far as to
discover in the hollows worn by the rains and storms of centuries on
the upper surface of these stones, channels artificially excavated, for
the purpose of facilitating the passage of a victim’s blood earthwards!
The question whether the cromlech was originally covered by a cairn
or mound has been the subject of much discussion, but its full
consideration is outside the limits of this work. The great majority of
existing cromlechs in Ireland are, now at least, of the free-standing
order. Of these some, from the nature of their position and structure,
could never have been the centres of tumuli. Others, no doubt, were
covered; but, in the case of most, time has so altered their condition
that it is now difficult to determine how they really stood in their
original and finished state.[26] A little consideration will show that,
as the cromlech and covered chamber belong to the same general class
of sepulchral monuments, it was intended by the original builders that
access should be had to them from without. Mr. Borlase, agreeing with
Fergusson, is ‘inclined to regard the dolmens as no mere tombs intended
to be closed for ever, but as sacred shrines in which the spirits of
the dead were worshipped, and which were constructed with a view of
being accessible to devotees.’[27] The remains deposited within had
to be protected from the severity of the weather and the intrusion of
wild animals. In the case of the uncovered cromlech all intervening
spaces would be closed up with smaller stones and earth, and the walls
banked up to the edge of the cap-stone. Mr. Borlase advances the
theory that the cromlech, hitherto technically so-called, is the more
megalithic portion of the giant’s grave, and ‘that both types, despite
the difference in their appearance in the condition in which we now
find them, belong to one and the same class of dolmen, originally of
elongated form.’[28] He supports this by pointing out that the ‘giant’s
grave’ is a long, wedge-shaped structure, rising gradually from a
lower to a higher end, the latter having the heavier supports and
larger covering stone. These would be the more difficult to destroy,
for, in the long lapse of time, as stones were required for building or
other purposes, the smaller and lighter would be carried away. How far
this may be the case we cannot here consider; but some cromlechs, such
as those raised of great boulder rocks, could never have been of the
extended order of structure.
The number of these sepulchral remains scattered throughout the country
is very great. Mr. Borlase enumerates them as follows: dolmens,
certain, 780; chambered tumuli, 50; uncertain, 68--total, 898. Of these
dolmens, Connaught has 248; Munster, 234; Ulster, 227; and Leinster,
71. The counties richest in these are--Sligo, 163; Clare, 94; Donegal,
82; and Cork, 71. The area of geographical distribution of these
megalithic monuments is very wide. It extends from western Asia--Syria,
Palestine, and Turkey--over north Africa, through south-east Europe,
France, Spain, Portugal, over north Germany, and northern Europe. In
France they reached a high degree of perfection. England and Wales
furnish many examples similar to the Irish cromlechs; but they are
rarely, if ever, found in Scotland.
The question naturally suggests itself, How were a primitive people,
with such rude mechanical means as they possessed, able to raise those
huge stones into the positions in which they are now found? Several
theories have been advanced, which may be briefly stated. It has been
suggested that the great covering stones of the cromlech having been
found _in situ_, they were undermined, and a chamber formed beneath
by the removal of the earth. As the work progressed uprights were
by degrees placed in position, of sufficient weight and strength to
support the great covering stone. Instances are found in Ireland to
which this theory might, perhaps, apply; but the method could not have
been adopted in such cases as that of the Ballymascanlan cromlech,
where the cap-stone rests on clear supports 8 or 9 feet high. The plan
suggested by the King of Denmark has been accepted by many, and it may
have been adopted in some cases. In this, the supporting stones having
been placed in position, an inclined plane or bank of earth would be
raised, sloping from the level of the uprights to the ground. Up this
the roofing stone would be worked, over blocks of timber placed side
by side, by means of levers, wedges, and haulage. The absence of all
traces of such banks in existing cromlechs, and other considerations,
have been urged against this method of raising these structures. On the
ground that all cromlechs were originally of the ‘giant’s grave’ order,
Mr. Borlase urges the theory that the cap-stones were raised one by
one, the largest first, until it fell into its place upon the highest
uprights. He considers that the disarrangement in the lines of the
side stones, and the presence occasionally of buttresses, support this
view. By using beams of timber and rollers it was possible, with great
and united human strength, to lever very heavy rocks, bit by bit, into
position.
Given sufficient men, great masses of stone may be moved over long
distances and raised into position, even with the rudest means. There
is no evidence whatever to show that the ancient Egyptians possessed
any machinery to economise human labour in moving great monoliths.
They were, it must be remembered, especially favoured in the Nile as a
waterway, and the quarries, as a rule, were near its banks. In their
pictorial records, so graphic in illustrating every art and craft,
there is no reproduction of any machine or engineering expedient,
except those of the very simplest kind; but the records do show that
they employed large bodies of men in this kind of work, who were
specially trained to haul with military precision. The earliest record
of such work is that of an official of the 6th Dynasty (3350 B.C.),
who brought a monolith to Memphis, which required the services of 3000
men. A record on the tomb of Tehuti-hetap, an official of the 12th
Dynasty (2622–2578 B.C.), shows a statue on a sledge, drawn by 176 men,
divided into four parties of 22 pairs, each party to a single hawser.
A superintendent stands on the knees of the statue, giving, as the
inscription states, ‘the time-beat to the soldiers,’ by clapping his
hands. The two obelisks, each 97½ feet high, and 300 tons in weight,
erected by Queen Hatshepsut (1503–1481 B.C.), were cut in the quarries
of Assuan, and transported to Karnak in seven months. A still more
remarkable instance of transporting great masses of stone was that of
the fallen statue of Rameses II., which must originally have been 60
feet high, and weighed 800 tons. But this work was eclipsed by the same
monarch in the statue erected at Tanis in the north-east Delta, which
must have stood 92 feet in height, and weighed 900 tons, at least. It
was brought from the quarries of Assuan, 600 miles distant. With such
examples as these, accomplished with simple means, there is nothing
surprising in the erection of the rude megalithic monuments by the
primitive inhabitants of these islands.
We shall now refer more specifically to some interesting examples of
the numerous remains of the rude covered and uncovered chambers found
in Ireland, as distinguished from the great tumuli presently to be
described.
* * * * *
[Illustration: Kernanstown Cromlech, Carlow.]
_Kernanstown Cromlech_ is about two miles north-east of Carlow, and
is the largest in Ireland. This magnificent granite block is securely
supported on three uprights at the east side, standing at a height of
6 feet. At the west end this cap is raised 2 feet. The block is 23½
feet long, 18¾ feet broad, 4½ feet thick, and measures 65 feet round.
This is estimated to weigh 100 tons. It makes an angle of 35° with the
horizon.
* * * * *
_Labbacallee Cromlech._--This, according to Mr. Borlase, ‘the most
noted dolmen of extended form in Ireland’ lies about one and a half
miles south-east of Glanworth on the old road to Fermoy. It consists
of a double range of stones, the internal lines forming the supports
of the covering stones. The largest of the cap-stones measures 15½
feet by 9 feet, the second being partially buried in earth. The entire
measurement is estimated by Mr. Borlase to have been not less than 42
feet. The line of direction is east and west; the width of the inner
chamber is 6 feet, and it is now 5 feet high, and sinks towards the
lower end.[29]
* * * * *
_Monasterboice Cromlech._--This fine monument lies about three-quarters
of a mile to the north-east of the old graveyard of Monasterboice, and
is known as ‘Calliagh Dirra’s House.’ It is called by the peasantry the
‘House or Tomb of Calliagh Vera, or Birra,’ a mythic witch, whose name
is associated with several wild legends referring to the mysterious
cairns and other antiquities remaining upon the hills of Loughcrew,
near Oldcastle. The work has been considered by some to be of the
free-standing order; but Du Noyer says it must have been covered by
a tumulus: it is roughly oblong in form, extending exactly east and
west, showing the wedge-shaped plan, and measuring, internally, 12
feet 6 inches in length, by 4 feet at one end, and 3 feet at the
other, in breadth. The north and south walls consist each of five large
flagstones; four flagstones form the covering, and each end is closed
by a slab. The stones forming the walls stand on edge, and some of
these have supplemental stones and buttresses.
* * * * *
_The Greenmount Chamber_ is about five miles further to the north,
near Castlebellingham. Here, in 1870, General Lefroy opened an earthen
mound, which was found to contain a chamber, the measurements of which
were 21½ feet by 3 feet 4 inches, the height being 5 feet. The roof was
formed of eight large flagstones. From the foundation to the top of the
mound was 23 feet. Ashes, burnt bones, charcoal, and teeth of hogs and
cattle were found. A bronze celt and plate, with runic character on one
side, and elaborate interlaced pattern on the other, were found in the
tumulus.
* * * * *
_Cromlech of the Four Maols._--This monument is on a hill close to the
town of Ballina; the covering stone measures 9 feet by 7 feet, and is
supported by three uprights. It is considered of much interest from
an incident in early Irish history, mentioned in more than one Irish
MS. It relates to the murder of Bishop Celleach, of Kilmore-Moy, son
of Eoghan Bel, King of Connaught, and great-grandson of Dathi. Eoghan
Bel was killed in battle at Sligo in 537, and in dying commanded
the Hy Fiachrach to elect Celleach in his stead. Through the hatred
of King Guaire, Celleach was murdered by the four Maols,[30] his
foster-brothers or pupils. The brother of the bishop captured the
assassins, and carried them to the banks of the Moy, where they
were executed upon a hill hence known as Ardnaree, or the ‘Hill of
Executions.’ The bodies were carried across the river, and buried on a
hill on the right bank.
But we cannot say for certain that the cromlech now standing there was
erected to their memory. It is probable they were excommunicated and
pronounced unworthy of Christian association, here and hereafter. As
the bodies had to be disposed of, it is possible that as a further mark
of ignominy in this case, they were thrust into a pagan sepulchre which
had stood on the Hill of Executions for ages past; though, as Colonel
Wood-Martin points out in dealing with the story, ‘it would also appear
as if the native Irish, long after the introduction of Christianity,
sometimes continued to bury in ancient cemeteries.’[31]
* * * * *
_Black Lion Chambers._--About two miles and a-half from the village
of Black Lion, in County Cavan, but on the borders of Fermanagh, may
be seen two fine ‘giants’ graves,’ the larger of which, measuring 47
feet in length by about 10 in breadth, remains in a complete state
of preservation. Five flagstones, some of considerable thickness,
closely cover this enormous work. It was, and partially still is,
enclosed by an oval line of standing stones, some of which have
fallen, while others, in number and position sufficient to convey an
idea of the original plan, remain _in situ_. At one end occurs a
small but apparently undisturbed stone circle. At a little distance
stand a cromlech, the covering stone of which measures fifteen feet
five inches in length by fifteen in breadth; also another cromlech,
besides a considerable number of dallans or pillar-stones. In the
immediate vicinity occurs a fine chambered cairn, which, but for the
work of rabbit-hunting boys many years ago, might now stand complete.
The chamber, or cist, was found to contain a fine cinerary urn. The
question suggests itself, Why should this cist-bearing cairn remain
almost perfect, while the neighbouring megaliths, if they were ever
mound-enclosed, are found cleanly and completely bare? Again, at
the Barr of Fintona, we find two important cairns remaining almost
completely preserved; while close at hand is a ‘giant’s grave,’ which,
if ever covered, is now practically denuded.
* * * * *
_Legananny Cromlech._--This cromlech is in the townland of Legananny,
on the southern slope of Cratlieve mountain, in Co. Down, about six
miles north-west of Castlewellan. The cap is a coffin-shaped granite
block, 11 feet 4 inches long, 4 feet 9 inches wide at the south-east
end, and 3 feet at the foot or north-west end. It rests upon three
upright pillars, the two at the south-west measuring 7 feet and 6 feet
2 inches respectively, the third block at the foot being 4 feet 5
inches high. An urn was found in the chamber beneath. It has no sign
of ever having been covered; and Fergusson has instanced it as an
example of the free-standing cromlech in combating the theory that all
cromlechs were originally covered by cairns or mounds.
[Illustration: Legananny Cromlech, Co. Down.]
* * * * *
_Ballymascanlan Cromlech._--This fine cromlech is about 4 miles
north-east of Dundalk, and is known as the ‘Proleek Stone,’ and
the ‘Giant’s Load.’ There is nothing to indicate that it was ever
a chambered tumulus. The cap-stone is an erratic block of basalt,
measuring 15 feet by 13 feet, and about 6 feet thick, and is variously
estimated at 30 to 60 tons in weight.[32] It is supported by three
upright stones of slender shape, and the total height is about 12
feet. Adjoining is another cromlech of the extended form, and generally
known as ‘Giants’ Graves.’
[Illustration: Ballymascanlan Cromlech.]
* * * * *
[Illustration: Sepulchral Chamber, Phœnix Park.]
_Phœnix Park Cists._--The neighbourhood of Dublin furnishes many
examples of these rude stone monuments of a prehistoric age. The
ancient sepulchre situated in the Phœnix Park, Dublin, a little to the
west of the Hibernian Military School, was discovered in the year 1838
by some workmen employed, under the Commissioners of Woods and Forests,
in the removal of a tumulus which measured in circumference 120 feet,
and in height 15 feet. During the progress of the work, four stone
cists, or kistvaens, were exposed, each enclosing an urn of baked clay,
within which were calcined bones and ashes, &c. One of these urns,
which is now, with the skulls, shells, and other remains, in the Royal
Irish Academy collection, arranged in a case in the National Museum,
was fortunately saved in a nearly perfect state. The tomb at present
consists of seven stones set in the ground, in the form of an irregular
oval, three of which support a covering stone, which measures in length
6 feet 6 inches; in breadth, at the broadest part, 3 feet 6 inches;
and in thickness between 14 and 16 inches. The spaces between the
stones which formed the enclosure were filled with others of smaller
size, which, since the discovery, have fallen out or been removed.
The following is an extract from the report of the Academy:--‘In the
recess they enclosed, two perfect male human skeletons were found, and
also the tops of the femora of another, and a single bone of an animal
supposed to be that of a dog. The heads of the skeletons rested to
the north; and as the enclosure is not of sufficient extent to have
permitted the bodies to lie at full length, they must have been bent
at the vertebræ, or at the lower joints. In both skulls the teeth
are nearly perfect, but the molars were more worn in one than in the
other. Immediately under each skull was found collected together a
considerable quantity of small shells common on our coasts, and known
to conchologists by the name of _Nerita littoralis_. On examination
these shells were found to have been rubbed down on the valve with a
stone to make a second hole, for the purpose, as it appeared evident,
of their being strung to form necklaces; and a vegetable fibre, serving
this purpose, was also discovered, a portion of which was through the
shells. A small fibula of bone, and a knife, or arrow-head, of flint,
were also found.’
Visitors to the Phœnix Park will find in the grounds of the Royal
Zoological Gardens a cist, or diminutive cromlech, in many respects
similar to that just noticed, which was discovered some years ago in a
sandpit immediately adjoining the neighbouring village of Chapelizod.
This monument, though not occupying its ancient position, and, notably,
a restoration, should be seen by students of Irish antiquities, the
stones of which it is composed having been carefully replaced in their
original order. It is on record that within this tomb a human skeleton
was found, but no mention of anything else it may have contained has
been preserved.
A much more important example of a removed _Cist_ is now to be seen
in the National Museum, Dublin, which should prove of great interest
to the student of archæology. In August, 1898, in a sandpit at
Greenhills, Tallaght, County Dublin, workmen engaged in removing sand
from the face of the pit discovered a cist; it measures 24 inches by
19 inches, and the height in the centre is 19 inches. It is formed of
single stones two to four inches thick; the bottom stone is broken.
It contained three vessels--a large urn inverted and covering a much
smaller one, and a food-vessel of flower-pot shape. Under the urn was
a quantity of burnt bones. Other urns and broken fragments of pottery,
a skeleton, and portions of burnt bones were found in the same pit,
which shows that both forms of disposing of the dead existed at the
same period of time. The cist, encased in its matrix of sand and earth,
was carefully and most successfully removed by Colonel Plunkett,
director of the Museum, and his assistants. Expert opinion on the shape
and decoration of the vessels places them at the close of the Bronze
Period.[33]
* * * * *
[Illustration: Cromlech in Howth Demesne.]
_Howth Cromlech._--This fine monument is situated near the base of an
inland cliff, within the grounds of Howth Castle, and at a distance
of about three-quarters of a mile from the sea-shore. It consists, at
present, of ten blocks of quartzite rock; the table or covering stone
is 20 feet long and 17 feet broad; it is 56 feet in circumference;
and the extreme thickness is 8 feet. The weight of this mass has been
computed at 70 tons. It seems as if the enormous pressure caused the
supporters more or less to give way; they all incline westward, and
the table appears as if it had slipped in that direction, in its course
breaking one of the pillars in two. This probably occurred before the
block could be placed in its intended position, and it was arrested
in its descent by the undisturbed stump of the fractured stone upon
which, in an inclined position, it now reposes at its lowest edge.
Three of the supporters are about 8 feet high, so that, as Beranger,
who visited and described the remains about a hundred years ago,
states:--‘This, one of the grandest mausoleums, must have made a noble
figure standing, as the tallest man might stand and walk under it with
ease.’ The structure on the interior would seem to have constituted an
irregular chamber, tending east and west; but much disturbance of the
stones has occurred, and it would be now impossible by drawings and
plans to give a very reliable idea of the original appearance of this
still impressive pile, which, we may add, appears never to have been
surmounted by cairn or tumulus of any kind. These stones were formerly
called ‘Fin Mac Coul’s Quoits.’
* * * * *
[Illustration: Kilternan Cromlech.]
_Kilternan Cromlech_ is near Kilternan House, 7 miles from Dublin, and
half a mile west of Golden Ball. It is another fine example of its
class, when we consider the weight of its table, estimated at 40 tons,
and the difficulty, as we must suppose, of raising, in a rude age,
such a mass upon supporters. The covering stone, like all others, of
this monument is of the granite of the district. Its measurements are:
extreme length, 22 feet; width, 13½ feet; greatest thickness, 6 feet
6 inches. The supporters vary in height from 2 to 4 feet, but it is
impossible to know how far they may be sunk below the present ground
level. Some considerable disturbance in their arrangement appears to
have occurred. Several would seem to have subsided, but the roofing
block is still held above ground by the others; the height of the
enclosure may be stated as about five feet from floor to roof. The plan
of the chamber is very irregular, but it may be described as extending
east and west. This cromlech is known as ‘the giant’s grave’; but there
is no local tradition connected with it, folklore in this district
having generations ago ceased to exist.
* * * * *
[Illustration: Mount Venus Cromlech.]
_Mount Venus Cromlech._--This monument, situated at Woodtown, about two
and a half miles from Rathfarnham, a suburb of Dublin, is no longer
perfect. Its table, which may have slipped from its original position,
is at present supported by a single stone about 7½ feet in height, and
of considerable massiveness. The greatest measurement of the covering
stone is 23 feet; it is 12 feet in breadth, and 5 feet in thickness.
It is supported at the north-west corner by an upright stone, forming
with it an angle of 45°. Several of the former supporting stones would
seem to have been removed, and others have evidently been broken. The
rock is granite, of a very hard, close, and durable description. It
seems to have weathered but little, as all the remaining stones present
angles of considerable sharpness. Du Noyer was of opinion that this
cromlech was of what he styled the ‘earth-fast’ class, and that the
roof had always in part rested upon the ground. In this supposition
O’Neill, no mean authority on such matters, did not by any means
coincide. The weight of the covering stone is estimated at 42 tons.
So great a pressure might well cause some of the weaker supporters to
give way, in which case the pile would very probably assume its present
appearance. It is not in the least likely that this tomb had at any
time been covered by a tumulus or cairn. Mr. Borlase considers it ‘one
of the most magnificent megalithic monuments in the world.’
[Illustration: Shanganagh Cromlech.]
* * * * *
_Shanganagh Cromlech._--At Shanganagh, half a mile to the east of
the hamlet of Loughlinstown, may be seen a fine specimen of what may
be styled, as regards size, a cromlech of the second class. It is
supported upon four stones, and presents no appearance of having been
enveloped in a mound of any description. Like nearly every one of its
kindred remains in the County Dublin, it is formed of granite blocks.
The covering stone measures 9 feet in length by 7 feet at its greatest
breadth; it is 3½ feet in its extreme thickness; and its highest
portion is at present slightly over 9 feet above the ground; the weight
is about 12 tons. The chamber would seem to extend east and west. The
cromlech may be easily visited from Killiney railway station.
* * * * *
_Brennanstown (Glen Druid) Cromlech._--In a picturesque valley,
close to Cabinteely, County Dublin, stands a very perfect cromlech.
This monument may be reached in a short walk from the Carrickmines
railway station. The site is a little over one mile and a-half from
the sea-coast. The covering stone is of an irregular form, but the
under portion, which forms the top of the chamber, is quite flat and
horizontal. The following are its dimensions:--length and breadth, 15½
feet; thickness, 3 to 5 feet. It is not easy to calculate the weight
of this mass, on account of the irregularity of form which the block
presents; but it is estimated at 36 tons. It rests, as Mr. Borlase
points out, on two _antæ_, as well as on the larger stones, and so
forms an ante-chamber 5 feet wide at the entrance. A number of detached
stones lying about this very perfect example would indicate that it
was originally accompanied by a circle of standing stones.
[Illustration: Brennanstown Cromlech.]
* * * * *
_Glensouthwell Cromlech._--Of this ‘Druid’s or Brehon’s Chair,’ already
referred to (page 42), Beranger wrote as follows:--‘This piece of
antiquity, the only one yet discovered, is situated at the foot of the
Three-Rock Mountain. It is supposed to be the seat of judgment of the
Arch-Druid, from whence he delivered his oracles. It has the form of
an easy-chair wanting the seat, and is composed of three rough, unhewn
stones, about 7 feet high, all clear above ground. How deep they are
in the earth remains unknown. Close to it is a sepulchral monument or
cromlech, supposed to be the tomb of the Arch-Druid. It is 15 feet
in girth, and stands on three supporters, about 2 feet high, and is
planted round with trees. The top stone is 8½ feet long.’ The so-called
‘chair’ still remains, and the above account fairly describes it. The
three stones, standing north, west, and east, are, however, 9¼ feet,
8¾ feet, and 8 feet high, respectively. It never was a ‘chair.’ It is
evidently a rather small but high cromlech that has lost its covering
stone. The ‘cromlech’ noticed by Beranger was probably the block
destroyed by blasting in 1876.
* * * * *
_Glencullen Cromlech._--This monument is situated on the eastern
side of Glencullen, half a mile north-west of Glencullen House, near
Kilternan, in a very wild district, extending to the west of the
Three-Rock Mountain, and at a distance of some three miles, in a direct
line, from the sea. It is described by O’Neill as having ‘a roof rock
10 feet long, 8 feet broad, and 4 feet thick, extreme measures.... The
longest direction of the roof rock is W.S.W., or nearly east and west.
The chamber is greatly damaged.’[34]
* * * * *
_Ballyedmond Chamber_ is ¾ of a mile north-west of Glencullen House,
in the parish of Kilgobbin. O’Curry, writing of it, says: ‘It is a
very fine giant’s grave, resembling the Bed of Callan More on Slieve
Gullion, only that it is more perfect. I doubt if we have met so
perfect a pagan grave in any other counties hitherto examined. This
had been a tumulus, and the earth being cleared away, the grave was to
be seen. The tumulus was oval in shape, and its axis, like that of the
grave, was east and west.’ The side stones of the chamber were ten in
number, one of the covering stones, measuring 7 feet by 5, remained in
its place.
* * * * *
_Shankill Cromlech._--In Cromwell’s _Excursions through Ireland_,
vol. III., p. 159, there is an engraving, after a drawing by Petrie,
of a dolmen at this place, which is situated about four miles to the
north or north-west of Bray, at a distance of a couple of miles from
the nearest point of the sea-shore. O’Neill, writing in 1852, says
that he could not find it, and heard that it had been removed a few
years previously. Nevertheless the monument still exists, and was
sketched by Mr. Wakeman some years ago. It stands by the side of a road
leading across the eastern slope of Carrigollagher, in the direction
of Rathmichael, and is a fair specimen of its class. It retains its
covering stone _in situ_, but without the end stones.
It is interesting to note that the cromlechs in the east of Ireland
are generally of the free-standing and uncovered class. If we want
to find similar monuments to those mentioned, we must seek for them
much further north, or in districts of the west or south-west of
Ireland. It was known that in County Sligo scores of these subaerial
sepulchral monuments were to be found surrounded by one or more lines
of stones, which are not unfrequently associated with free-standing
pillar-stones, and, as would sometimes seem, with elementary
alignments. But, until the appearance of Colonel Wood-Martin’s _Rude
Stone Monuments of Sligo and Achill_, it was not known that in the
west existed T-shaped sepulchres, and others in plan like a dumb-bell,
the handle representing the grave, while the bulbous ends might be
expressed in the form of regularly-constructed stone circles. He
was also enabled to point to triangular graves, a form of burial
structure in Ireland previously described by no other writer. ‘It
is remarkable,’ says Colonel Wood-Martin, ‘that, in the county of
Sligo, the characteristic features of the megaliths varied according
to districts: for example, in Carrowmore the circular form was almost
universal, whereas in Northern Carbury an oblong arrangement appears to
predominate. Again, in the Deerpark Monument, the general architectural
principles displayed at Stonehenge can be traced.’ In the townland
of Carrowmore, to the south-west of Sligo, here referred to, are, or
were, the remains, says Mr. Borlase, of sixty-five ‘dolmen circles,’
forty-four of which are designated in the Ordnance Survey Map. For
particulars of these we must refer the reader to Colonel Wood-Martin’s
survey and Mr. Borlase’s work. Before finally leaving the subject of
the ordinary cromlech it is necessary to notice some examples which
bear markings, seemingly carved with some intention.
* * * * *
_Knockmany Chamber._--This interesting sepulchral monument, which is
illustrated in the frontispiece to this work, is on the summit of a
wooded hill, about two and a half miles north of Clogher, County
Tyrone. The chamber is of the type known as the ‘giant’s grave’; it
lies nearly due north and south, and consists of thirteen stones, most
of which are mill-stone grit. None of the covering stones now remain,
having probably been removed for building purposes. The tomb seems
to have been originally covered by a mound. The internal measurement
is 10 feet 3 inches by 6 feet 6 inches; two of the blocks of the
east side have fallen inwards. Four of the stones have markings,
consisting of cup-hollows, zigzag lines, concentric circles, and other
curved patterns. Expert opinion, from an examination of their forms,
is inclined to associate the markings with the later Bronze Age of
Scandinavia, and to give a probable date of this sepulchral chamber
as 500 B.C. The tomb is known locally as ‘Aynia’s Cove,’ popular
superstition associating it with a witch or hag named Aynia or Ainé.
It is also called Knoc Baine, as being the supposed burial-place of
Baine, mother of Feidhlimidh Reachtmhar, who was king of Ireland early
in the second century. This would bring the monument to the Late Celtic
period, which is difficult to reconcile with the archæological evidence
already mentioned, associating it with the Bronze Age.[35]
* * * * *
_Cloghtogh Cromlech._--Cloghtogh, the ‘Lifted stone,’ is situated close
to the village of Lisbellaw, Co. Fermanagh. It consists of four great
stones, two of which form the sides, and one the end, of a quadrangular
chamber. On the front of the fourth stone, which constitutes the
cap or covering, were four well-marked cups, averaging 1¾ inches in
diameter. These, which unfortunately have been chipped off, were placed
in a horizontal line, extending over a space of 18 inches, and slightly
diminishing in size from left to right. The block is 7½ feet in length,
by 6 feet in breadth, the thickness being 1½ feet.
* * * * *
_Slievemore Cromlech._--Similar markings may be observed on one of
the upright stones of a ruined cromlech standing on the slope of
Slievemore, island of Achill, amongst other remains, styled on the
Ordnance sheet tumulus, cromlech, Danish ditch, respectively. It
is difficult to imagine that the likeness between these two sets
of cup-markings is accidental. A similar array of four cups, but
placed vertically, may be seen on one of the enormous stones forming
the right-hand side of the gallery leading into the great cairn of
Newgrange.
* * * * *
_Lennan Cromlech._--The inscribed cromlech of Lennan or Tullycorbet,
Co. Monaghan, stands upon a knoll called by the people of the district
Cruck-na-clia, which may be translated ‘Battle hill.’ This monument,
a fine one of its class, presents every appearance of having always
been free-standing. It bears some extremely curious markings, into
the character of which the late Sir Samuel Ferguson made careful
examination.[36]
* * * * *
_Castlederg Cromlech._--This monument lies about three-quarters of a
mile to the north of the town of Castlederg, 140 yards to the east
of the old Strabane road, leading through Churchtown townland. The
principal cap-stone was dislodged many years ago by the owner of the
farm. ‘It appears,’ says Sir Samuel Ferguson, ‘that the structure had
previously been rendered insecure by a stone-mason, who had abstracted
one of the supporters for building purposes; and it was suggested that
the motive for casting down the cap-stone was an apprehension lest the
owner’s cattle, in rubbing or sheltering under it, might do themselves
a mischief. That the inscription was there at the time of the first
disclosure of the upper face of the support on which it is sculptured,
is the common and constant statement of the people of the country; but
the case rests more satisfactorily on the fact, wholly independent of
testimony, that a collateral covering stone remains _in situ_, and that
the line of scorings is prolonged underneath it into a position too
contracted for the use of a graving tool.’[37]
The work here consists of a continuous series of straight scorings,
accompanied by a number of dots or depressions more or less circular in
form. There can be no doubt that a generic resemblance may be noticed
between them and many of the markings of the Lennan inscription. This,
if there were nothing more, would raise a serious doubt of their being
merely accidental or capricious indentations. The great majority of
such irregular scorings should, nevertheless, be looked upon with
suspicion. Those which occur on the pillar-stone at Kilnasaggart,
Co. Armagh, though long considered to be Ogam characters, are now
universally pronounced to be nothing more than markings made by
persons who utilized the monument as a block for the sharpening and
pointing of tools or weapons. The same remark applies in full force
to certain scorings and scratches which disfigure a fine pillar-stone
standing close to the railway station of Kesh, County Fermanagh, on
the right-hand side of the line as you face towards Bundoran. They are
found abundantly on the coping stones of the walls of Londonderry, and
indeed in other localities too numerous to mention. At Killowen, County
Cork, they occur on a stone most significantly called Cloch na n’Arm,
or the ‘(Sharpening) Stone of the weapons.’
CHAPTER III
STONE MONUMENTS (_continued_): CHAMBERED TUMULI.
TUMULUS AT NEWGRANGE--TUMULUS AT DOWTH--TUMULUS AT KNOWTH--CAIRNS AT
LOUGHCREW--PREHISTORIC ORNAMENT.
In the _Senchas-na-Relec_, or ‘History of the Cemeteries,’ a tract in
the _Leabhar-na h-Uidhre_, we have a list of the regal cemeteries of
Erin during a long period prior to the advent of St. Patrick. This was
compiled at Clonmacnoise, and transcribed by Maelmuiri in the twelfth
century. In the opinion of Petrie the tract ‘must be referred to a
period several centuries earlier than that in which its transcriber
flourished.’[38] It says:--‘These were the chief cemeteries before the
Faith (_i.e._ before the introduction of Christianity), viz. Cruachu,
Brugh, Tailltiu, Luachair Ailbe, Oenach Ailbe, Oenach Culi, Oenach
Colmain, Temhair Erann.... At Tailltiu the kings of Ulster were used
to bury, viz. Ollamh Fodhla, with his descendants, down to Conchobhar,
who wished that he should be carried to a place between Slea and the
sea, with his face to the east, on account of the Faith which he had
embraced.’ In the same MS. there is also a poem ascribed to Dorban, a
poet of West Connaught, dealing with the deaths and burials of Dathi,
the last of the Milesian kings, and other princes of the race interred
at Rathcroghan. It contains three stanzas:--
‘Fifty mounds, I certify,
Are at Oenach na Cruachna,
There are under each mound of them
Fifty truly-fine warlike men.
The three cemeteries of the Idolaters are
The cemetery of Tailten, the select,
The cemetery of the ever-fair Cruachan,
And the cemetery of Brugh....
The host of great Meath were buried
In the middle of the lordly Brugh;
The great Ultonians used to bury
At Tailten with pomp.’
Of the cemeteries named but two can be identified with any degree
of certainty, viz. those of Brugh na Boinne, the ‘Dwelling-place on
the Boyne,’ now generally acknowledged to be Newgrange, and Cruachan
(Rathcroghan), County Roscommon; but there is great probability that
Tailten may be the great necropolis situate on the Loughcrew Hills not
far from Oldcastle.
* * * * *
_Tumulus at Newgrange._--As the size and character of the grave
mounds would depend upon the rank of the dead, the magnitude of these
monuments of kings and heroes can be readily understood from the
MS. evidence. The Tumulus at Newgrange, in County Meath, lying at
a distance of about eight miles from Drogheda, is perhaps the most
remarkable monument of its class now existing in any part of western
Europe. In one respect, at least, it may compare with any Celtic
monument known to exist, inasmuch as a number of the great stones of
which its gallery and chambers are composed, exhibit a profusion of
ornamental design, consisting of spiral, lozenge, and zigzag work, such
as is usually found upon the ornaments, weapons, fictilia, and other
remains of prehistoric times in Ireland. The earliest account of the
tumulus is contained in a letter written by Edward Lhwyd, keeper of the
Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, and dated December 15th, 1699. The entrance
to the chamber had been discovered a short time before by workmen
employed in the removal of stones for the repair of a road. It is
recorded, however, in the _Annals of the Four Masters_ that Newgrange
was plundered by the Danes in 861.
[Illustration: The Tumulus of Newgrange, Co. Meath.]
[Illustration: Plan and Section of Newgrange Tumulus.]
[Illustration: Entrance to the Passage leading to the Great Chamber,
Newgrange.]
This vast cairn which, even in its present condition, measures from the
floor of the inside chamber to the summit 44 feet, and in its greatest
diameter 280 feet, presents, from a little distance, the appearance
of a grassy hill partially wooded; but upon examination the coating of
earth is found to be altogether superficial, and the stones, of which
the hill is entirely composed, can easily be laid bare. The quantity
of stones has been estimated at 100,000 tons. The base is surrounded
by a belt of large blocks of stones eight to ten feet in length, upon
which a dry wall five to six feet in height has been raised. The like
method was adopted in some of the great barrows in England, as in Uley,
in Gloucestershire. A circle of large stones, of which twelve may be
identified, originally surrounded its base, and when Lhwyd saw it,
there was ‘another lesser standing on the top.’ This pillar-stone no
longer exists. The stones stand about thirty feet apart, and if the
circle were completed the original number of stones would be 32. The
area of the mound is about one acre in extent; but if the area of the
circle within the stones be taken, it would extend to two acres.
[Illustration: Plan and Section of Chamber in Newgrange Tumulus.]
[Illustration: Carving on a Stone at the West Recess.]
[Illustration: Ornament on the Roof of the East Recess.]
[Illustration: Ornament on the Roof of the East Recess.]
[Illustration: Scoring on Stone in West Recess.]
The entrance to the gallery is to the south, and across it lies one of
the retaining stones, which is beautifully covered with spirals and
lozenges; two others, also richly carved, have been discovered in the
boundary circle to the north-west. The gallery, which extends in a
direction nearly north and south, communicates with a chamber or cave
nearly in the centre of the mound. This gallery, which measures in
length 63 feet, is, at its entrance from the exterior, 4 feet 9 inches
high; in breadth at the top, 3 feet 2 inches; and at the base, 3 feet
5 inches. These dimensions it fairly retains--except in one or two
places where the stones appear to have been forced from their original
position--and rises gradually to a height of about 6 feet through a
distance of 26 feet from the external entrance. Thence towards the
interior its size gradually increases, but sinks to 4 feet 10 inches at
43 feet, and again rapidly rises by the overlapping of the stones until
it joins the chamber roof. Large blocks of stone, from 5 feet to 8
feet high, and numbering 22 on one side, and 21 on the other, form the
passage. These are Lower Silurian rocks, the formation of the adjoining
district; they show but little traces of the weathering of surface
rocks, ‘but, on the contrary, even faces, which indicate that they have
been split along the cleavage, and care taken in their selection.’
The ground-plan of the chamber is cruciform, the head and arms of the
cross being formed by three recesses, one placed directly fronting
the entrance, the others east and west, and each containing a basin of
granite. The lower portions of the walls of the chamber are composed of
large uncemented stones, placed in an upright position, over which are
others laid horizontally, each course projecting slightly beyond that
upon which it rests, and so on, until the sides so closely approximate
that a single flag suffices to close in and complete the roof. The
chamber is 19½ feet high, and measures from the end of the gallery to
the back of the north recess 26 feet; from the back of the east recess
to the back of the west, 21 feet. The recesses are not of uniform size.
The east is 7 feet 9 inches in depth, the north 7½ feet, and the west
3 feet 4 inches. The sides of these recesses are composed of immense
blocks of stones; several of the stones in the recesses and passage
bear a great variety of carving, supposed by some to be symbolical. The
carvings represent various characteristic selections in the work upon
the roof of the east recess, in the construction and decoration of
which a great degree of care appears to have been exercised. A carving
upon a stone forming the north external angle of the west recess
is supposed to be an inscription; but even could any satisfactory
explanation of it be given, its authenticity is doubtful, as it has
been supposed to have been forged by one of the many dishonest Irish
antiquaries of the eighteenth century. The same stone, upon its east
face, exhibits what appears to have been intended as a representation
of a fern or yew-branch. An ornament of a similar character was found
within a tomb at Locmariaker, in Brittany.[39] It is a remarkable fact
that the majority of these carvings must have been executed before
the stones upon which they appear had been placed in their present
positions. Of this there is abundant evidence in the east recess, where
we find the lines continued over portions of the stones which it would
be impossible now to reach with an instrument, and which form the sides
of mere interstices. The illustrations on page 88 depict some of the
decorations which appear upon the sides of the east recess. A stone now
lying upon the surface of the mound, a little above the opening already
described, is shown in above engraving.
[Illustration: Carved Stone in East Recess.]
[Illustration: Carved Stone in East Recess.]
[Illustration: Carved Stone above the Entrance.]
A very remarkable series of carvings is to be seen on a boundary stone
on the north side opposite the entrance, consisting of spirals,
cup-markings, rings, and ‘cartouche-like figures.’ ‘No examples of
these’ (the last), says Mr. George Coffey, ‘have, I believe, been
previously found in Ireland.’
Of the basins contained in the various recesses, that in the chamber,
and which stood within the larger basin in the east recess, is the
most remarkable. It measures 4 feet by 3 feet 6 inches, and is formed
of a block of granite, that must have been brought from the nearest
granite district, either Down or Wicklow, a distance of over 50 miles.
Two small circular cavities have been cut within its interior--a
peculiarity not found in either of the others, which are of much ruder
construction, and very shallow.
We see in Newgrange a great advance in the architecture of sepulchres
from the rude cromlechs of the Stone Age to the well-developed vaulted
chamber, with its recesses, of the Bronze Period. But the principle of
the rude passage-graves is maintained; and the desire to honour the
dead under the most appropriate monument that art and skill could raise
remains the same. Within the chamber and recesses the relics of the
dead were most probably placed on the basins--a purpose for which these
were apparently adapted.
The general plan of Newgrange is similar to the bee-hive tomb at
Mycenæ, known as the Treasury of Atreus, but differing in size, detail,
and general magnificence. This great tomb consists of a long passage,
a large vaulted chamber--formed of successive courses of stones laid
horizontally and closed with a single slab--and a square recess. In
the centre of the rocky floor of the recess is a circular depression
3 feet in diameter and 2 feet deep. Dr. Schuchhardt is of opinion that
this was the actual grave, that the recess was never opened but to
admit another body, while the great vault was devoted to the cult of
the dead. ‘It was and remained easily accessible; the rich façade and
the expensively-built approach conclusively show that the entrance to
the vault was not blocked up after the reception of the bodies.’[40]
Other authorities consider that this was not the case, but that the
central chamber was the tomb for the family, and the side chamber
for specially distinguished persons and chiefs.[41] Whichever view
we accept, it is at least suggestive of the purpose for which the
Newgrange type of sepulchre was planned.
In the neighbourhood of the Newgrange tumulus are two other monuments
of the same class, and of an extent nearly equal, the ‘Hills’ of Dowth
and Knowth; or, as they are called by the Irish, Dubhath and Cnoabh,
the latter lying about one mile to the westward of Newgrange, and the
former at a similar distance in the opposite direction.
* * * * *
[Illustration: Tumulus at Dowth, from the South.]
[Illustration: Entrance to the Passage leading to the Chamber of Dowth.]
_Tumulus at Dowth._--This sepulchral mound corresponds closely to
Newgrange in dimensions; it is about 47 feet high, and measures 280
feet in diameter. Round the base is a belt of large stones as at
Newgrange; but it has no retaining wall. A double circle of stones
appears to have surrounded the cairn. Of these the greater number
lie buried; for in summertime their position, particularly after a
long continuance of sunny weather, is shown by the remarkably dry
and withered appearance of the grass above them. Of the internal
arrangement of this great tumulus, little was known beyond the fact
that it was different from that of the monument last described,
inasmuch as, instead of one great gallery leading directly towards the
centre of the pile, there appeared here the remains of two passages
in a very ruinous state, and completely stopped up, neither of which,
however, seemed to have conducted towards a grand central chamber. The
Committee of Antiquities of the Royal Irish Academy having, in the
course of the autumn of 1847, obtained permission from the trustees
of the Netterville Charity, the proprietors of the Dowth estate, to
explore the interior of the tumulus, the work was commenced and carried
on at considerable cost, under the immediate direction of Mr. Frith,
one of the county surveyors. Unfortunately no official record of the
work done has been kept, and the only account of it is a brief one
by Sir Wm. Wilde. Commenting on this, Mr. George Coffey says: ‘The
mound was so pulled about by the explorers, and the work carried out
with such doubtful wisdom, that the Committee seem to have had a not
unnatural shrinking from publicity.’ From the difficulty of sinking
a shaft among the loose, dry stones of which this hill, like that of
Newgrange, is entirely composed, the plan was adopted of making an
open cutting from the base of the mound towards its centre, in order
to arrive at the great central chamber which was supposed to exist.
The first discovery was that of a cruciform chamber upon the western
side, formed of stones of great size, every way similar to those
at Newgrange, and exhibiting the same style of decoration. A rude
sarcophagus, bearing a striking resemblance to that belonging to the
east recess at Newgrange, was found in the centre. It had been broken
into several pieces, but the fragments were all recovered and placed
together, so as to afford a perfect idea of the original form. In
clearing away the rubbish with which the chamber was nearly filled,
the workmen discovered a large quantity of the bones of animals in a
half-burned state, mixed with small shells. A pin of bronze and two
small knives of iron were also picked up. With respect to instruments
of iron being found in a monument of so early a date, we may observe
that, in the _Annals of Ulster_, there occurs a record of this mound,
as well as of several others in the neighbourhood, having been searched
by the Northmen of Dublin as early as A.D. 862: ‘On one occasion
that the three kings, Amlaff, Imar, and Ainsle, were plundering the
territory of Flann, the son of Coaing.’ It is an interesting fact
that the knives are similar in every respect to a number discovered,
together with a quantity of other objects, in the bog of Lagore, near
Dunshaughlin, and which there is reason to refer to a period between
the ninth and the beginning of the eleventh centuries. Upon the chamber
being cleared out, a passage 27 feet in length was discovered, the
sides of which incline considerably, leading in a westerly direction
towards the side of the mound, and composed, like the similar passage
at Newgrange, of enormous stones placed edgeways, and covered in with
large flags. The chamber, though of inferior size to that of Newgrange,
is constructed so nearly upon the same plan, that a description of the
one might almost serve for that of the other. It is 9 feet by 7 feet
and 11 feet high. There are three recesses between 5 and 6 feet deep;
these, however, do not contain basins. The south recess leads into
a double set of chambers, one extending south and the other west. A
single stone 8 feet long forms the floor of the south passage, in the
centre of which is a shallow oval ‘apparently rubbed down with some
rude tool.’ A huge stone, in height 9 feet, in breadth 8 feet, placed
between the north and east recesses, is remarkable for the singular
character of its carving. A portion of the work upon this stone bears a
resemblance to Ogam writing.
[Illustration: Carving on a Stone at Dowth.]
[Illustration: Carving on a Stone at Dowth.]
Another sepulchral chamber, of a quadrangular form, portions of which
show a great variety of carving, among which the cross, a symbol which
neither in the old nor the new world can be considered as peculiar to
Christianity, is conspicuous, has been discovered upon the southern
side of the mound. Here, as elsewhere, during the course of excavation,
the workmen unearthed vast quantities of bones, half-burned, many of
which proved to be human; ‘several unburned bones of horses, pigs,
deer, and birds, portions of the heads of the short-horned variety of
the ox, and the head of a fox.’ They also found a star-shaped amulet
of stone, a ring of jet, several beads, and some bones fashioned
like pins. Among the stones of the upper portion of the cairn were
discovered a number of globular balls of stone, the size of small
eggs, which Sir W. Wilde supposed probably to have been sling stones.
Further excavations under the direction of the Board of Works (1885)
led to other discoveries. An opening was made on the north side of the
known entrance that ‘led to a passage which terminated at either end by
circular cells carefully roofed with corbelling stones’; and, where it
met the entrance to the originally known chamber, a flight of steps was
discovered. This and the character of the work, which is microlithic,
indicate the portion of the underground passages and chambers to be a
much later addition.
Among the trees between the mound of Dowth and the mansion are two
smaller tumuli. One of these is open from the top; it contains a
corbel-roofed chamber 10 feet in diameter and 8 feet high; round it are
five cells constructed of small flags set upright. A little to the east
of the house is a fine specimen of the ancient military encampment or
rath, one of the largest in Ireland.
* * * * *
_Tumulus at Knowth._--The other great tumulus (Knowth) of the Boyne
group has probably never been entered since the time, as the Annalists
tell us, it was plundered and doubtlessly much injured by the Danes.
It is nearly 700 feet in circumference, and between 40 and 50 feet
in height. For many years it has served as a convenient quarry for
builders of houses and repairers of roads. That it could be explored at
little cost is certain, as, owing to the denudation it has suffered,
the passage or gallery leading to its chamber has, in part, been laid
bare. Its circle or circles are not altogether obliterated; and here
and there some portions remain which show that the work, though less
massive than that of Newgrange, was at least as striking as anything to
be found in Dowth, or in connection with the remains at Loughcrew, or
others occurring in the western districts of Ireland.
Among the objects found about the tumuli Lhwyd mentions a gold coin
of Valentinian, said to have been discovered on the top of Newgrange;
Molyneux mentions a similar coin, and one of Theodosius, as being found
outside the cairn. A gold chain, two finger rings, and two gold torcs
were found in 1842 close to the entrance of Newgrange; and on further
search a denarius of Geta and two small brass, but defaced, coins were
also found. Too much caution cannot be used in considering these as
evidence in determining the date of the tumuli. A bronze pin, a ring
pin, and a small iron weapon were found in the chamber discovered in
Dowth in 1885. If, as seems certain, this chamber and passage are of
much later date than the tumulus itself, the presence of these objects
is easily accounted for. A discussion of the evidence upon which expert
opinion is based, as to the date of these monuments, is outside the
province of this book. It takes into consideration the character of the
architecture, the nature of the ornamentation, and the objects found.
Weighing these, the Boyne tumuli are assigned to the Early Bronze
Period, and Newgrange is considered the oldest of the group.
* * * * *
_Cairns at Loughcrew._--Loughcrew is a range of picturesque hills,
three miles south-east of Oldcastle. The ridge of the range is
about two miles in extent, and there are three chief heights:
Slieve-na-Calliaghe, 904 feet; Patrickstown Hill, 885 feet; and
Carnbawn, 842 feet: but the name of the first is generally applied
to the whole range. Here, within the radius of a rifle-shot, may be
seen grouped together the most extraordinary collection of archaic
monuments to be found in the kingdom. These for the most part consist
of megalithic sepulchres surmounted by tumuli, and surrounded by stone
circles. These number ‘from 25 to 30 cairns, some of considerable size,
being 120 to 180 feet in diameter; others are much smaller, and some
are so nearly obliterated that their dimensions can hardly be now
ascertained.’ It is, we think, not too much to say that on the stones
among these cairns is found the greatest collection of rude prehistoric
scorings yet found in Ireland or, perhaps, in Europe.
Popular superstition has long attributed these cairns and other remains
to be the work of a witch named Cailleach Bhéartha, who, in attempting
a wild leap in the adjoining townland of Patrickstown, was unfortunate
enough to fall and break her neck. Nothing was known of the character
or contents of these cairns until 1858. In the autumn of that year
Mr. Wakeman measured and made plans of several of the remains, and
wrote a paper upon the subject, which was read in his name before
the Architectural Society of Oxford, by J. H. Parker. We are thus
particular in giving names and dates in connection with the _first_
public notice of the antiquities at Slieve-na-Calliaghe, as their
‘discovery’ was claimed and is still erroneously attributed to the late
Eugene Conwell. He, however, did great service to Irish archæology,
inasmuch as, with the liberal co-operation of the late J. L. W. Naper,
owner of the soil, he was enabled to clear out the majority of the
chambers, and investigate what had been left by former searchers of
their contents. An immense amount of _débris_ was removed, and stones
which had been buried for ages were brought to light. Many of the
latter are singularly carved, and some presented designs previously
unknown to archæologists. The result of Conwell’s investigations was
given in papers read before the Royal Irish Academy in 1864 and 1866,
accompanied with an index map of the cemetery, in which the letters
of the alphabet indicate the cairns.[42] These, however, were of a
sketchy nature, and the voluminous report, with the plans and sketches
which he had prepared, seems never to have been published. A series of
drawings of the incised markings on some of the stones of the chambers
were prepared by Du Noyer; these remained unpublished until recent
years, when a collection of seventy-six drawings and plans of six of
the cairns fell into the hands of the late Dr. W. Frazer, and were
reproduced by the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland.[43]
The idea seems to have struck Fergusson, who at least on one occasion
accompanied Conwell to the place, that the Loughcrew monuments
represented the once famous, but long-forgotten, cemetery of Taillten,
a place which was supposed to be represented by the modern Teltown,
about fifteen miles distant. After weighing the evidence in reference
to the supposed identification, Fergusson writes:--‘If, however,
this is not Taillten, no graves have been found nearer Teltown which
would at all answer to the description that remains to us of this
celebrated cemetery; and till they are found, these Loughcrew mounds
seem certainly entitled to the distinction. I cannot see that the
matter is doubtful.’[44] According to the _Annals of the Four Masters_,
numerous were the kings and nobles here buried. The first whose name
is mentioned is Ollamh Fodhla, son of Fiacha Finscothach, and founder
of the Feis at Tara. Eochaidh was his first name, and ‘he was called
Ollamh (Fodhla), because he had been first a learned Ollamh, and
afterwards king of Fodhla, _i.e._ of Ireland.’ The ‘Four Masters’ set
down his death as having occurred in 1277 B.C. The oldest and most
trustworthy authorities state that Taillten ceased to be used as a
cemetery on the death of Conchobhor, an Ultonian king, who flourished
in Erin at the commencement of the Christian era, and who, according to
the _Annals of Tighernach_, died A.D. 33.
In seventeen of the cairns sculptured stones have been found to the
number of 100. Cairn T has 28 stones with scribings, the largest number
yet noticed in any of the group. We can only briefly refer to the
contents of some of these cairns, which represent, as we have said, the
largest and most varied collection of inscribed stones hitherto found
in any Celtic monument. The largest is cairn D, which measures 180 feet
in diameter; no trace of interment has yet been found within it, and it
may have been merely monumental.
Cairn H is 5 or 6 feet high and 54 feet in diameter. Here Conway
collected 300 fragments of bones, 14 of rude pottery, 10 pieces of
flint, 155 sea-shells, and quantities of pebbles and polished stones.
But the most remarkable portion of the collection consisted of nearly
5000 pieces of bone implements, many more or less perfect, several
of which were engraved in Late Celtic pattern, as were many portions
of combs. In addition to this collection, beads of amber and glass,
bronze rings, and iron implements were found, and a recent examination
has added to these.
Cairn L is 135 feet in diameter, and has a circle of 42 stones set on
edge, varying from 6 to 12 feet in length, and 3 to 4 feet in height.
It is chambered, and the roof fashioned by overlapping stones similar
to that of Newgrange. The passage and chamber have a combined length
of 29 feet, and the latter is 13 feet in width. On the floor of the
passage is a flagstone, measuring 8 feet 9 inches by 3 feet 6 inches;
and in one of these recesses is the largest and best finished stone
basin yet discovered, measuring 5 feet 9 inches by 3 feet 1 inch.
Fragments of pottery to the number of 154 were found, and under the
basin pieces of burnt bone and many human teeth.
Cairn T is the most conspicuous monument of the group; it measures 116
feet in diameter, and rises with sloping sides to a height of 21 feet.
It contains a recessed chamber, like that at Newgrange, in miniature,
the entrance to which faces due east, and is reached by a shallow,
funnel-shaped passage. Round the base is a closely-set circle of 37
stones, varying from 6 to 12 feet in length, and acting as a kind of
retaining fence to the loose, dry boulders which form the body of the
tumulus. One of these stones on the north side is popularly known as
the ‘Hag’s Chair’ (see p. 39). Fergusson states there can be little
doubt that it was intended as a seat, or throne, but by whom it was
raised and for what purpose it is difficult to say. When opened in 1865
the roofing of the passage and much of the chamber had fallen away,
leaving them filled with stones; the combined length is 28 feet, and
the full width of the chamber is 16 feet 4 inches. The floor of the
central octagonal chamber was covered by three large and two small
flags, beneath which were found pieces of burnt bone and charcoal. It
has three recesses, about 4 feet square.
Conwell, without the slightest authority, rushed to the conclusion that
this particular monument must be the tomb of Ollamh Fodhla, and that
the chair cannot be other than the judicial seat, or throne, of that
famous king. He writes: ‘And to whom, keeping in view the preceding MS.
testimony,[45] could this great megalithic chair be more appropriately
ascribed than to Ollamh Fodhla? It would be natural to suppose that,
for the site of the tomb of the great king and law-maker, his posterity
(or, indeed, probably he himself, during his own lifetime) selected the
most elevated spot on the entire range; hence we propose to call the
carn on that spot--904 feet above the sea-level, and situated on the
middle hill--Ollamh Fodhla’s tomb, and the great stone seat “Ollamh
Fodhla’s Chair”; and the ruined remains of the smaller surrounding
cairns, six of which still remain, the tombs of his sons and grandsons,
mentioned in the previous extracts. In fact, on the summit of the
highest hill in the site of this ancient royal cemetery, we believe
there still exist the remains of the tombs of the dynasty of Ollamh
Fodhla’!
The construction of these chambered tumuli, so peculiar to our eyes,
had its origin in the primitive mound-dwelling, survivals of which
are still to be found among the Lapps inhabiting the extreme north of
Scandinavia. Here, as Mr. Arthur Evans points out, ‘are the ring-stones
actually employed in propping up the turf-covered mound of the
dwelling, and there is the low entrance gallery leading to the chamber
within, which, in fact, is the living representative, and at the same
time the remote progenitor, of the gallery of the chambered barrow.’
The bee-hive tombs of Mycenæ are traced back by Professor Adler to
Phrygia. Here, according to Vitruvius, the dwellers in the valleys dug
a circular pit, raised a cone-shaped chamber with posts, covered it
with weeds and branches; over all they piled a heap of earth, and cut
a passage into the chamber from without. Of this Dr. Schuchhardt says:
‘The analogy is certainly significant. Men in all ages have fashioned
the dwellings of the dead in accordance with those of the living; but
the dead are conservative, and long after a new generation has sought a
new home and a new pattern for its houses, the habitations of the dead
are still constructed in ancestral fashion.’[46]
The distribution of the spiral, which is so remarkable a feature at
Newgrange, has in recent years received much attention from European
archæologists. It was used in Egypt at a very early period. Dr.
Flinders Petrie has discovered it on scarabs dating as far back as
the fifth dynasty. It is now thought that the spiral reached Europe
from Egypt northwards through the Ægean. Mr. A. J. Evans has found
it in Crete on scarabs of the twelfth dynasty (2700–2500 B.C.), but
its adoption in Mycenæan ornament from this early wave northward is
doubted. Dr. Petrie considers that the intermediate stages so evident
in Egypt are absent in Greece.[47] Evidence seems to show that its
development in Greece was due to a wave of influence from Egypt during
the eighteenth dynasty (1580–1320 B.C.). In Greek hands it attained the
same degree of perfection as in Egypt, and has been found elaborately
decorating the stelæ, gold ornaments, and vessels in the tombs of
Mycenæ, in the alabaster frieze at Tiryns, and in the slabs of the
ceiling of the tomb at Orchomenos.
Mr. Evans says: ‘In the wake of early commerce the same spiraliform
motives were to spread still further afield to the Danubian basin, and
thence in turn by the valley of the Elbe to the Amber Coast of the
North Sea, then to supply the Scandinavian Bronze Age population with
their leading decorative designs. Adopted by the Celtic tribes in the
central European area, they took, at a somewhat later date, a westerly
turn, reached Britain with the invading Belgæ, and finally survived
in Irish art.’[48] But there is much to support the theory that the
spiral reached Ireland from Scandinavia, and not by the direct western
route, as communication existed between the races from a very early
date. This view is maintained by Mr. George Coffey, who discusses the
subject of prehistoric ornament in Ireland in a series of papers
contributed to the _Journal_ of the Royal Society of Antiquaries
(Ireland).[49] He also accepts the theory, advocated, too, by Prof.
Montelius, that the concentric circle is a debased spiral; and is of
opinion that, where both are found, the spiral is the earlier form of
the two. The distribution of the spiral is very widespread, and even
the returning spiral has been used by the Maori in facial decoration
and otherwise for a long period. The spiral is a form that would come
under the notice of primitive man anywhere; and it is quite possible
in such things as this, as in myths, customs, and objects common to
most races, to push theory too far in one direction. But the spread
of the spiral ornament throughout Europe, as the result of Mycenæan
influence, receives confirmation by similar parallels being established
in connection with other important branches of archæological research.
Many archæologists have hitherto been of opinion that the sculpturings
on the rocks composing these sepulchral chambers are symbolical; but
no satisfactory explanation has yet been given of their religious
significance. Some, however, consider that they are mere ornament,
and that in no sense have they a cryptic meaning. Many of the stones
from the position in which they are now placed, as we have already
pointed out, must have been carved beforehand, and may probably have
served some other purpose at an earlier period. It is easily seen that
the same ornamentation exists on many objects to which no symbolism
could be attached; there is an absence, too, of all idea of method
in design, and a want of unity in combination, which are against any
theory except that of primitive man’s mere desire to decorate. Though
much has been written on the question, yet, in the present state of our
knowledge, it is impossible to arrive at a definite conclusion upon the
subject.
[Illustration: Ornamented Bone Flake from Slieve-na-Calliaghe.]
CHAPTER IV.
STONE MONUMENTS--_Continued_.
THE DEERPARK MONUMENT--CAIRNS--MISCAN MAEVE--CAIRN’S HILL--HEAPSTOWN--
THE ‘BARR’ OF FINTONA--BIGHY--STAR-SHAPED CAIRN AT DOOHAT--
MOUNDS--STONE CIRCLES--NEWGRANGE--NEWTOWNBUTLER--BALLYNOE
(LEGAMADDY)--SLIEVE-NA-GREIDLE--LOUGH GUR--ALIGNMENTS--TOPPID
MOUNTAIN--CALLERNISH--DARTMOOR.
The _Deerpark Monument._--The interesting megalithic monument in the
Deerpark, Hazlewood demesne, four miles east of Sligo, differs from
any other known monument in the British Isles. It is known as Leacht
Con Mie Ruis, the ‘Stone of Con the son of Rush,’ and more than one
visionary archæologist has styled it the ‘Irish Stonehenge.’ The
structure consists primarily of an oblong, or blunted oval, figure,
formed of rude, undressed stones, generally of considerable length and
thickness, and averaging but 2 or 3 feet in height. This central area
extends, as nearly as possible, east and west. Its extreme length is
50 feet 6 inches; its greatest diameter 28 feet. From the western end
extends an oblong compartment, constructed of stones similar to those
forming the oval, measuring 27 feet in length by 12 feet 6 inches in
breadth. The entrance to this extension is by a kind of portal, the
sides of which consist of two rude, unhewn stones, about 3 feet in
height. These are surmounted by a horizontal lintel, about 8 feet long,
and 2 feet 6 inches in thickness, forming a low but perfect trilithon.
Fergusson, in his _Rude Stone Monuments_, very incorrectly states that
these stones, like those forming two other similar entrances, have
been ‘squared and partially dressed.’ The western apartment is divided
by two projecting stones, which may have been capped with a lintel.
The space between them is barely sufficient to allow the passage of
a moderately-sized man. This end of the monument is composed of two
stones of great size, the outermost leaning against its neighbour. They
are about 7 feet in length, 2 feet in thickness, and over 6 feet in
height. Immediately adjoining, and touching them, to the westward, are
the remains of a stone circle, about 20 feet in diameter, the area of
which was probably occupied by a low cairn or mound. The spot, however,
has been so tossed about that little of its original character
remains. The same remark applies to the state of a similar circle found
at the eastern termination of the monument. At the eastern extremity
of the central enclosure are two projections, precisely similar in
style to that at the opposite end. They are entered by trilithon
openings, the height from ground to lintel measuring about 3 feet, and
the height to the upper surface 5 feet. These prolongations, which
have been absurdly styled ‘aisles,’ run parallel to each other, one
measuring 27 feet in length, while its companion, that to the south,
is 3 feet shorter. Both are divided into two compartments, of unequal
size, by projecting stones. There is a space between them, 5 feet 6
inches broad, but separated from the main oval by an immense block of
stone.[50]
[Illustration: Plan of the Deerpark Monument, Co. Sligo.]
This monument was long a puzzle to archæologists. ‘At present it is
unique,’ wrote Fergusson; ‘if some similar example could be discovered,
perhaps we might guess its riddle.’ It remained for Colonel Wood-Martin
to explain the character of this ‘Irish Stonehenge.’ ‘Excavations,’
he writes, ‘made in the four smaller divisions, at the eastern and
western extremities of the monument, clearly demonstrate the fact that
they _had been formerly covered like ordinary kistvaens with roofing
slabs_, as these were found lying in the ground in a fragmentary
state, when the sod was turned up. In these four excavations human and
animal bones were discovered, all uncalcined. With them was a flint
flake. Explorations in the central enclosure were not attended with
equally decisive results; for although in two instances some traces of
osseous remains were found, yet in other spots the soil appeared to
be undisturbed. The conclusion, therefore, may be safely drawn that
the eastern and western “aisles” are simply uncovered kistvaens; that
they were erected when inhumation burial was practised, and when flint
instruments were in use; but whether the central enclosure had been
used for burial, or merely for ceremonial observances before committing
the bodies to the tomb, could not be determined with any degree of
certainty.’[51]
The osseous remains found in various parts of the monument were
submitted to the judgment of several experts, who pronounced them to
be mostly human, and to have belonged to persons of various ages. Some
were evidently those of young children. The bones of the lower animals
noticed comprised those of deer, of the horse (apparently), and some
of swine. There were also bones of rabbits and hares, as likewise some
of birds. All seemed to be strangely mixed together; but the remains
in no instance exhibited the action of fire. It is probable that the
interments were neolithic, and the animal bones the relics of the
funeral feast. The flint flake ‘shows traces of careful chipping for a
short distance round the segment of a circle which forms its cutting
edge, the remainder of the tool being left in a rough unfinished state,
with thick blunt sides.’ It belongs to the class of articles described
by Sir W. Wilde as approaching in form, but not altogether taking the
shape of, a stone celt.[52]
[Illustration: Cairn, on Cairn’s Hill, Co. Sligo.]
* * * * *
_Miscan Maeve._--On the summit of Knocknarea, which commands a fine
view over the coast of Sligo and surrounding country, is a great cairn
composed of small stones, and locally known as ‘Miscan Maeve,’ or
‘Misgaun Meaw.’ The cairn is oval-shaped, and measures 590 feet in
circumference and 34 feet in height; the sides slope to 79 feet on one
side and 67 feet on the other. The top has a major axis of 100 feet and
a minor of 85 feet. According to tradition this is the burial-place of
Maeve (the Mab of English folk-tales), a celebrated Queen of Connaught,
who reigned in the first century. Evidence, however, goes to show that
she was buried at Rathcroghan, and the cairn at Knocknarea may have
been raised to her memory. There are two cairns on the summit of two
hills overlooking Lough Gill, a couple of miles east of Carrowmore.
That on _Cairn’s Hill_ is about 180 paces in circumference, with a
summit diameter of 36 paces; it seems originally to have been terraced.
The other, on Belvoir Hill, was about the same dimensions, but it is
in a more ruinous condition. From their construction, and the remains
found, they were no doubt sepulchral.
* * * * *
_Monument at Heapstown._--At Heapstown, not far from Ballindoon, Co.
Sligo, is a gigantic pile of stones, said to have been raised in the
fourth century of our era over Oliolla, son of Eochy Moyvane, Ard-righ,
_i.e._ ‘Chief king’ of Erin. The extreme circumference of this great
work, which the peasantry assert was erected in one night, is stated to
be 62 statute perches. Nothing certain is known of its history; and the
story of its having had any connection with Oliolla is probably as true
as that embodied in the popular legend.
* * * * *
_Cairn and Cists at the ‘Barr’ of Fintona._--It is necessary here to
notice a few minor typical yet interesting sepulchres, some of which
it would appear had been left undisturbed and unnoticed until recent
years. One of the most instructive of these occurs at the ‘Barr’ of
Fintona, about three miles north of Trillick, Co. Tyrone. The cairn
was found to consist of a mound of stones, rising to a height of about
8 feet above the then level of the surrounding bog. It was quite
circular in plan. Resting upon the ground, and just within the outer
edge of the pile, were eight cists, each of which had the appearance
of a small cromlech. Four of these chambers enclosed portions of the
human skeleton; and in two of them, in addition to the remains of man,
was found an urn of baked clay. All within the principal urn-bearing
cavity was perfectly dry and undisturbed. The floor was flagged, and
here and there lay human bones in various stages of decomposition. With
them were found three vertebræ of a small mammal, probably those of
a dog. A fine, richly-decorated urn, evidently a food-vessel, lay on
its side in the middle of the enclosure, resting upon a large, clean
slab of sandstone. One of the cists lay on the north-east side of the
mound. It was oblong in form, 2 feet 4 inches in breadth by 3 feet 6
in length. The sides and bottom were neatly flagged. This grave was
reached with difficulty, as it proved to be secured by two ponderous
covering stones, one laid immediately over the other. Upon the floor,
cushioned in damp dust, lay the remains, or portions of the skeletons,
of two human beings, white and clean, as contrasted with the dark-brown
colour of their kindred mould. There were but a few other fragments
of bones beside the crania, and these were removed to the Museum of
the Royal Irish Academy. There were no traces of the lower jaws, nor
even of teeth. From the narrow proportions of the cist, it was quite
manifest that no two perfect human bodies, even those of very young
people, could have been deposited there. The space was far too limited
to have contained even one unmutilated corpse. The bones exhibited
no trace of the action of fire, and were unaccompanied by traces of
charcoal or ashes of any kind. On the mould which lay on the floor
being carefully sifted, no bead, flint-flake, or manufactured article
of any description was discovered; and as the bottom and sides of the
cist were composed of cleanly-split sandstone, it was evident that
nothing but human remains had been entombed there--unless, indeed, we
may suppose that an earthen vessel, or similarly perishable object, had
crumbled into dust amongst the animal matter.
At a point in the circumference of the cairn which may be described as
lying south-east from the centre, was a simple cist of quadrangular
form, measuring 17 by 18 inches; its depth was 18 inches. The little
chamber was found to contain some traces of grayish earth, somewhat
like lime-mortar; this occurred here and there in the generally darker
mould, and had the appearance of being a decomposition of human or
other bones. A cavity precisely similar in formation, but somewhat
smaller, lay in the circle, at a distance of about 9 feet from the
cist last noticed. This also yielded nothing of interest. Upon the
north-west side of the cairn were two cists, which in the temporary
absence of the explorer were dug up by treasure-seekers and others.
The havoc here perpetrated by ignorance is greatly to be lamented, as
in one of the cists an ornamental vase had been found, one fragment
of which Mr. Wakeman was fortunate enough to recover. In connection
with this vessel was discovered a beautifully formed flint knife. When
perfect, as originally found, it measured 3-3/10 inches in length,
by 1½ inches at its broadest part. The blade was extremely thin, and
exhibited on one side a central ridge, the other surface being flat
or slightly convex. Like most implements of its class, it presented
admirably chipped edges. The colour was dark-gray, and the instrument
showed no evidence of its having been submitted to the action of
fire. Another grave lay nearly midway between the first described
and the more northern of the two which had been shattered by the
treasure-seekers. It also was in all but utter ruin, owing partly
to the dampness of its position, and perhaps in some degree to the
comparatively inferior material of its component parts. The contents
presented human bones--those of adults--so soft and decomposed as not
to bear the slightest touch. They suggested the idea of softish mortar,
or of putty. No artificial object was here found, though everything
was done to bring to light any deposit which might have accompanied
the bones. A trench was excavated from the northern side through more
than half the diameter of the cairn; but no central cist or chamber was
discovered.[53]
The importance of the discoveries made at the ‘Barr’ in their bearings
upon more than one archæological question will doubtless, by a careful
reader, be acknowledged. Whether the human remains there found,
apparently huddled together in cists not sufficiently large to have
contained an entire adult body, were those of victims immolated during
the celebration of sepulchral rites, or whether they were relics of
persons slain in battle, buried, and subsequently disinterred for final
sepulture in the territory of their people or ancestors, are questions
which it would be very difficult to decide.
* * * * *
_Cairn and Cists at Bighy._--In some respects this is a very remarkable
burial site. It stands on the lands of Bighy (a modification of the
Irish word _Beithigh_, which signifies ‘Birch-land’), on a shoulder
of Bennaghlin, a mountain almost overhanging Florencecourt. It is
a cairn composed of sandstone, perfectly circular in plan, with a
central chamber, and a number of cists, placed almost equally distant
from each other, and ranged just within the outer edge of the mound,
which measures 50 feet in diameter, and is at present about 10 feet
high. The central chamber is of an oval form, 6 feet by 4 feet, and
4 feet in height. It is covered by two large flagstones and a number
of smaller ones. Its greater axis extends exactly east and west. Of
the surrounding cists--probably eighteen in number--but three remain
in a tolerably fair state of preservation. The largest of these is of
a bee-hive form; it is quite circular, and measures 3 feet 6 inches
in diameter. Its height was probably 4 feet, but, from the disturbed
state of the floor, there was difficulty in taking a very accurate
measurement. Of the other cists, which are slightly smaller, two
presented a rudely quadrangular plan, and were covered by stones laid
horizontally. With considerable difficulty, owing to the shaky state of
the walls, Mr. Wakeman carefully searched these cists, finding in all
of them small portions of calcined bones, accompanied by wood charcoal.
In the larger and more perfect chamber, situated to the south-west
of the mound, was found, imbedded amongst a quantity of charcoal and
burned bones, the base of a cinerary urn, 2¾ inches in diameter. It
appears to have been quite plain. No other portion of this vessel was
discoverable, and it was quite manifest that this cist, as well as the
others in the mound, had been very roughly handled by seekers for the
proverbial ‘crocks of gold,’ perhaps on many occasions. Elsewhere in
the country, cairns exhibiting a somewhat similar arrangement of cists
may be found; but the description here given of two representative
examples must suffice.
* * * * *
_The star-shaped Cairn of Doohat._--Doohat, the land upon which this
monument is situated, will be found marked on the Ordnance Map just
three and a half miles due south of Florencecourt. It is two miles
from Bighy, on the opposite side of Bennaghlin mountain. The name of
the site upon which it stands, Doohat--Irish, _Dumha Ait_, ‘Place
of the sepulchral tumulus’--sufficiently explains that at one time
its character had not passed out of local recollection. The plan of
the work is, as far as we know, unique in Ireland, representing the
star-fish, with five rays projecting from a central body or chamber
of the usual ‘giant’s grave’ class. To the south of the chamber,
and apparently forming a portion of the original design, occurs a
semicircular ridge of stones. This feature is constructed in the same
manner as the rays, and differs from them only in form and want of
connection with any other portion of the cairn. To a fanciful mind
the plan, on the whole, would most readily suggest the idea of a star
and crescent. The rays are well-defined stony ridges, averaging 16
or 17 feet in breadth at their junction with the central cist, or
dolmen, from which point they taper off to distances of 60, 46, 42,
and 40 feet, respectively. They terminate very sharply with one,
two, or three stones. The largest terminal stone--that which finishes
the north-western ray--measures 3 feet 6 inches by 2 feet. The main
chamber, which extends north and south, is divided by stone partitions
into three compartments, of which the central one, measuring 8 feet by
4 feet internally, is the largest. From its north-west angle a rudely
quadrangular offset, about 3 feet on the sides, projects westwards.
This tomb differs in no respect from a number of ‘giants’ graves which
are found in various parts of the country. No trace of covering slabs,
if any such were ever used to overlap the chamber, can be discovered
within or without the quadrangles; and it is not in the least likely
that any considerable portion of the work has been removed. There
is an over-abundance of stones, large and small, in the immediate
neighbourhood ready at hand; and there are no buildings near which
could have been furnished with materials from this source. This chamber
was carefully excavated down to the ‘till,’ or undisturbed yellow
clay, without finding any relics of the past beyond small pieces of
wood charcoal, stones showing the action of fire, very dark-coloured,
unctuous earth, and here and there some grayish matter, which may have
been bone in the last stage of decomposition. Having carefully refilled
all the pits necessarily made during the search, even replacing the
rubbish which had fallen or been thrown into the chambers, the work was
left in the same condition as that in which it had been found.
A number of small cists were then examined, some fifteen in all, which
lie in the various rays. Most of these diminutive receptacles had
evidently been previously searched. Of the six into which the spade
was introduced, four yielded small pieces of calcined bone, burned
earth and stones, black, greasy clay, and considerable quantities
of charcoal. There was much osseous sediment, resembling gray turf
ashes well moistened with water. The cists had, doubtlessly, all been
originally covered by flags, and would have presented the appearance of
miniature cromlechs. In design they were irregularly circular, composed
of five or more small stones, which in a manner lined the mouth of a
little pit sunk about a foot or so into the ‘till.’ The dimensions of
the largest, and we may say perfect, cist were as follows: 2 feet 2
inches by 2 feet 3 inches; depth, as well as could be ascertained, 2
feet. That they had ever contained urns is highly improbable, as not a
fragment of pottery appeared to reward the search.
‘Horned cairns,’ bearing a general likeness to the Doohat monument,
are also found in the north of Scotland, and were first properly
investigated by Dr. Joseph Anderson, as described in _Scotland in Pagan
Times_ (p. 230). In Scandinavia graves are found of various forms,
triangular, square, oval, and ship-shaped, a description of which
will be found in Fergusson’s _Rude Stone Monuments_ (p. 281), and M.
Du Chaillu’s _Viking Age_ (vol. I., chap. xviii.). Triangular-shaped
graves were generally supposed to be confined to Scandinavia, but
at least one example, as noticed by Colonel Wood-Martin, in _Rude
Stone Monuments of Sligo_ (p. 176), occurs in Ireland, in Northern
Moytura (Moytirra), the scene of the battle between the Fomorians and
the Tuatha De Danaan, seven years after the latter had defeated the
Firbolgs at Southern Moytura, Cong. Sir William Wilde describes some of
the cairns which mark the latter battle-field in his _Guide to Lough
Corrib_ (chap. viii.).
* * * * *
_Mounds._--Mounds of earth, occasionally mixed with stones, were
sometimes erected as places of interment. In England these earthen
mounds are called ‘Barrows’; they partake very much of the character
of cairns, from which class of sepulchre they may be said to differ
only in material, the cairns being entirely of stone. Some interesting
examples may be seen in the immediate vicinity of Dublin, in the
neighbourhood of Clontarf. These have been usually, but we believe
without warrant, associated with the great battle fought on Good
Friday, 1014, in which Brian, the son of Kennedy, commonly called
Brian Boroimhe, or ‘of the Tributes,’ fell in defeating the Danes.
The discovery of a Celtic sepulchral urn in one of these mounds, and
a bronze sword, and other relics of the same material in the tumulus
near ‘Conquer Hill,’ are evidence of an existence long anterior to the
eleventh century.
Small cairns marking the place of a death, or a halting-place in a
funeral procession, are still raised in some parts of Ireland--a
practice also common among primitive people in other lands. Examples
of cairns raised by devotees at some sacred spot are occasionally to
be met with. The most remarkable instance we know of is that raised by
pilgrims, who add stones to the heap after performing their stations,
at Glencolumbkille, Co. Donegal. It stands high upon the side of the
hill, close to the ruins of the old church, and measures about 30 paces
long, 4 wide, and 5 feet high.
* * * * *
[Illustration: Stones of the Circle at Newgrange.]
_Stone Circles._--Stone circles of great magnitude are to be seen in
many parts of Ireland. Of the lesser kind numerous examples occur in
various counties, and particularly in the north and north-west. They
are invariably composed of rough unhewn blocks, varying in height from
2 to 11 feet, or more, above the level of the adjoining land; and in
some instances they are encompassed with a low earthen mound or ditch.
Their area, though often apparently unoccupied, is generally found to
contain one or other of the remains already described--a cromlech,
a tumulus or cairn, a smaller circle, a pillar-stone, cists. Human
bones, cinerary urns, ashes, weapons, implements or ornaments of bone
or flint, or other objects, are invariably discovered within these
enclosures upon the earth being disturbed. The remains of a cremated
body were sometimes deposited in a cist, with or without an urn to
contain them, and the site marked with a circle of standing stones or a
single pillar. It is difficult now to determine the exact significance
of the stone circle round the mound or burial-place. Aristotle makes
an interesting allusion to the erection of stone circles round
burial sites: ‘Among the Iberians, who are a military people, it is
the custom to set round the tomb of a deceased warrior a number of
obelisks corresponding to the number of enemies he has killed.’[54]
The last resting-place of the dead has, however, at all times been
looked upon as more or less sacred; and Christian burial-places are
especially consecrated for the purpose, and protected from intrusion.
The custom of raising a stone circle round a dolmen or cist containing
burial remains has been a general one; and examples are found as far
off as Syria and Arabia similar to the megalithic structures of the
British Isles. The desire to protect and honour the remains of the
illustrious dead has existed in all lands, and has shown itself in the
production of the most remarkable monuments that the world has known.
The megalithic structures of western Europe, the elaborately decorated
tombs of the Mycenæan Age, the rock-tombs of Etruria, the Egyptian
pyramids, and the magnificent monuments of India abundantly testify to
the respect for the dead in the mind of man everywhere throughout past
ages.
* * * * *
_Circle at Newgrange._--It is impossible within the limits of this
Handbook to do more than briefly indicate a few typical examples of
the many stone circles scattered throughout the country. The stones
which encompass the monuments of Newgrange and Dowth are generally very
large, some of them measuring 8 or 9 feet in height. The engraving (p.
123) represents a portion of the circle at the former place, of which a
description has already been given. There are several minor examples in
the same neighbourhood, but they are in a state of great dilapidation,
and, with one exception, would hardly repay a student for the time
occupied in visiting them, particularly as the grander remains at
Newgrange are so accessible.
[Illustration: Remains of Stone Circle near Dowth.]
Portions of a fine circle, or rather oval, lie a little to the east of
Dowth Hall, to the left of the road from Drogheda. Many of the stones
have been removed, but several of gigantic proportions remain in their
original position.
* * * * *
_Circle near Newtownbutler._--One of the most notable circles now
remaining in Ireland is that called the ‘Druid’s Temple,’ situated
on the summit of a hill near Wattle Bridge, a small hamlet in the
vicinity of Newtownbutler, Co. Fermanagh. The stones vary in length
from 3 to upwards of 10 feet. The largest remaining measures slightly
over 10 feet; it is 6 feet 5 inches in breadth, and 3 feet 9 inches in
thickness. Another is 7 feet high, 8 feet 5 inches broad, and 5 feet in
thickness. The circle on the interior measures in diameter 126 feet.
The diameter of the outer ring at Stonehenge is 100 feet, a figure
common to several of these remains.
Whether the Fermanagh circle was ever enclosed by an outer work, as
was common with kindred structures in Britain and elsewhere, can
probably never be ascertained. For more than two hundred years the
land immediately adjoining has been subject to the plough. That there
were outside works, however, can scarcely admit of a doubt. On the
south-east side, a distance of five paces from the circle, are five
large stones, the ruins of a cromlech which had been wrecked many years
ago for the sake of its material.
* * * * *
_Ballynoe (Legamaddy) and Slieve na Greidle Circles._--Interesting
examples of stone circles are to be found in County Down. The largest
is Legamaddy, close to Ballynoe station, about three miles south
of Downpatrick. It consists of inner and outer circles; the former
measures 90 feet by 40 feet, with 22 stones, and the latter 100 feet
in diameter, with 45 stones. Another occurs on Slieve na Greidle, or
Griddle Mountain, to the south-east of the town.
[Illustration: Stone Circle, Ballynoe, near Downpatrick.]
Some of the finest of this class of prehistoric remains which we have
seen in Ireland occur near the shore of Lough Gur, a spot noted for
the number and variety of its antiquities, one hundred of which are
known to have existed within the memory of man. Lough Gur lies about
ten miles south of Limerick on the road to Bruff; and the first account
of its antiquities was given by Crofton Croker in 1830, after three
days’ investigation, extending over a tract of country fifteen miles
in length. ‘The finest circle is 56 yards in diameter, and consists of
a very large number of upright blocks closely arranged and flanked by
a great bank of earth. It is approached by a passage 12 feet long, the
entrance being guarded by two blocks, close to which is one 8 feet by 7
feet, and over 3 feet thick. In a field to the north-west are traces
of two more circles, one with a centre stone; and in the next field to
the north, the remains of another, 65 yards in diameter, of smaller
stones than the first.’ On the verge of the lake further east is a
small circle of seven fallen stones; to the north of Knockadun Hill are
three complete circles, two being concentric.[55]
[Illustration: Stone Circle at Slieve na Greidle, Co. Down.]
For our purpose, however, a sufficient number of typical examples have
already been given.
* * * * *
_Alignments._--At Carnac in Brittany, at Ashdown, Berkshire, in
Caithness, and in Sutherland may be seen lines of stone placed upon
end, and generally some few feet apart. The row is occasionally of a
length not exceeding a few yards; but sometimes it appears to cover
a great extent of ground. The stones vary in size, some of the blocks
being of large proportions, and others measuring barely 3 or 4 feet in
height. All are invariably unhewn, presenting the appearance of rough
surface stones, or of such as are usually found in glacial-scooped
ravines or river-beds. These lines are usually in parallel rows,
varying in number to ten or more. For want of a better name they have
been variously styled avenues, alignments, rows, parallelitha. From the
days of Stukeley they have been the subject of much speculation, and
we have little beyond conjecture in regard to their uses. They seem
like ‘galleries which lead to nothing’; yet their construction affords
unmistakable evidence of organized labour and deliberate design.
The antiquities of Cavancarragh, a district situated on a shoulder
of Toppid Mountain, about four miles from Enniskillen, consist of
two chambered cairns, a stone circle, and what appears to be a small
but well-defined alignment. The latter, and the circle within living
memory, lay buried to a depth of from 8 to 12 feet beneath the surface
of a mountain bog. The alignment consists of a row of stones, four in
number, extending, as far as it can be traced, 480 feet in a direction
very slightly to the north-west and south-east. The blocks average
about 3 feet in height by 2 feet in width, and 6 inches in thickness,
and present the appearance of the ordinary red sandstone flags of the
district. The extreme south-eastern portion of the work has probably
been destroyed; but in that direction the lines could never have
extended much further than they do at present, as the ground suddenly
descends, forming one side of a deep ravine, through which in winter
time a mountain torrent rushes. How far to the north-west the lines
extend is at present uncertain, and cannot be known until the peat in
that direction is further lowered. Probably, however, beyond the circle
no considerable extension would be discovered. The cairns here are in
a very ruinous condition, having for the greater part of a century
served as a quarry for building purposes. The plan of one of them is
very similar to that of the monument at the ‘Barr’ of Fintona already
described. There was no central chamber; and only two of its circle of
cists remain in a good state of preservation. The stone circle standing
near the north-west side of the avenue is 20 feet in diameter, and is
formed of twelve sandstone blocks which at present rise but 2 or 3 feet
above the level of the bog.
There are, however, in Ireland lines of stones, sometimes single,
but never more than double, which should not be confounded with
those strictly of the alignment class. Some of these are the remains
of passages which led to sepulchral chambers, and have been either
stripped of their covering slabs, or were never finished. Such rows may
indeed sometimes be looked upon as portions of ruined cromlechs, or
skeleton traces of monuments like those of the Boyne or Maeshowe.
We find stones of various sizes, differing, as at Finner, near
Ballyshannon, from 1½ feet, or 2 feet 6 inches above ground; or, as
at Breagho and Killee, near Enniskillen, with an elevation of 6 or 7
feet, upon which no definite opinion can be formed as to the class of
monument to which they should be assigned. In all probability they
represent but wrecks of works of a sepulchral kind, which, at a time
now forgotten, but doubtless in modern days, were exhumed during the
process of turf-cutting. Of these, as well as of several other broken
or never completed relics of a megalithic class, found in several parts
of Ireland, it is only certain that they rest on the ‘till’ upon which
peat, to a depth of from 8 to 12 feet or more, once lay.
[Illustration: Bird’s-eye view of Callernish Circle and Lines.]
One of the most remarkable examples of a stone circle and lines known
in the British Isles is Callernish, on the west coast of the Island of
Lewis. The stones were partially embedded in peat. This was cleared in
1858, and found to exist to a depth of 5 feet. The stones were here
securely sunk in a ‘rough causewayed basement.’ The circle, about 40
feet in diameter, is formed by twelve stones round a central one 17
feet high. Between this stone and the east side of the circle was
found a ruined chambered cairn, 20 feet in diameter, which contained
fragments of burnt human bones. The stones are set in the form of a
cross, the east, south, and west lines single, and extending from the
circle. To the north is a double row or avenue 270 feet long.
There are examples of these lines in the Dartmoor district, with
rows in one case of seven parallel lines. On the Stalldon Moor is a
single line of stones, starting from a stone circle, which can be
clearly traced for one and a half miles, and imperfectly continued for
three-fourths of a mile further, terminating at a kistvaen. Another
perfect line is the Down Tor Stone Row, about 600 yards long, extending
from a circle enclosing a small barrow towards a large cairn.[56]
CHAPTER V.
BURIAL CUSTOMS.--OGAM STONES.
NECESSITY FOR DISPOSAL OF DEAD--INHUMATION AND CREMATION IN BRITISH
ISLES AND CONTINENT--BALLON HILL--CARROWMORE--DYSART--METHODS
OF BURIAL--ORIGIN OF CREMATION--RELIGIOUS SENTIMENT--URNS,
CLASSIFICATION AND USES OF--OGAM STONES--REFERENCE TO,
IN IRISH MSS.--MOUNT CALLAN STONE--BISHOP GRAVES--OGAMS
DESCRIBED--ALPHABET--GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS.
Notwithstanding the number and variety of sepulchral remains in
Ireland, it is strange that the rites and ceremonies attending the
disposal of the dead in prehistoric times have not received from Irish
archæologists the systematic study they deserve. Unfortunately many of
the burial sites have, in the past, been treated in a manner that has
left but little data of any scientific value for expert use. The number
discovered, of cinerary urns containing human remains has been very
great, and establish, beyond a doubt, the fact of the general custom of
cremation. Most of these urns have been destroyed, either through the
ignorance and stupidity of the discoverers, or the carelessness of the
subsequent owners.
Under all human conditions it is necessary that some method should be
adopted for the disposal of the dead; but there can be no doubt that
the religious sentiment has ever been the predominating factor in all
burial customs. The earliest method of disposing of the dead was by
simple interment; and even when cremation became general, the practice
was never entirely abandoned. Both forms may occur in the same mound;
but the general result is that the inhumed remains are found at the
bottom, and the cremated remains nearer the surface, which shows these
were later in point of time. Where, however, the earliest interments
have been burnt bones, inhumed bodies, as at Ballon Hill, may form
secondary burials. The result of Canon Greenwell’s explorations in
the barrows of Yorkshire showed that out of 379 burials 301 were by
inhumation, and in 78 cremated remains were found. Exploration in other
parts of England gave similar results.[57] Out of 297 interments in
Derby, Stafford, and York, Mr. Bateman found that 124 were of burnt
bones; 163 were of ordinary burials, of which latter the bodies in
97 had been placed in a contracted or sitting position. Sir R. C.
Hoare found that out of 267 interments in Wiltshire, 214 were of
cremated remains, 53 of inhumed, of which the skeletons of 15 were
found contracted. In the district of Glasinac is a vast collection
of tumuli. ‘Their total number,’ says Dr. Munro, ‘is estimated at
20,000--an estimation which is now regarded as coming far short of the
actual number--of which about 1000 have been explored.... The builders
of these burial mounds practised both inhumation and cremation, the
former being in the proportion of 60 per cent., and the latter 30 per
cent., while the remaining 10 per cent. were of a mixed character,
_i.e._, contained both kinds of interments.’[58] In the Hallstatt
cemetery in the Noric Alps (which has given its name as a distinctive
term to an archæological period, owing to the importance of its
‘grave-goods’), tombs to the number of 993 were examined as far back as
1868. Of these ‘525 contained simple interments; 455 had incinerated
human remains; and in 13 the bodies had only been partially burnt
before being interred.’[59] Great quantities of implements, domestic
articles, and objects for personal use and adornment have been found in
both classes of graves.
At Ballon Hill, near Tullow, County Carlow, a number of cinerary urns
and great quantities of cremated remains were discovered in 1853,
evidently of the pure Bronze Period. This spot has not been identified
with any of the great burial-places mentioned in early Irish records.
Three skeletons were found a couple of feet beneath an immense boulder,
‘huddled together in a small space not above 2 feet in length.’ At a
considerable depth below these, and beneath four granite blocks, a
bed of charcoal was reached, containing broken urns of four different
patterns. Many perfect urns were found, some of which are among the
finest examples yet discovered in Ireland. The urns were placed in
stone cists, and also in the earth without any trace of an enclosure.
There was evidence of great fires, while deep pits and beds of
charcoal were laid bare, showing the extent to which cremation and
the attendant funeral rites had been carried out at this spot. The
only weapon found was a single dagger blade of bronze.[60] Carrowmore
furnishes an instance of a mixed interment, where the inhumed remains
were found over the calcined bones. ‘At the lowest level,’ says Colonel
Wood-Martin, ‘of the side-stones of the cist a floor or flagging of
calpy limestone slabs was found. It was on this--which overlay the
undisturbed “till”--that the body or bodies of the primary interment
had been originally cremated, portions of the floor showing marks
of fire; and semi-burnt wood was found inlaid, with the layer of
calcined bones above. It was plainly evident from the floors and burnt
bones extending in “pockets” under the side-stones of the cist, that
the latter had been constructed over the funeral pyre, and that the
calcined remains were the primary interment, and that they had not been
placed within an already completed chamber.’[61]
In a small tumulus at Dysart, County Westmeath, Dr. Dillon Kelly
discovered, in 1876, two kistvaens containing skeletons in a contracted
position. One was of an irregular pentagon shape, the longest diameter
being 3 feet 9 inches, and the depth 2 feet 3 inches. In this there
were three animal teeth; and each chamber contained a fine urn of baked
clay. Cremated remains were found on the covering stones and round the
cists. The burning seems to have taken place over the inhumed bodies,
whose heads may, from their sitting position, have come into almost
immediate contact with the covering stones. The supposition receives
additional weight from the baked look of the tops of the skulls, both
of which presented such an appearance over the whole of their vertical
aspects.[62]
Urn burials on a larger scale were found at the Hill of Rath, near
Drogheda, in 1841. Here remains of some 150 to 200 urns were discovered
in an inverted position, each covering a quantity of human bones.
They were placed in the earth without any protection, and were in
consequence mostly broken by the pressure of the earth. Singly and in
small groups urns containing incinerated remains have been found in
most parts of Ireland. Worsaae was of opinion that many of the mounds
or barrows were places of family sepulture, and that cists containing
urns with burial remains found in open fields were those used by the
poorer class who had no burial mound in which to place their dead.[63]
We have ample evidence of the antiquity and general practice of
cremation in Europe. It was the custom of the Achæans, as Homer tells
us, at least 1000 B.C. The remains of Achilles ‘were wash’d in wine
and given fit unction,’ and, with the bones of Patroclus, placed in a
‘two-ear’d bowl of gold.’ This was placed in a grave, and over it was
raised a ‘matchless sepulchre’ high above the Hellespont. The body of
Hector was burned on a mighty pile of wood, and the remains treated
with similar observances. Recent archæological opinion ascribes the
origin of cremation to the Celtic tribes inhabiting Central Europe. It
is urged that the custom would not have arisen among nomadic tribes,
but rather among a people living in a land covered with woods and
forests. Tacitus says that the Germans ‘simply observe the custom of
burning the bodies of illustrious men with certain kinds of wood.
They do not heap garments or spice on the pyre. The arms of the dead
man, and in some cases his horse, are consigned to the fire. A turf
mound forms his tomb. Monuments, with their lofty elaborate splendour,
they reject as oppressive to the dead.’ In Denmark cremation became
a general practice; and in Scandinavia it was an essential religious
custom in the worship of Odin. Professor Montelius thinks that the
evidence favours the view that in the north of Europe the Stone Age
ended rather before than after 1500 B.C. During it the bodies were
always buried unburnt in a recumbent or sitting position, and, as
in the British Isles, urns and implements are found with the burial
remains.[64]
The Gauls, as we know from Cæsar, burned some of the servants, slaves,
and favourite animals of the dead chief, or warrior, in celebrating
their funeral rites. Cremation was not practised in Asia Minor,
Phœnicia, or Palestine. The Egyptians embalmed their dead, for they
believed that as long as the body existed, so long did the soul exist
in the spirit world. The Scythians, as Herodotus tells us, did not
burn, but buried their dead. They embalmed the body of their king;
and ‘they strangle and bury with him one of his concubines, his cook,
cup-bearer, groom, lackey, his messenger, and some of his horses,
firstlings of all his other possessions, and some golden cups.’ Over
all was raised a mound; and ‘this Scythian custom, in its late Greek
and Roman imitations, explains the countless tumuli which travellers
see to this day in Bulgaria, in the Dobrudscha, in Wallachia, Moldavia,
and Southern Russia, as far as the Crimea.’[65] The Thracians either
burned or buried their dead, held feasts and games, and raised tumuli.
In Illyria and in Bosnia, as we have stated, inhumation and cremation
were observed at the same time. Historical evidence goes to show that
the Thracians and Illyrians were conquered by the Celtic tribes from
the Alps; ‘and as the culture of the early Iron Age in the Danubian
region corresponds to that of the Celtic Hallstatt, there is a
probability that the practice of cremation, which makes its appearance
in the early Iron Age in Bosnia, and which was practised by some
Thracians in the fifth century B.C., was introduced by the Celtic
conquerors who lived with the Illyrians and Thracian tribes.’[66] Mr.
Ridgeway, having carefully considered the methods of disposing of the
dead in the countries bordering on the Mediterranean, finds that,
without exception, ‘inhumation, or some other method of disposing of
the body without the use of fire, was universal in early times, and
continued so over most of the area down to the Christian era.’ His
conclusion is ‘that cremation did not pass into Greece from either
Libya, Egypt, or Asia Minor, nor did it originate among the Pelasgians
of the islands, nor yet in the mainland.’[67] Whether the practice
arose among the Celtic tribes of Central Europe, or was adopted by
them, it passed with other customs and things westwards and northwards
along the trade routes, and its adoption in Britain and Ireland was
merely a matter of time.
Man’s belief in a spiritual existence was, as we have already pointed
out, the cause of that respect for the dead, which has shown itself in
the countless sepulchral monuments scattered all over the world from
prehistoric times down to our own days. To house the dead and hold the
spirit entombed was the idea that once prevailed, and does so still
among savage tribes. Immense cromlechs, cairns, and mounds of earth
were raised above the dead, not only to house the spirit fittingly,
but to prevent its return to earth; and strange customs still survive
among primitive races to puzzle the dead should they attempt to return
to their old habitations. It was a belief, too, among the Celtic
tribes, as it has been among other races, that the spirit of the dead
chief would keep watch and ward over them, and hence the burial-mound
was sometimes raised close to or within the ring-wall of the camp.
We are told that Eoghan Bel, King of Connaught, having received his
death-wound in the Battle of Sligo, ordered that his grave should
be dug in the side of his rath, and his body buried ‘with his red
spear in his hand and his face to the north.’[68] The site overlooked
the pass traversed by the Ulstermen in their accustomed raids; and
the burial was so effective in terrifying these foes that they made
a special incursion, exhumed the body, and buried it with its face
downwards on the shores of Lough Gill. King Laoghaire[69] was buried,
as we have already mentioned, in the south-east external side of the
rampart of Rath Laoghaire, Tara, with his weapons upon him, and ‘his
face towards the Lagenians in the attitude of fighting with them.’[70]
(See p. 50.)
The dead were believed to require servants, food, raiment, weapons,
and a home such as they did in life; and hence the quantity of
‘grave-goods’ of early races, so important to the archæologist,
discovered in many burial-mounds and tombs. Small fictilia, which are
considered food-vessels by some, are commonly found with body burials,
the offering of food and libations to the dead being a primitive
custom, which still exists in many heathen lands, and has its survival
in some Christian practices down to our own time. When inhumed, the
dead chief was laid in the grave, or within the chambered tumulus, clad
in full apparel, with his ornaments and weapons, and servants to attend
him. We have references to the burial of warriors with their weapons
in Irish MSS. Dr. Sullivan quotes the following:--‘Dearg Damhsa, the
druid, made a capacious yellow-sodded Fert for Mogh Neid on the plain,
and he buried him in it with his arms, and with his clothes, and with
his armour.’ And from the _Book of Lecan_ he cites this:--‘He killed
Feradach after that, the good son of Rocuirp; according to rule, and
until his death, he brandished his arms which are under the Duma of the
beautiful Carn. Feradach was killed at the Battle of Carn Feradaig, and
this here is Feradach’s Fert.’[71]
In cremation the old neolithic practice was changed with the newer
conception of the relation between the soul and body. This belief was
that the soul could not pass into the spirit world until the body had
been destroyed by burning. Total separation was necessary, and the
quickest and most effective method was through the medium of fire. The
practice was probably an evolutionary one, as in France the process of
the natural destruction of the flesh from the bones, before the latter
were burned, seems in the first instance to have been adopted. Until
the body was destroyed the spirit haunted its local habitation; and the
Homeric idea, shared by the Celt and Norse, was that, when the earthly
tabernacle was consumed, the soul departed for ever to the world of
shades.
Cremation was very probably confined to the chiefs, heroes, or other
important persons, as from the very difficulties attending burning
the ordinary practice of interment was doubtless adopted for the rank
and file of the tribe. Inhumation was practically universal all over
Europe until the close of the Stone Age; but all through the Bronze
Age both customs were practised, and in the west of Europe interment
remained the prevailing custom of disposing of the dead. In the north
of Europe, however, cremation reached a far higher development than
elsewhere. In remote districts of Spain, France, and in the British
Isles the sepulchres of the Stone Age long lingered; and in the tombs
and chambered cairns cremated remains have been found of the later
Bronze Period.
Though there are numerous references in Irish MSS. to burials in
early times, on the subject of cremation they are silent. We have one
remarkable passage, however, which has frequently been quoted and
commented on, as it seems to refer to this custom. In the _Book of
Ballymote_ is the following account of the death of Fiachra, son of
Eochaidh Muighmhedhoin, and brother to Niall of the Nine Hostages:
‘Then the men of Munster gave him battle in Caenraigne, and Maidhi
Meascoragh wounded Fiachra mortally in the battle. Nevertheless, the
men of Munster and the Erneans were defeated by dint of fighting, and
suffered great slaughter. Then Fiachra carried away fifty hostages out
of Munster, together with his tribute in full, and set forth on his
march to Temor. Now, when he had reached Forraidh in Uibh Maccuais, in
Meath, Fiachra died of his wound. His Leacht (grave) was made, and his
Fert (mound) was raised, and his Cluicht Caintech[72] were ignited, and
his Ogam name was written, and the hostages which had been brought from
the south were buried alive round Fiachra’s Fert, that it might be a
reproach to the Momonians for ever, and that it might be a trophy over
them.’ Though we have but this single recorded instance in Irish Annals
of human sacrifice--that of strangers at the burial of a chief--it
must not be regarded merely in the light of revenge for the death of
their leader. The reproach here cast on the men of Munster followed
a principle common wherever similar burial customs have prevailed.
According to the practice usually observed at the burial of a chief,
the attendants and slaves who were to accompany Fiachra to the spirit
world would have full funeral rites conferred upon them. But the
Momonian hostages were thus destroyed, so that their souls might keep
perpetual guard around Fiachra’s fert, that covered his sepulchre of
stone.
* * * * *
[Illustration: Cinerary Urn, from One Man’s Cairn, N. Moytura.]
_Urns._--As we have seen, urns are among the objects commonly found
with the remains of the dead, whether inhumed or cremated. The Irish
fictilia are usually classified as food-vessels, cinerary urns,
and incense-cups. In Great Britain a fourth class is known, called
‘drinking-cups,’ but none of these have been found among burial remains
in Ireland. The cinerary urns vary in size and ornamentation, and are
found from 10 to 25 inches in height; one of the latter size is in the
Grainger collection in the Belfast Museum. They are usually of narrow
base, and reach their widest above the middle; they contract towards
the mouth, which has an overhanging rim; this is sometimes broad enough
to contain all the ornamentation on the urn. This consists of chevron,
lozenge, or other archaic designs impressed into the clay. A good many
of the richer description present mouldings, bosses, &c., in relief.
It is difficult to form an exact opinion as to the manner in which the
more highly decorated and larger urns were manufactured. They generally
present an outer surface, some eighth or so of an inch in depth,
composed apparently of well-kneaded compost of yellow or buff-coloured
clay, which exhibits but few or no traces of the action of fire.
Underneath this envelope is a black, highly-fused mass of coarser
composition, which forms what may be called the strength of the vessel.
It is a curious fact that the majority of cinerary vases exhibit upon
the interior indications of an intense action of fire, while in many
examples the outer surface would seem to be simply sun-baked. From a
careful examination of a considerable number of urns found in Irish
tumuli and sandhills, it seems to us that at least three stages in the
process of their formation are indicated. First, the vessel appears
to have been fashioned of a somewhat coarse, gritty material; it was
then baked in a strong fire, and burnt almost to blackness. It would
seem, upon cooling, to have been overlaid with a fine matter, generally
buff or cream-coloured, sufficiently soft to receive impressions
readily from a tool formed of wood, horn, bone, stone, or possibly of
bronze or iron. Strips of light material, like that of the coating
or veneer already referred to, were then laid on, just, to use a
homely illustration, as a modern cook will embellish a pie-crust. The
overlayings, while still soft, were then indented with patterns, and
the work either dried in the sun or presented to the influence of a
moderate degree of heat from a fire of wood or peat.
[Illustration: Cinerary Urn from Co. Carlow.]
[Illustration: Cinerary Urn, Co. Wicklow.]
[Illustration: Cinerary Urn, Co. Cavan.]
All sepulchral urns were hand-made and invariably unglazed. They have
been found to contain portions of the bones of a human body, sometimes
of more than one, in a highly calcined state; and there is reason to
believe that occasionally some relics, also burnt, most notably those
of the dog, had been inurned along with the remains of man. Arrow-heads
and knives of flint, pins of bone or bronze, glass and stone beads,
rings of jet, and in one case, at least, a beautiful knife or dagger of
bronze, have formed, with the bones, portion of the contents of these
vessels; charcoal and particles of half-consumed wood constitute the
remainder. Sometimes the urn is found placed mouth downward, and, as
at Drumnakilly, surmounting a cup-hollow; but in general it stands on
its base, and is covered by a thin flat stone or slate. A unique and
very beautiful example, preserved in the National Museum, is furnished
with a veritable lid. Though generally presenting the appearance of a
cinerary urn, this relic may have been a food-vessel.
[Illustration: Urns from Co. Down.]
The vessels considered to have been receptacles for food are usually
found associated with inhumation, and are supposed to have contained
food for the spirits in their journey to the world of shades. Though
they vary greatly in ornamentation, yet they are better made and more
richly decorated than the British urns of a similar class. They are
somewhat globular in form, and are well represented in the figure on
next page, which shows a specimen discovered in connection with the
cromlech-like tomb in the Phœnix Park, already described. This vessel,
with some antiquities of the same ‘find,’ may be seen in the National
Museum. One other example (p. 149), remarkable for the elaborate
character of its ornamentation, is from Ballymote, County Sligo.
[Illustration: Food-Vessel from Cist in the Phœnix Park, Dublin.]
[Illustration: Small Cinerary Urn, Bagenalstown, Co. Carlow.]
[Illustration: Food-Vessel from Grave near Ballymote, Co. Sligo.]
The so-called ‘Incense Cups’ found in Ireland are, like their
British prototypes, invariably of very small size. They are usually
undecorated; the rims are sometimes pierced with four or more
apertures, as if for suspension. In Ireland vessels of this kind are
usually found enclosed in urns of the larger and richer class. There
is no evidence to support the theory that they were used as vessels for
holding ‘incense,’ or as ‘chafers’ containing burning coals for a short
time. They are now generally considered as cinerary urns in which the
remains of infants were placed. Perhaps the most beautiful specimen yet
discovered in the British Isles was found near Bagenalstown in 1847,
which contained the burnt bones of an infant or very young child. ‘It
was embedded in a much larger and ruder urn, filled with fragments
of adult human bones.’ The smaller urn, when reversed, ‘presents,’
says Wilde, ‘both in shape and ornamentation all the characteristics
of the Echinus, so strongly marked that one is led to believe the
artist took the shell of that animal for his model.’ It is 2⅛ inches
high, and 3¾ across the outer margin of the lip, which is beautifully
ornamented, and has the rare addition of a handle. The body is divided
into a number of upright sections, all elaborately worked in a
variety of patterns. A rope-like ornament surrounds the neck, and the
under-portion of the lip has an accurately cut chevron.
OGAM STONES.
The passage we have quoted from the _Book of Ballymote_ (p. 142) is
one of many from Irish MSS. which refer to Ogam Stones. In the account
in the _Leabhar na h-Uidhre_ of the death and burial of Fothadh
Airgthech, who was killed in the Battle of Ollarba, near Larne, in 285
A.D., we are told of his burial in a stone sepulchre with ‘his two
Fails (bracelets), his Bunne-do-At (twisted hoop), and his Muintorc
(neck-torque) of silver; and there is a rock standing at his tomb; and
there is an Ogam inscription on the end which is in the ground of the
rock, and what is written on it is: Eochaidh (or Fothadh) Airgthech
is here.’[73] In the _Táin Bó Chuailgne_ (the Cattle raid of Cooley),
the earliest copy of which is to be found in the _Book of Leinster_,
we read that when Fergus mac Roigh brought back the body of Fergus
Etercomal, who was slain by Cuchulainn, they celebrated his funeral
games, planted a stone over his grave, and inscribed his name in Ogam.
In an early poem in the _Book of Leinster_ we have, in an account of
the Battle of Gabhra, which was fought in 283 A.D., the following
lines referring to the death of Cairbre Lifeachair:--
‘An Ogam in a _lia_, a _lia_ over a _leacht_,
In a place whither men went to battle,
The son of the king of Erin fell there,
Slain on his white steed by a sharp spear....
‘That Ogam which is upon the stone,
Around which the heavy hosts have fallen
If the battle-fighting Finn had lived,
Long would that Ogam be remembered.’
Many passages exist, too, referring to the use of Ogam writing on
pieces of wood to convey messages by hand. Opinion has been divided
as to how far the passages we have quoted bear testimony to the
antiquity of Ogam stones for sepulchral purposes. This at least is
plain: the belief in this use of the stones existed when the MSS.
were written, and the stones themselves furnish strong presumptive
evidence that the testimony of the records is based on something more
than mere vague tradition. Many of the stones no doubt stand in their
original position; but the meagre nature of the inscriptions renders
it difficult, if not impossible, to identify them with any degree of
certainty with those who figure in ancient Irish records.
[Illustration: Ogam Stone (Co. Kerry) in Trinity College, Dublin.]
The earliest notice of Ogam writing is in the _Book of Leinster_,
which gives the scale of letters. The _Book of Ballymote_ is of
especial interest, as it contains a tract on the Ogam writing of
the Gaedhil, with the ‘key now ordinarily used in the translations
of inscriptions, as well as a variety of ciphers founded on the
original characters.’[74] It was not until 1784 that the attention of
antiquaries was directly drawn to the existence of Ogam stones by the
discovery of the Mount Callan monument in Co. Clare with an inscription
in Ogam character. A vigorous controversy raged over this ‘find’; but
it had one important result, the interest of archæologists was aroused,
and in subsequent years General Vallancey and others gave considerable
attention to the subject of Ogams; many stones were discovered and
their nature and character investigated, not, however, without many
wild theories being advanced, supported by unsound arguments and
distorted learning. In 1846 the late Bishop Graves for the first
time brought scientific methods to bear on the elucidation of Ogam
inscriptions, and clearly demonstrated by independent investigation
the certainty of the scale in the _Book of Ballymote_. The general
principle upon which he based his analysis was: ‘That in any given
language, or group of cognate languages, there is a preference for
particular sounds and particular sequence of sounds.’ After various
trials he established satisfactory results, and placed the whole
scheme of inquiry in papers read before the Royal Irish Academy, in the
years 1848–9. ‘The Ogam alphabet,’ says Dr. Graves, ‘consists of lines,
or groups of lines, variously arranged with reference to a single
stem-line, or to an edge of the substance on which they are traced.
The spectator, looking at an upright Ogam monument, will, in general,
observe groups of incised strokes of _four_ different kinds: (1) groups
of lines to the right; (2) others to the left of the edge; (3) other
longer strokes crossing it obliquely; (4) and small notches upon the
edge itself.... Ogam inscriptions, in general, begin from the bottom,
and read upwards, from left to right. Almost all those which have been
deciphered present merely a proper name with its patronymic, both in
the genitive case. The monuments appear, for the most part, to have
been sepulchral in the first instance. But there is reason to suppose
that they were used to indicate the proprietorship of land, either
standing as boundary stones, or buried in crypts, as evidences to be
referred to in case of disputes arising.’
[Illustration]
It will be seen from the accompanying score that the letters are
arranged in four groups of five letters each. Those of the first or B
group are to the right of the edge, represented here by the horizontal
line; the second or H group to the left; the third or M group cut
the edge obliquely; and the fourth or vowel group are small notches
on the edge itself. Ogam inscriptions are written continuously, but
the difficulty of a right division into words was simplified when
it was found that the same group of incisions, which is rendered
by MAQI, MAQUI, or other form, the old genitive of MAQUAS, a son,
invariably occurred in these scores. A general idea of the readings
may be gathered from the annexed figure, which gives--Feqreq Moqoi
Glunlegget,(the Stone of) Fiachra, Son of Glunlegget; the scores on
this stone are inverted. The first name is usually in the genitive
case, and the word ‘stone’ or ‘monument’ is supposed to be understood.
[Illustration: Ogam Stone, Monataggart, Co. Cork.]
The number of Ogams discovered (including fragments and lost stones) is
now about 270, and these are chiefly confined to the south of Ireland;
but it is significant, as Dr. Rhys points out, that the most recent
discoveries are in Ulster and Mayo. The county of Kerry furnishes
nearly one-half the entire number, the barony of Corkaguiny being
the richest in these remains of antiquity. There are nine in the
burial-ground at Ballintaggart, near Dingle, and collections have been
made at Burnham House (Lord Ventry), and at Parknasilla. The finest yet
formed, numbering thirty, is in the National Museum, Dublin. The stones
vary in form: most are tall and tapering, of a somewhat pyramidal
shape; many are flags; some are amorphous monoliths; and others are
rounded, especially those on the shores of the Dingle peninsula, which
were probably worn by the action of the Atlantic waves. Ogam stones
appear always to have been set up in the rough state, as those found
present no appearance of having been cut into shape. Standing above
the ground, they vary in height from 3 to about 19 feet. The scores
commence at some distance from the foot of the stone, so that it is
evident that the blocks, whether now prostrate or not, were originally
intended to stand upright.
Ogam stones to the number of 54 exist in Great Britain, the cipher
being identical with that of the Irish inscriptions. Of these South
Wales has 25, Scotland 16, south-west of England 5, and the Isle of
Man 6. Most of the Welsh and south-west stones have Roman lettering
of a rude type which points to the early Christian period, when there
was close intercourse between the Irish and Welsh Churches. One of
the Welsh stones is of considerable importance, as it furnished an
efficient test to the truth of the key to the cipher in the _Book of
Ballymote_, and as demonstrated independently by Dr. Graves. This stone
is at St. Dogmael’s, near Cardigan; it contains an Ogam inscription,
and another in Roman letters. A copy of the former was sent to
Dr. Graves, whose reading was practically identical with the Roman
lettering which he had not seen. On a close examination of the stone,
traces of the vowel _a_, which had been cut by a crack and absent in
the copy of the cipher, were discovered, and the truth of his reading
thus wholly verified.
Besides marking burial and other sites, Ogam stones are found in all
kinds of situations: in souterrains, in some fourteen of which Ogam
stones have been discovered; in drains and other field uses; and in the
walls of churches and other buildings. In the underground chamber of
Dunloe there are seven Ogam stones; in Drumloghan, Co. Waterford, ten;
and on the stones forming the roof of a drain at Ballyknock, Co. Cork,
there are fifteen inscriptions. When their original use had long been
forgotten, they were evidently taken from their sites and converted
into such building or farm purposes as the occasion required.
The Ogam character was sometimes used in other material than that of
stone. There is MS. evidence, as we have mentioned, of its having
been applied to wood, which was doubtless the material first used for
the purpose; and examples occur in bone, amber, gold, silver, and
lead. Of these are the Conyngham gold manilla, the authenticity of
the characters of which was, however, doubted by Dr. Graves; a silver
brooch found in 1806 at Ballyspellan (Co. Kilkenny), and which is
considered to date from the end of the eleventh or beginning of the
twelfth century. The specimen in lead was discovered by Mr. Wakeman
in 1844; the little vessel upon which the scores appeared was then
in use as an ink-bottle. It is interesting not only from the legend
being in relief, which goes to establish its genuineness, but also from
the circumstance of its discovery in Kilmallock, the name of which
place it gives. The characters are in two lines, and, if read from the
bottom upwards, give the words: ‘Nig-Lasmeich,’ and ‘Cill Mocholmog.’
The object on which they occur is a narrow, quadrangular vessel, one
inch and three-eighths in height, with sides converging upwards, and
with a low, small, circular neck. The Ogam character, in one form or
another, was sometimes used as a charm, as in the case of the amber
bead belonging to a family of the O’Connors, near Ennis, Co. Clare; or,
as shown by Bishop Graves, for purposes of divination.
Archæologists are not yet agreed on all matters relating to Ogams. The
varied opinions as to the readings of most inscriptions, the somewhat
uninteresting and meagre details of all, the doubt hitherto as to
whether they are cryptic or not, the great difficulty of identifying
them through the medium of Irish written records, limit the interest
and check inquiry in this particular field of archæological research.
But Dr. Stokes and Dr. Rhys have established their non-cryptic
character, and shown their exceptional value from a philological point
of view. Doubt, too, has long been thrown on their antiquity. Brash and
others claim for them a pre-Christian origin; but recent authorities,
such as Dr. Rhys, do not consider them earlier than the introduction of
Christianity into the British Isles. It has been well urged by Bishop
Graves that the division of the alphabet into vowels and consonants
‘furnishes internal evidence of its having been contrived by persons
possessing some grammatical knowledge, and acquainted with alphabets
of the ordinary kind.’ Other questions arise, such as the presence of
the Christian emblem on many stones, the number standing in church
burial-grounds, and their presence in caves, from which various
deductions have been drawn. It has been urged by the claimants for the
pagan origin of Ogams, that it was the custom of the early missionaries
to convert things identified with heathen uses to Christian purposes,
and to mark such objects as these stones with the sacred symbol of the
Cross. A consideration of these questions would lead us too far afield,
and not necessarily lead to a final judgment on any of the points at
issue. It is sufficient, however, to say that the internal evidence
of the alphabet, and the affinity of the Irish unilingual Ogams to
the bilingual stones of Wales, are in themselves highly presumptive
of their dating within, and not without, the period marking the
establishment of Christianity in Ireland.
CHAPTER VI.
RATHS AND STONE FORTS.
RATHS AND DUNS--SUBTERRANEAN CHAMBERS--SOUTERRAIN IN GURTEEN
RATH--TARA--EMANIA--RATH OF DOWNPATRICK--HILL OF WARD--NAAS
RATH--CASHELS--CLOCHAUNS OR BEE-HIVE HUTS--STAIGUE FORT--
CAHERCONREE--CLARE FORTS--DUN AENGUS--THE DINGLE FORTS AND
CLOCHAUNS--DUNAMOE--INISMURRAY--GRIANAN OF AILEACH--GENERAL
CONSIDERATIONS.
The wooden huts or wicker and clay dwellings of the primitive
inhabitants of Ireland were quick to decay; but the raths, lisses,
duns, and cashels, the remains of their camps and fortresses, exist
all over the country, dotting many a plain or valley, and crowning
many a hill. Whatever distinction originally existed between the terms
_rath_ and _Lios_ or _Lis_, they are now commonly applied to fortified
dwelling-places. Though they were generally used to signify the earthen
rampart round the enclosure on which the dwellings were built, ‘both
are,’ says Dr. Joyce, ‘not unfrequently applied to the great high
entrenched mounds which are commonly designated by the word _Dun_.’[75]
* * * * *
_Raths and Duns._--Notwithstanding the destructive agencies of time,
and especially the reclamation and enclosure of land, the number of
raths still remaining is very great. The Ordnance Survey showed 10,000
in Munster, Limerick having 2191,[76] and the number for the whole of
Ireland may be taken from 28,000 to 30,000. Dr. Joyce states that the
term _Rath_ enters into the name of 700 townlands, and _Lis_ into 1400
townlands and villages. That so many of these structures remain, is due
largely to the fact that the peasantry have a superstitious reverence
for these ‘forts’ as the home of the ‘good people’ or fairies. They
are also popularly attributed to the Danes; but their very number and
distribution, and the fact that the Danes never established themselves
beyond the east and south-east coast of Ireland, are sufficient,
without mentioning other considerations, to show that the Danes had
nothing to do with their erection. Fort-building covered a long period
of time; and at whatever remote date it commenced, there is evidence to
show that the forts were built and restored for many centuries after
the introduction of Christianity into Ireland.
The general plan is circular and the construction simple. A deep ditch
or trench was dug and the earth thrown up, forming a steep enclosing
dyke or rampart, which was probably rendered further secure by a stake
fence. They vary in size from a few yards to a hundred in diameter, and
often consist merely of the circular entrenchment, the area of which
is slightly raised above the level of the adjoining land. These are
common in the central parts of Ireland, such as the motes of Granard,
Slane, and Clones. But in the case of many of the more important they
were enclosed by two, three, or more breastworks; and within the inner
rampart stood a steep mound, flat at the top, on which was erected the
house of the king or chief, overlooking the camp. On the verge of steep
cliffs, or rocky headlands jutting into the sea, and on the summit
of inland hills, these defences were generally erected. Sites were
chosen whose natural features afforded a ready means of rendering the
positions secure. The term _Dun_ is usually applied to this class of
fortification, and it enters into the composition of many place-names,
Dr. Joyce stating that it is used as a prefix to 600 townlands.
Alignments of forts are an important feature in Ireland, and will be
found especially on the sea-coast from Waterford, westwards, and round
to the north of Mayo, and also in many inland districts. Perhaps the
largest earthwork in Ireland is the Dun at Dorsey, County Armagh. It
is about one mile long and 600 yards wide, and consists of a great
embankment with a fosse on each side and outer ramparts. Portions still
remain sufficient to show the magnitude of this great earthwork when
originally constructed.[77]
* * * * *
_Souterrains._--Within the inner rampart, but not in the raised
mound as far as we have examined, underground passages and chambers
varying in plan have been discovered. These earth-houses, to which the
term _Souterrain_ is now usually applied, are generally similar in
structure to the sepulchral chambers already described, the passages
being lined and covered with stones, and the chambers of a bee-hive
shape, formed by overlapping courses. Where the earth was sufficiently
compact the excavation was sometimes made practically without the aid
of stone, which was used only in forming the entrance. It is evident
from the intricate nature of these underground structures, and the
readiness with which they could be defended from attack, that they were
designed as places of safety. They were probably used both as places
of temporary retreat and as storehouses, the want of ventilation, save
that derived from the narrow external entrance, rendering them unfit
for continued habitation. Tacitus says the Germans dug underground
dwellings: ‘These they use as winter retreats and granaries, for they
preserve a moderate temperature; and upon an invasion, when the open
country is plundered, these recesses remain inviolated, either because
the enemy is ignorant of them, or because he will not trouble himself
with the search.’
An examination of the kitchen-middens of some of these raths produced
the ordinary ‘finds’ of primitive dwellings, stone, flint, and bone
weapons and implements, the bones of animals used for food, fragments
of pottery, bronze and iron objects. The Whitechurch rath, examined
by Mr. R. J. Ussher, yielded a variety of these, including many iron
objects, which showed that its occupation probably covered a long
period of time. The rath had been deeply excavated to form the chambers
and an extensive system of connecting galleries.[78] Souterrains are
found apart from raths in isolated places in many parts of Ireland.
They are very similar to those found in Scotland, where they are known
as ‘eirde houses,’ ‘weems,’ or ‘Picts’ houses,’ and also to those found
in Cornwall, which seems to point to a common origin for all. ‘The only
slight difference between the Irish and the Scotch,’ says Dr. Munro,
‘is in the extent of curvature of the main gallery, which appears to be
less pronounced in the Irish souterrains.’ He also points out that they
differ in being so often found in connection with raths, as among the
Scotch examples ‘only one instance is known inside a fort--viz., that
in the ancient fort known as Macbeth’s Castle on Dunsinane Hill.’[79]
Underground dwellings have been used by primitive races everywhere--in
Asia, Africa, and America, as many travellers testify.
Gurteen Rath is situated about four miles from Mullingar. Within it
is an interesting souterrain, of which the accompanying figure is a
plan. The entrance is on the east side, and the passage is 17 feet
long, 3 feet wide, and 3 feet high. At the end a step of 10 inches, and
at the same time an additional rise in the height, give an elevation
to the roof of about 6 feet; to the right is another passage leading
to a circular chamber 7 feet high. The main passage takes a curve to
the west, and at 12 feet a short passage leads to another circular,
but smaller, chamber. Continuing, and making a full distance of 46
feet, the main passage ends in a third, and largest, circular chamber,
7½ feet high and 10½ in diameter. The chambers are of the ordinary
bee-hive pattern.[80]
[Illustration: Plan of Souterrain, Gurteen Rath, near Mullingar.]
The date of the Irish souterrains is as difficult to determine as
that of the raths themselves. From their similarity to the sepulchral
chambers it has been thought by some that they were constructed by the
same race of people and about the same time. But there are essential
points of difference between them: souterrains are generally much more
complicated in plan, and were evidently designed to be defended; they
are underground, whereas the sepulchral chambers are under raised
mounds; the latter are megalithic, while, as a rule, the former are
microlithic, although in the case of the Doon souterrain, stones 9
and 10 feet in length were used.[81] The presence of Ogam stones
in some, as has already been mentioned, would point to a period for
their construction subsequent to the use of these stones as monuments.
Whatever the date of the construction of these places of security may
have been, there can be very little doubt of the necessity for their
use at least in early mediæval times. When we take into account the
lawlessness, and the insecurity and indifference to human life during
the Norse period of invasion, which, as the Annalists fully testify,
were only too common under the rule of irresponsible petty kings and
chiefs, we can readily understand the necessity of refuges such as the
forts and underground chambers afforded, by which the construction of
some may perhaps be accounted for.
* * * * *
_Royal Residences._--Among the royal residences mentioned in early
Irish records, the Hill of Tara, in County Meath, is the most
celebrated. From the earliest period of which we have even traditional
history, down to the middle of the sixth century, it appears to have
been a chief seat of the Irish kings. Here, every third year, was
held the great national convention called the ‘Feis of Teamhair.’
Shortly after the death of Dermot, the son of Fergus, in the year 563,
the place was deserted, in consequence, according to the _Annals of
Clonmacnoise_, of a curse pronounced by St. Ruadan, or Roadanus, of
Lorrha, against that king and his palace. After thirteen centuries of
decay and neglect, the chief monuments for which the hill was at any
time remarkable are still to be traced. They consist, for the most
part, of circular or oval enclosures and mounds, within, or upon which,
the principal dwellings of the ancient royal seat were situated. The
accompanying Plan of Tara is adapted from the Ordnance Survey map, upon
which the names were laid down by Petrie and O’Donovan, after a careful
study of some ancient Irish records. In these were found most minute
descriptions, with occasional plans of the various monuments as they
existed previous to the twelfth century.
[Illustration:
_Walker & Boutall sc._
Plan of Tara.]
[Illustration: The Forradh, Tara.]
The rath called _Rath na Riogh_, or _Cathair Crofinn_, appears
originally to have been the most important work upon the hill, and,
according to tradition, the oldest. It is of an oval form, and measures
in length from north to south 853 feet. The ditch is 4 feet deep; the
rampart, greatly reduced, is but 6 feet high, and appears in part to
have been constructed of stone. Within its enclosure are the ruins of
the _Forradh_, or ‘Place of meeting.’ The mound of the Forradh is of
considerable height, flat on the top, and encircled by two lines of
earth having a ditch between them; its greatest diameter is 296 feet,
and across the inner circle 88 feet. Set in its centre, as already
stated, is a very remarkable pillar-stone, supposed to be the Lia Fail,
or Stone of Destiny (see p. 8).
* * * * *
_Teach Cormaic_, lying to the south-east of the Forradh, to which it
is joined by a common parapet, may be described as a double enclosure,
the rings of which upon the western side become connected. Its diameter
is about 140 feet. To the north of these and within the enclosure is a
small mound called _Dumha na nGiall_, the ‘Mound of the hostages,’ a
characteristic example of its class.
Without the enclosure to the north is _Rath na Seanadh_, the ‘Rath of
the Synods,’ which derives its name from the synods held here by St.
Patrick and his successors, but it is of much older date. Among the
trees to the north-west of the hill are two forts, _Rath Grainne_ and
_Fothach Rath Grainne_, respectively. Rath Grainne is recorded to have
belonged to, and to have been named after, Grainne, a daughter of King
Cormac Mac Art, and wife of Fin Mac Coul, whose well-known story we
have already referred to. To the east of these is _Rath Caelchon_.
* * * * *
The ruins of _Teach Miodhchuarta_, the Banqueting Hall of Tara,
occupying a position a little to the north-east of _Rath Riogh_,
consist of two parallel lines of earth, running in a direction nearly
north and south, and divided at intervals by openings which indicate
the position of the ancient doorways. The entrances appear to have
been twelve in number, six on each side; but as the end walls, which
are now nearly level with the ground, may have been pierced in a
similar way, it is uncertain whether this celebrated hall had twelve or
fourteen entrances. It measures 759 feet long by 90 feet externally,
and 45 feet internally. It was probably divided into three sections,
and was evidently intended for the accommodation of a large number at
the same time. From the MSS. that have come down to us, we have reason
to suppose that the songs of the old Irish bards, descriptive of the
royal feasts of Teamhair, are not the fictions that many people are
ready to consider them. If, upon viewing the remains of this ancient
seat of royalty, disappointment is felt, and even the tales of its
former magnificence questioned, it should be remembered that, since
the latest period during which the kings and chiefs of Erin assembled
here, thirteen centuries have elapsed, and our surprise will not be
that so few indications of ancient grandeur are to be found, but that
any vestige remains to point out its site. It is a matter greatly to be
regretted that, such as they are, the remains have been much interfered
with in the last couple of years by the excavations of a small set of
irresponsible enthusiasts, searching for the ‘Ark of the Covenant’!
* * * * *
_Emania._--We can but briefly refer to a few of the many other motes
celebrated in past times. A residence of the Ulster kings was Emania,
better known as Navan Fort, two miles west of Armagh. It is enclosed
by a rampart, elliptical in shape, which covers an area of about
twelve acres. The east side of the great entrenchment is much cut
away, but the west side is fairly preserved. One of the inner mounds
is comparatively perfect; it measures about 220 feet in diameter,
and rises to a height of 138 feet from the lower base of the fort.
Founded, according to the usual authority, by Queen Macha in 300 B.C.,
it remained for over 600 years the seat of royalty. Here, too, the
Red Branch Knights, whose deeds are celebrated in Irish romance, were
established under King Conor Mac Nessa in the first century.
* * * * *
[Illustration: Rath of Downpatrick.]
_Rath of Downpatrick._--This was known in past times as ‘Rath
Celtchair,’ after a hero of the Red Branch Knights, who dwelt here. It
is one of the finest motes in Ireland, and consists of a mound 60 feet
high, 2100 feet in circumference, surrounded by triple ramparts, one of
which is 30 feet wide.
* * * * *
_Hill of Ward._--The Hill of Ward, near Athboy, was the site of the
Palace of Tlachtga, where the great festival of Samhain, the end of
summer (Nov. 1st), was celebrated. Here the sacred fire was lighted,
and sports and games held for three days before the eve of the festival
and for three days after. At Teltainn, now Teltown, was another great
palace where, from a remote period, a great fair was held on August
1st, instituted, it is said, by Lewy, in honour of his foster-mother,
Taillte, daughter of the King of Spain. Games of all kinds were
celebrated, and chance marriages made, some of which practices came
down to modern times.
* * * * *
_Naas Rath._--The great rath at Naas was the ancient seat of the kings
of Leinster, the place of assembly of the chiefs of the province, and
continued so until the tenth century. The Hill of Allen, about eight
miles to the west, was another seat of the Leinster kings. Here, we
are told, dwelt Fin Mac Coul and his companions in the reign of Cormac
Mac Art; but the remains of the old mound were nearly destroyed when
erecting the modern monument on the summit of the hill. About the same
distance south-west of Naas was Dun Aillinne, a third of the royal
seats of Leinster. This crowned the Hill of Knockaulin, and the earthen
rampart of the fort still surrounds its summit. Many of the motes were
used also as places of burial, and we find recorded instances of such
within the mound. Remains of burials have frequently been discovered;
and these have a special significance to which we have referred in the
previous chapter.
* * * * *
_Caher or Cashel._--Where stone was abundant, as in Kerry, Clare, the
Arran Islands, Mayo, Sligo, and other districts, the defences consisted
of walls of dry masonry called _Cathairs_ (Cahers), or _Caiseals_
(Cashels). Many of these are found on projecting headlands, or on
steep precipitous cliffs, the line of defence crossing and enclosing a
portion of land that had a natural protection seawards. Cashels existed
too in exposed situations on hill-tops and bleak uplands. The walls
usually show that two faces were built many feet apart with a batter,
and the interior filled up with a mass of rough rubble which, in
settling, often brought destruction on the walls. Others, however, were
constructed of two or more walls lying close together and apparently
forming one mass, reaching a thickness of 16 to 18 feet. The inner
wall was formed into flights of steps leading to a platform lower than
the outside wall, and on which a stand could be taken for defence. The
gateways are of particular interest and of varied features; the more
general kind have inclined sides, a heavy lintel, and a regular course
of masonry through the wall. Passages and chambers exist within some of
these cashels, intended, no doubt, like the souterrains, as places of
retreat in time of danger. These stone forts were sometimes defended by
outer works, as in the case of Dunbeg (Kerry) and Moghane (Clare), or
by a _chevaux-de-frise_ of sharp stones set in the ground, as at Dun
Ængus and Dubh Caher in Aranmore, Ballykinvarga in Clare, and Dunamoe
in Mayo.
Many of the cashels contain small stone-roofed buildings called
_Clochauns_, or bee-hive huts. These are circular or oval in plan,
and the walls converge upwards by the gradual approximation of the
horizontal layers of stones until the top is reached and closed by a
single slab, as in the case of the chambers in the tumuli. Examples
of these singular structures are to be found in Kerry, Aranmore,
Inismurray, and elsewhere. They are of especial interest, not only as
dating from pre-Christian times, but because they were adopted by the
early missionaries, with such modifications as necessity required, as
models of the monastic cells and oratories. The circular bee-hive hut
was necessarily of very moderate dimensions; but the difficulty of
space was sometimes overcome by connecting two or three together by
short passages, as in the clochauns in the neighbourhood of Dingle.
The bee-hive cells in this district are among the most remarkable now
remaining; some of them contain souterrains with a trap-like entrance
from the floor.
* * * * *
[Illustration: Staigue Fort, Co. Kerry.]
_Staigue Fort_, the most perfect example of the caher or cashel now
existing in Ireland, is about fourteen miles from Waterville, on the
road to Kenmare. The plan is nearly circular; it measures 114 feet
exterior diameter, and the enclosed space is 88 feet from east to west.
It is built of schistose slate, and the spaces between the blocks are
filled with spawls of the same rock. The wall varies in height from 10
to 18 feet; it is 13½ feet thick at the base, and about 7 feet at the
top, and this is due to the batter or incline of the inner and outer
faces. The doorway is 6 feet 2 inches high, 5 feet 2 inches wide at the
bottom, and 4 feet 3 inches at the top. In the wall, and with small
entrances opening to the court, are two chambers, one measuring 10 feet
by 4 feet and 6 feet high; the other 8 feet by 4 feet. The main face
of the wall presents a series of ten sets of stairs, leading to narrow
platforms, the highest reaching nearly to the top of the rampart. The
steps are not uniform; some rise from the base, and some from a few
feet above the ground. The plan and execution exhibit great skill in
this primitive style of architecture.
One of the most elevated forts in the British Isles is that on
_Caherconree_, the most westerly height of the Slieve Mish mountains.
It stands on the shoulder of the mountain, about 10 miles south-west
of Tralee, in a commanding situation, at an elevation of 2050 feet,
and with a magnificent outlook. The cashel is about 350 feet long, and
forms the base of a triangular spur of the mountain, the sides of which
descend in steep cliffs for about 200 feet. The rampart is terraced,
but is now in a ruinous condition; its present thickness is 16 feet 9
inches at entrance, and its greatest height 10½ feet. It was defended
by a fosse and vallum of earth and stone, the top of which ran at about
40 feet from the rampart.[82]
Clare is very rich in stone forts, the remains of about 400 of which
are known. Most of these are in the Burren district; they are akin to
the great duns of the Aran Islands, and were evidently built by the
same race of people. One of the most remarkable of the Clare forts,
and one of the largest fortifications of any class in Ireland, is
_Moghane_, which crowns a low hill in the demesne of Dromoland, a
few miles south of Ennis. It is much defaced, and has been greatly
neglected in the past. It consists of three stone ramparts; the
innermost and the second are nearly circular, and their greatest
diameters are 380 and 650 feet respectively. The outer is oval, and
was adapted to the contours of the hill; it measures 1500 feet north
and south, and about 1100 feet east and west. The united length of the
walls is about 7850 feet, enclosing an area of 27 acres. According
to Mr. T. J. Westropp, who has made a special study of these forts,
and to whom archæologists are indebted for his valuable survey,[83]
the estimated contents of the Moghane walls amount to about 1,177,000
cubic feet of stone. The inner cashel had two entrances, east and west;
the second three, the south-west entrance being defended by a small
circular fort; the outer wall had three entrances on the north and
one on the south, and it was defended without by a small fort, while
another within defended the wall on the west. There are no traces
of terraces or steps in the inner face, though this may be due to
defacement, yet the probability is, as Mr. Westropp says, that they did
not exist here. He is also of opinion that this great fort was hardly
built before the coming of the Dalcassians about 370 A.D.
On the south coast of Inishmore, the largest of the Aran Islands, is
_Dun Ængus_, described by Petrie as ‘the most magnificent barbaric
monument now extant in Europe.’ It is built on the very edge of sheer
cliffs 250 to 300 feet in height, forming the south and east sides;
it is of a horse-shoe shape, and some archæologists think that it was
originally oval, and that it acquired its present form from the falling
of portions of the cliffs. It consists of three enclosures, and remains
of a fourth. The wall which surrounds the innermost is 18 feet high and
12 feet 9 inches thick; it is in three sections--the inner 7 feet high,
with ranges of steps similar to those in Staigue fort. This enclosure
measures 150 feet from north to south, and 140 feet from east to west.
The doorway is 4 feet 8 inches high, and 3 feet 5 inches wide, very
slightly inclining; and the lintel is 5 feet 10 inches long. In the
north-west side is a passage leading into the body of the wall. The
second rampart, which is not concentric, encloses a space about 400
feet by 300 feet. Outside the second wall is a _chevaux-de-frise_,
30 feet wide, formed by sharp stones placed on end, seemingly to
hinder the approach of an enemy. Surrounding all is a rampart, nearly
destroyed, enclosing a space of 11 acres. Of the same class are Dubh
Caher, Dun Onaght, and Dun Eochla, and on Inishmaan Dun Conor.
* * * * *
_The Dingle Forts._--For variety and profusion of prehistoric and
early Christian remains, that district of Corkaguiny lying west of
a line from Dingle to the north-east entrance of Smerwick Harbour,
has no equal in the British Isles. Scattered over its surface is an
extraordinary number of cashels, clochauns, pillar-stones, early
churches, crosses, and other remains. The fine fortification of
_Ballyheabought_, two miles north of Dingle, consists of a stone-faced
earthen rampart 12 to 14 feet thick, enclosing an area of about 100
feet in diameter, with a continuous narrow platform about 3 feet above
the present level of the court. It is surrounded by a fosse 25 feet
in width, the greatest depth being 20 feet. Beyond this is another
breastwork, 10 feet thick, faced on the exterior with stones, with
a second but smaller fosse without. The entrance was from the west;
and the remains show that a massive stone doorway once existed in the
ramparts. In the inner area are the remains of several clochauns;
the principal one is 18 feet internal diameter; a portion is cut off
into a separate chamber; and a low passage connects this with a small
semicircular compartment to the south. Without the group to the north
is a row of upright flagstones forming a passage to a round oblong
clochaun to the west. A wall to the south connects the circular group
with the rampart, thus shutting off what was probably the women’s
portion of the fort.
The primitive remains, numbering from seventy to eighty, lying between
Ventry and Mount Eagle, which rises over the Blasket Sound to the
north of Slea Head, were, for the first time, fully described after a
proper survey by Du Noyer in 1858. Of these the Fahan group of forts
and stone huts is the most remarkable, and shows that a considerable
population must have inhabited this wild and remote spot at a very
early date. At Coumenoole are ten clochauns. Glen Fahan has six forts
containing eighteen clochauns, a triple clochaun, and twenty-three
others detached. The triple clochaun is known as _Caher Fada an
Doruis_, the ‘Long fort of the door.’ It has been cleared out in recent
years. The east and central chambers are connected by a passage 8 feet
long; they are circular, and measure 13 feet and 18 feet in diameter
internally. The west cell is semicircular; it is connected with the
central by a passage 6 feet long, and measures 10 feet by 14 feet.
The main cell is entered from the south-east by a sloping passage;
and a winding flight of steps, now imperfect, ran round the roof to
the top. In Fahan are four forts containing ten clochauns, a group
of seven clochauns, and twelve others detached. These by no means
exhaust the remains of the settlement, which has been called, by way of
archæological pre-eminence ‘The ancient City of Fahan.’
The fort of _Dunbeg_, about two miles east of Slea Head, was formed by
erecting a massive stone rampart 15 to 25 feet in thickness across an
angular headland. It curved slightly to the east and touched the cliff
at both sides; it was no doubt originally of greater length, as the sea
has, in recent times, noticeably gained upon the coast. Near the middle
the wall is cut by a passage, the entrance of which is 3½ feet high, 3
feet wide at the bottom, and 2 at the top. The passage widens to about
8 feet, and becomes corbelled. The original entrance was 7 feet wide;
but it was thus reduced, and a barricade about 4 feet thick added,
leaving a space between it and the original wall to the right and left
of the entrance for defence with a heavy timber log. The recess to the
right was longer than that to the left, to receive the log when not in
use. A hole in the top of the wall opened into the recess, in order to
wedge the block when in position. About half way through the wall were
similar recesses for a like purpose. Two guardrooms in the walls opened
into the court within. These had interesting features in the shape of
‘squints’ formed in the stonework communicating with the passage. A
clochaun stood inside the fort close to the cliff on the south-east.
The plan of the chamber, three sides forming that of a regular
figure, and the fourth curved, is said to be unique. When repaired in
recent years, a subterranean passage was discovered from the entrance
outwards. A series of three earthen mounds with intervening fosses
formed an outward defence. A passage ran through stone gateways in each
vallum, the remains of two of which exist.[84]
About half a mile to the west of Dunbeg is _Cahernamactirech_, the
‘Fort of the wolves.’[85] The walls vary from 11 to 18 feet in
thickness, enclosing an area of about 100 feet in diameter. Three
sections of the wall, occupying the greater portion of it, were pierced
by narrow passages, and a number of clochauns occupied the area
within. This was a most interesting fortification, and had some unusual
features; but it has fallen into great dilapidation.
Du Noyer was of opinion that the Fahan settlement dated from the
Firbolg occupation. O’Curry combated this in supporting the theory that
it was of primitive Christian origin and a monastic establishment.[86]
Mr. Stewart Macalister is of opinion that ‘the clochan period of the
settlement probably extends from a little before the introduction of
Christianity into Corkaguiney, down to a comparatively recent date in
the Middle Ages.’[87]
[Illustration: Dunamoe Fort, Co. Mayo.]
At Dunamoe Point, on the north-west coast of the Mullet peninsula, are
the remains of a fine cashel, which crosses the neck of the headland.
The wall is 210 feet long, 8 feet thick, and 18 feet high in places;
but it is in a state of dilapidation. Without is a fosse and a slight
abatis. Within the wall are the remains of three clochauns, and a
ruined circular fort, about 100 feet in diameter.
[Illustration: The ‘School House’ (Bee-hive hut), Inismurray.]
[Illustration: Section of an ordinary underground beehive-shaped hut.]
The _Island of Inismurray_, lying about 4½ miles off the coast of
Sligo, contains within its narrow limits an extraordinary collection
of antiquarian remains. These are enclosed in an area measuring 175 by
135 feet, formed by a cashel of rude stones, which varied in height
from 7½ to 13 feet, and from 7 to 15 feet in thickness. In 1880 the
Board of Public Works undertook the restoration of these remains. The
features of the cashel were much interfered with; it was made of nearly
uniform height, parts being pulled down to build up others which had
fallen; the traces of the interior steps were converted into niches to
hold cross-inscribed stones, and the southern entrance was entirely
rebuilt. There were four entrances to the cashel, with probably a fifth
on the south-west face. Two of these in the north-west side are of
special interest. The approach from without is through a low doorway
about 2½ feet high and 2 feet wide at lintel, but slightly more at
bottom. Passing through 3 feet of a passage, a dome-shaped chamber is
entered 6 feet in diameter and 7 feet high. Across the middle the floor
rises with a perpendicular face of earth 2½ feet high, the original
elevation being probably greater. From the chamber the passage inwards
is the same as the outer. These are similar in plan to the passages
and chambers of many souterrains, and were probably constructed for
defensive purposes. The interior of the wall showed that it was stepped
similar to Staigue Fort. The area of the court was divided into four
unequal sections by stone barriers. There are several chambers in the
walls; but for what purpose they were originally intended it is now
difficult to determine. In the area are three clochauns. One is 13
feet in diameter, and from floor to top of vaulted roof 14 feet. There
is a projecting ledge on one side, intended for rest or sleeping. The
doorway is massive, and measures 3 feet 8 inches high, with sides
inclining from 2 feet 2 inches to 1 foot 9 inches. The shape is oval,
and the walls commence to slope a short distance from the ground,
and approximate by overlapping in the usual way. It is known as the
‘School House’; and as it evidently belongs to the primitive class of
structure, it forms an interesting link of pagan days with the first
missionary residents on the island. Here, as on the Island of Aran and
elsewhere, as Petrie points out, the early Christians utilised the
pagan forts in founding their religious establishments. The walls they
raised around others differ materially from the primitive cashel in
strength, height, and the characteristic features we have described.[88]
* * * * *
The _Grianan of Aileach_, the ancient seat of the O’Neills, kings of
Ulster, is a fort on the summit of a hill 803 feet high, about 5½ miles
from Derry, overlooking the east shore of Lough Swilly. It consists of
three extensive circular ramparts, greatly dilapidated, formed of earth
mixed with stones, the outer enclosing an area of 5½ acres. Within the
inner breastwork is a cashel, a circular wall about 17½ feet high,
enclosing an area of 77 feet in diameter. It has an average thickness
at the base of 13 feet, and is not quite perpendicular, but has a
curved terrace-shaped slope, like Staigue Fort in Kerry. On each side
of the entrance gateway are passages within the thickness of the wall,
extending in length to one-half of its entire circuit. These do not
communicate with the gateway, but have entrances from the area at their
northern and southern extremities. The passages are 5 feet high, and
over 2 feet wide, with sloping sides, the roof being formed of stones
laid horizontally. The entrance gateway is 4 feet 3 inches wide at the
base; the sides are inclined, and the original height was probably
6 feet. On each side is a reveal intended to receive the doors which
barred the passage. This great residence was destroyed by Murkertagh
O’Brien, king of Munster, in 1101. The Cashel was restored by Dr.
Bernard, of Derry, during the years 1874–8.
Out of the mass of myths and legends concerning primitive times in
Ireland, it is invariably difficult, if not impossible, to disentangle
the slight threads of fact from the web of romantic fables of bards
and chroniclers. These have their value, however, when supported or
tested by the evidence gleaned in the actual field of archæological
investigation. Isolated geographically as Ireland was, she was yet the
shore upon which the successive waves of influence sweeping over Europe
spent themselves. She was, as a rule, not only late in being brought
under the sphere of new influences, but some had especial opportunity
of development, and many retained their hold and flourished long after
they had ceased to exist elsewhere. The extent of the forts of Ireland,
and the length of time they remained in occupation, is an example of
this.[89]
Most writers in the past have attributed the stone forts of the west
of Ireland to the Firbolgs of the first century of our era, basing
their conclusions on a bardic legend recited a thousand years after
their invasion. But the forts are too numerous, and many of too vast
proportions, for the stricken remnants of a race to have raised
in their defence when driven to their last extremity on the wild
shores of the Atlantic. The far-fetched theory, too, like many other
such, that they were erected by sea-rovers to hold their spoils, is
equally untenable for the same and other very apparent reasons. The
absence of water-supplies within the forts, which has puzzled some, is
paralleled in the British and other European forts, and was no doubt a
precautionary measure to prevent the pollution of springs and wells.
It is an indication, also, that the forts were not intended to stand
a prolonged siege, a practice in warfare of a later time, but were
raised as a protection against raiding and sudden assault. Their height
above the sea was to give greater security, and their commanding sites,
with due precaution in watching, prevented the dwellers being taken
unawares. When life and property were unsafe, the desire for security,
as well as social habit, gave rise to these works. The dwellers
fortified their camps for themselves and their cattle, moving about
freely in times of peace, and withdrawing to these strongholds in times
of danger. They were as much a necessity in early days as the walls and
bastions defending the towns in the Middle Ages. Their extraordinary
number, out of all proportion compared to Scotland with its 1300,
testify to the fact that the land was not a peaceful land long before
the coming of the Dane. It is difficult in the present state of our
knowledge even to approximate the date of their first introduction,
as it is difficult, if not impossible, to assign a definite date to
any archæological period in Ireland. The Irish forts are among the
finest of a type of primitive defences extending across the continent
of Europe from the Atlantic to the Black Sea and the Mediterranean
shores of Greece. The construction of the walls in sections, and the
passages and chambers, link the western forts through similar, though
more perfect, features with the cyclopean walls of Tiryns, Mycenæ, and
the Punic cities of North Africa. The cashels, the mounds, and the hill
forts with their encircling ramparts have their counterpart in the
middle latitudes of Europe, in the lands once dominated by the Celt,
and which cover a period from the Bronze Age, at least, to the days
of the Roman occupation. In Ireland their use ranges from prehistoric
times down to the Middle Ages; and some were occupied for ordinary
dwelling purposes down to modern times.
CHAPTER VII.
THE STONE AGE.
FLINT ARROW-HEADS--STONE CELTS--AXE-HAMMERS.
Primitive man everywhere seems to have used stone, wood, and bone in
the manufacture of weapons before he advanced to a knowledge of the
use of metal. The terms ‘Stone,’ ‘Bronze,’ and ‘Iron,’ adopted first
by Scandinavian archæologists, are now generally used to signify
the successive ‘Ages’ of human development from prehistoric into
historic times. The vast quantity of stone and bronze objects found
in Ireland are conclusive that at certain remote periods they were in
general use. It is therefore reasonable to suppose that stone only
was at one time used, and that bronze, on account of its superiority,
in time superseded the older material. Though each prevailed, and
was characteristic of its own period, yet no hard-and-fast line
can be drawn between them, and the overlapping occurs everywhere.
We have evidence in lake-dwelling remains to show that, after
iron was introduced, stone, bronze, and iron implements were used
simultaneously. Stone weapons were in use down to the Middle Ages, and
stone hammers were used in remote places down to modern times.
The antiquity of man in Ireland has long been a subject of general
archæological interest and discussion. He is considered by some
authorities to have been contemporary with the _cervus giganteus_,
whose remains have been discovered in such large numbers in the
country. These have been found in the crannogs of Cloonfinlough,
Loughrea, and in the caves of Ballynamintra. Professor Leith Adams and
Messrs. Kinahan and Ussher, in the exploration of the latter, found the
bones in connexion with ‘battered and chipped’ hammer-stones, which
they had little doubt was the work of man to extract the marrow.[90]
They were found mixed with the remains of Neolithic fauna, red-deer,
horse, ox, grizzly bear, wolf, badger, fox, dog, etc.
The evidence of the existence of Palæolithic man lies deep in the
drifts or raised banks of ancient rivers, or far below the present
floors of caves. If he ever existed in Ireland, he has left no
conclusive evidence of his presence, so far as our knowledge goes.
The relics of Neolithic man lie near the surface, and evidence of his
existence has been found throughout the length and breadth of the land.
When he started in Ireland, he is supposed to have had a considerable
knowledge in the use of stone weapons and skill in their manufacture.
In fashioning flint implements, in the selection of the hardest and
best kinds of stone, in shaping and polishing these for various uses,
he showed an intelligence and skill of no mean order. Finished flint
articles have been found in the north of Ireland in thousands; and the
refuse of their manufacture exists in large quantities. Few countries
equal Ireland in the number of stone implements which have been
discovered of every kind, or can show greater excellence in their style
and finish.
* * * * *
_Flint Arrow-heads._--Flint as the hardest stone and the readiest to
chip was much sought for; and as Antrim furnished this in nodules in
the Chalk formation, it was there worked in great quantities. Knives,
scrapers, arrow- and spear-heads, chisels and axe-heads were fashioned
in many places, especially on the coast where the flint accumulates
along the undercliffs, or on the raised beaches of Larne, Kilroot, and
Whitepark Bay. In these places hundreds of flakes may be gathered in
a short time--the waste material from the workshops of the makers of
flint implements that once existed on these sites. At Portstewart and
Castlerock, on the coast of Donegal, at Dundrum, Co. Down, and along
the Bann valley, great quantities of worked flints have been found,
indicating a wide area for the manufacture of weapons.
[Illustration: Fig. 1.
Spear- or Javelin-head--full size.]
[Illustration: Fig. 2.
Spear-head--Scale, two-thirds.]
An examination of flint flakes will show certain general
characteristics which, when found existing in a large number of
instances, are conclusive that they are the result of manipulation
and not of natural agency. Hammer-stones and cores are also found in
numbers on these sites. The latter are the lumps from which the flakes
were struck; and the hammer-stones, generally pebbles of any hard
stone, such as quartzite, basalt, or granite, show signs of use in
their chipped ends. Scrapers, so much used in the curing and dressing
of skins, and such like purposes, are also found in great numbers
and variety. The women of the Eskimo and other Arctic tribes, at the
present day, use flint scrapers in dressing the skins of animals and
birds. These rude instruments have been found in quantities in the
hut-sites on the coasts of Down, Antrim, and Donegal, and other places
that marked the wanderings of Neolithic man.
Arrow-heads have been found in such quantities, and of such variety,
that we can here only give a general outline of their classification.
It has been estimated that about ten thousand exist in collections
at the present time, not including those which have been sent out
of the country, which probably amount to as many more. In size
arrow-heads measure from about 1 inch to 4; these latter, indeed, and
those up to about 7 or 8 inches long, must have been used as javelin
or spear-points; but, as there is no hard-and-fast dividing line
between them, all may be included in a general description. Some have
been found under one inch in length, but these are not common. The
spear-head (fig. 2) in the National Museum is 6½ inches long and nearly
2 inches broad at the widest part. It was rubbed smooth after chipping,
and is, perhaps, the most perfect of the class yet found. Owing to
their great variety of form, it is difficult to make a classification
of arrow-heads simple enough to cover all. For general purposes,
however, a three-fold division will suffice: leaf-shaped, triangular,
and stemmed. An examination, however, of any good collection will show
that further sub-division is needed under each head, if a thorough
classification and arrangement are required. The _Leaf-shaped_ arrows
are very varied in shape and size; and to this class belong some of
the largest, many of them showing the most perfect manipulation and
delicacy of touch in regard to the chipping. As the name indicates,
these are in general shaped like a leaf; but this class also includes a
large variety of those of a modified leaf-form. They were the easiest
to make, and were probably the earliest in point of time.
[Illustration: Leaf-shaped Arrow-heads.]
[Illustration: Triangular Arrow-heads--first type.]
[Illustration: Triangular Arrow-heads--second type.]
[Illustration: Various types of Stemmed Arrow-heads.]
_Triangular_ arrow-heads are very numerous, and much more so in Ireland
than in England. Most of the objects of this class have an inward curve
in the base, or are notched, leaving barbs or wings between which the
split-shaft was placed. The _Stemmed_ arrow-heads were probably a
development from the leaf or triangular types, and their advantage
over them is obvious. The head was kept in its place and prevented
from splitting the shaft, while the barbs rendered the weapons more
effective in war or in the chase. These vary with long or short stems:
some are without barbs; others have barbs and stems of equal length;
while varieties may be noticed in the edges being straight, curved
either concave or convex, some having a combined or slightly S-shaped
curve.
[Illustration: Mounted Arrow-head.]
Owing to the perishable nature of the shaft, the discovery of a perfect
arrow is exceedingly rare. There are, we believe, only two recorded
instances in Ireland--one (here figured) in the King’s County, in
Ballykellan bog, and the other near Glenarm, Co. Antrim. The head seems
to have been fastened into the split of the shaft by a kind of cement,
and then tied with sinew.[91] Much superstition has been attached to
arrow-heads in Great Britain and Ireland. They have been regarded as
‘elf-shots’ or ‘elf-stones’ cast by the fairies at men or cattle:
hence they have been often worn as charms, or used as such in curing
bewitched cattle by putting them into their drink, which was supposed
to remove the evil.
Knives of flint are also found; the most finished examples are
triangular in shape and pointed, with straight back, bevelled edge, and
tang for insertion into a handle. Saws are numerous, and the serrated
edges were either originally so chipped, or they became so by use.
These are widely distributed, and have been found in Egypt, Greece, and
through Europe to Denmark and the British Isles.
[Illustration: Flint Knife.]
Flaking tools or ‘fabricators,’ as they are called, were used in
the making of flint instruments, examples of which may be seen in
the National Museum collection. These are narrow pieces of flint 4
or 5 inches long, with blunt ends and a ridge on one or both faces.
A deer’s horn or other pointed bone was also used for flaking; the
finer work was probably usually done with such tools. The method was
by pressure, and the finest flaking can thus be executed. Though this
can be imitated with some practice, yet the best work on the faces of
arrow- and spear-heads baffles imitation, showing the perfection of
workmanship to which primitive man reached. Among other objects are
‘bracers’: these are pieces of stone rubbed down to a smooth surface
and pierced with a hole at each end. They are supposed to have been
worn on the wrist for protection against the bowstring when let home.
* * * * *
_Stone Celts._--There is a general similarity in type among the stone
implements known as celts, or chisels and axes. As no well-defined
line can be drawn between these, as the same object could be used as
an instrument or weapon, Sir John Evans, in his exhaustive work on
_Ancient Stone Implements_, uses the term ‘celt’ to include both,
and classifies them under three heads: (1) chipped and not ground or
polished; (2) chipped, with ground edge only; (3) those ground and
polished completely. The last group is further sub-divided into four
classes, according to shape. Some Irish archæologists consider that
many of our implements present features which make this classification
unsatisfactory; but as they are not yet agreed on any classification
sufficiently clear and comprehensive, we shall retain the threefold
division in our brief description.
The chipped implements are of flint and very rude, thick, and heavy
towards the edge, with a blunt point. They resemble the Palæolithic
type, and are found in the raised beaches of Larne, and are known
as the ‘Larne Implements.’ Of an equally rude kind are those found
in hut-sites round the coast, in the Bann Valley, and elsewhere.
Implements of a similar type are found in the shell-mounds of Denmark,
in Scandinavia, and other parts of Europe. They are named the
‘kitchen-midden’ type, and are considered to be the earliest worked by
Neolithic man.
Of the second class many are of flint: the lower part is polished down,
giving a fine cutting edge, and the upper portion is left with a rough
flaked surface. Many of the larger implements belong to this class, and
were the more readily fastened into the haft. These and the polished
celts are made of basalt, porphyry, felstone, greenstone, shale, and
other rocks; the felstone was much sought for, on account of the fine
cutting edge that could be obtained in sharpening. They vary greatly
in size, the average being 6 to 8 inches in length, and in breadth 2 to
3½ inches. The largest yet found is in the National Museum: it is of
clay slate and about 22 inches long. They vary greatly, too, in shape,
and are ovate--that is, of a somewhat egg-shaped form--or triangular,
according to the general cast of the sides and edge.
[Illustration: Polished Celt of Felstone--scale two-thirds.]
[Illustration: Various Types of Stone Celts--scale one-eighth.]
[Illustration: Mounted Celt.]
In the manufacture of these objects the rough shaping was done with a
suitable hammerstone, examples of which may readily be distinguished
by rough chip-marks at the ends. The general method of grinding and
polishing seems to have been by rubbing the implements longitudinally
on a sandstone slab, and the lines of the faces thus made removed
by cross or oblique rubbing with a handstone. Many of the celts are
as highly polished as they could be at the present day, and it is
uncertain how, or with what material, the perfect finish was given to
them. The smaller specimens were doubtless set in the end of a stick,
and used as chisels in the manufacture of wooden vessels or other
light work. Others, there is reason to believe, were simply held in
the hand, and served the double purpose of cutting instruments and
hammers. By the edge, more or less sharp, animal food or integuments
might be cut, or at least roughly divided, while by aid of the opposite
end, which is invariably blunt or flat, marrow-bearing bones might be
smashed. In all probability, however, the great majority had been the
heads of axes used for every-day purposes, or as weapons of war. They
are very frequently discovered in ancient river fords, the passage
of which had, no doubt, been frequently contested. The larger kind
were sometimes mounted in a wooden handle; but, as in the case of the
perfect arrow, the discovery of a mounted implement is exceedingly
rare. A few, however, have been found; and the accompanying figure
shows an example. The primitive inhabitants in our own day of many
lands--such as New Zealand--used implements and weapons mounted in a
similar manner.
[Illustration: Supposed Champion Stone for Casting.]
It is most likely that some remains of this class were used as
missiles. We read of a missile weapon called the Lia Lamha Laich,
_i.e._ a ‘Champion’s handstone,’ which was carried ready for use in
the hollow of the shield. It is described by early writers in a manner
which shows that it was attached to a line of some kind, and was
recoverable after each throw. O’Curry suggests that missiles of this
kind were simply our stone celts. There can be little doubt of the
correctness of his opinion. In the Academy collection are three stones
of that description, which at their narrow end exhibit perforations
well adapted for the attachment of a string or line. The largest
of these stones is slightly over 3½ inches in length. Each side is
crossed by an array of scorings, admirably suited for the purpose of
affording a firm grip to a champion desirous of hurling the stone
with force. Around the aperture are two engraved circles. The other
perforated celts are sharp and well formed, but plain. Each would prove
a formidable missile when cast by a trained hand.
* * * * *
[Illustration: Perforated Axe-hammers of Stone.]
_Axe-hammers._--The perforated axe-hammers show an advance in the
manufacture of stone implements. Of these there are several varieties;
some, and probably the earliest, are of the celt type; others are blunt
at both ends forming true hammers; but the latter type come near to
the modern axe-head in shape. They are well-designed, highly polished,
and formed of stone selected for its hardness. The spot for the hole
seems to have been first chipped; and the perforation was then made by
rotatory friction with a suitable stone, piece of bone or wood, and the
use of sand and water. The operation was usually done on both sides,
as a section of the stone shows that the hole diminishes towards the
middle. Many specimens show a cylindrical perforation, the drilling
of which could be done with a piece of hollow wood, bone, or metal.
Cores cut out in this way have been found in numbers in the Swiss
lake-dwellings; but, as far as we are aware, no core of this kind has
been found in Ireland. One head with an incomplete perforation may be
seen in the Academy collection; this shows the cores, but broken on
both sides. Many of the true round hammer-shaped heads are cleanly
drilled, and with a metal tool. They are evidently late in date, and
were probably used in the working of the finer metals, gold and
silver. Two of the many fine examples in the Academy collection of the
axe type are here figured. The larger is composed of serpentine; it is
8¼ inches long, and weighs about 6½ pounds. It has a broad hatchet-edge
with a heavy head behind the handle. The other, found in the Shannon
at Athlone, is of hornblendic syenite; it is 5½ inches in length, with
grooves round the perforated sides. These are highly polished, and are
among the finest specimens yet discovered in the British Isles.
[Illustration: Perforated Stone Axe-hammers.]
CHAPTER VIII.
THE BRONZE AGE.
COPPER CELTS--BRONZE--ITS ANTIQUITY AND SOURCE--BRONZE CELTS--THE
FLAT CELT--THE FLANGED OR WINGED CELT--THE SOCKETED CELT--
CELT MOULDS--SWORDS--RAPIERS--BROAD SCYTHE-SHAPED SWORDS--
SWORD SHEATHS--THE LISNACROGHERA ‘FINDS’--SPEAR-AND
JAVELIN-HEADS--ORNAMENTED SPEARS--CRANNOG SPEARS--SHIELDS--BRIDLE
BITS--CALDRONS--TRUMPETS--ORNAMENTS, BRONZE AND GOLD--
TORQUES--LUNULÆ--TIARAS--FIBULÆ--THE BROIGHTER GOLD ‘FIND.’
The Early Irish traditions--so insisted on by many writers--of the
successive invasions of Ireland by various races may contain a kernel
at least of the truth of successive waves of the men of the Stone Age,
overcome in time by a race stronger and better equipped with metal
weapons.
The discovery of metal for the manufacture of implements marked a new
epoch in the history of man. Copper was evidently known long before
the discovery was made of using it with an alloy; but, owing to its
softness, it could not supersede the use of stone. The question of
whether there was, generally speaking, a Copper Age is still a matter
of archæological controversy. The number of copper implements found is
small, compared to the vast quantities of bronze of great variety that
have been discovered. Flat copper celts have been found in Cyprus, the
chief source of supply of the mineral to the Aegæan, in Hissarlik,
in Hungary, Denmark, Sweden, France, Italy, and in Central India; but
these latter are thought to be of late date, having been associated
with objects of silver.
The National Museum, Dublin, contains 84 copper celts, the collection
having much increased since the compilation of Wilde’s _Catalogue_,
when the number stood at 30. The number found in Ireland up to the
present time is about 150; and specimens have been discovered in about
half the counties and in all the provinces. The copper celts are of a
primitive type, and were evidently modelled after those of stone. The
smallness of the number may be due either to the probability of their
being recast in the manufacture of tools and weapons on the discovery
of bronze; or, that the metal proving soft, it was not largely used,
being inferior in consistency to stone. Bronze celts have been found
of a primitive character similar to the copper, so that they may have
belonged to the same period of time. From this and other considerations
it has been urged that a Copper Age did not exist in Western Europe,
though such, no doubt, prevailed in the countries bordering on the
Mediterranean, especially in Egypt. The latter country was in the
Neolithic Age under the ‘New Race’; and copper came into use at the end
of this Pre-dynastic Period.
In all copper celts hitherto analysed in Ireland, a very small quantity
of tin has been found, varying from about one per cent. to a mere
trace. Whether the presence of tin in the copper is intentional or
accidental is not definitely known; but it seems likely to have
existed in the ore with other impurities.[92] Copper seems to have
been in general use in Ireland; for, among other objects of this
metal, awls, a halbert, and blades of knives have been discovered. The
existence of native ore renders it likely that it was worked as soon as
its properties were known; and this is supported by the fact that the
word _umha_, the Irish name for copper, is pure Celtic. Tin exists in
small quantities in Ireland, especially in the sand and gravel deposits
of the Wicklow streams; but as to the method and means of mining,
and how far it was carried on in those early days, we know nothing
definite. Copper workings have been discovered, of a primitive type, in
Cork and Kerry, containing stone implements among the refuse.
The discovery of bronze marked an important epoch in the progress of
human development; and it would be difficult to estimate its full
value as an element in the economic and social conditions of primitive
man and early civilizations. In Ireland as elsewhere, owing to its
advantages, bronze in time came into general use in the manufacture of
weapons, domestic implements, and articles of personal adornment. These
passed through various stages of development; and the use of bronze,
as the general material for all such articles, became in time very
widespread. The percentage of tin in bronze varies, and the proportion
does not appear to be absolutely fixed. About 10 per cent. seems to
have been the average for the best bronze. Some Irish bronze implements
yielded, on analysis, 13·88 per cent.; the Mycenæan bronze which
Schliemann had examined gave 13 per cent. of tin; and some bronze from
Hissarlik gave 4 to 6 per cent. The number of moulds discovered for
various weapons shows that smelting was practised in Ireland; but, like
the mining, it is difficult, if not impossible, to ascertain the exact
method of working, and the extent to which it was carried on.[93]
Archæological opinion is divided as to the origin of bronze. It has
been variously attributed to the high table-land of Central Asia,
to India, to Siberia, and to the original inhabitants of the lower
Euphrates valley, while some writers claim for it an Etruscan origin.
Its antiquity is, however, great; Dr. Flinders Petrie found celts
in the tombs of Medum in Egypt, structures which he considers lead
back to the Third Dynasty; in the Fourth Dynasty, bronze came into
general use.[94] It was characteristic of the whole of the Mycenæan
civilization, and prevailed throughout the Homeric period, though iron
was then known. Bronze spread to Europe from south to north along the
established trade routes; and the theory, once held, that a Bronze Age
developed independently among the rude races of Northern Europe is no
longer accepted. The discovery of well-wrought weapons in early graves
shows that the inhabitants of the British Isles first knew bronze, in
its best form, as a foreign introduction, before they manufactured the
metal for themselves. Bronze was, in time, superseded by iron; but not
until the discovery was made of tempering or hardening it by plunging
the hot metal into cold water. Iron was used by the Egyptians in the
period from 3800 B.C. to 3000 B.C.; in depicting weapons or tools, it
was the custom to paint iron blue or black--the colour by which it was
known--and this is seen in the paintings which have been discovered of
the time. ‘Iron,’ says Dr. Budge, ‘was certainly known to the Egyptians
as early as the Fifth Dynasty; and, from the fact that iron plays a
great part in ancient Egyptian myths, it is probable that it was known
by them at a far earlier period.’[95] Metal tools of the best kind
were known in Egypt at an early date. Dr. Petrie shows that drilling,
sawing, and lathe-work were done by the pyramid-builders on the hardest
stone with fine cutting points. He considers modern drill-cores far
inferior to those discovered in Egypt. ‘By the side of the ancient
work,’ he says, ‘they look wretchedly scraped and irregular; ... the
fine work shows the marks of just such tools as we have only now
re-invented.’[96]
* * * * *
_Bronze Celts._--The most common weapons or implements of bronze found
in Ireland are _celts_, which have been generally classified as flat,
flanged, winged, and socketed. The ordinary bronze celt is rarely more
than seven inches in length, and some have been found which scarcely
measure an inch and a half.
* * * * *
[Illustration: Fig. 1. Flat Bronze Celt--scale one-half.]
[Illustration: Fig. 2. Celt with lunette-shaped edge and re-curved
points.]
_The Flat Celt._--The earliest type is flat and wedge-shaped, and, like
the stone weapon, appears to have been fixed by the smaller end into a
wooden handle. The accompanying figure (1) shows a long, narrow celt
of gold-coloured bronze, ornamented on side and edges; fig. 2 is an
ornamented celt with lunette-shaped edge and re-curved points.
* * * * *
_The Flanged or Winged Celt_ was a simple development of the latter,
resulting from the necessity of affording a better hold to the weapon
when fastened to a cleft handle. The flanges were produced either
by hammering the edges or by original casting. It will be noted, in
figures 3 and 4, that a stop-ridge runs across the handle portion of
the weapon, to prevent the celt being pressed into the haft when used
with force. The position and shape of the ridge vary in the gradual
development of the implement, until, merged in the flanges, we have
a socket. The flanges vary much in size, and the term ‘winged’ is
sometimes confined to celts with wide or more projecting flanges.
[Illustration: Figs. 3 and 4. Flat and Flanged Celts with Stop-ridge.]
Fig. 5 has lozenge-shaped flanges or wings 1¾ inches wide; ‘the stops
are but slightly developed, and must have been bedded into the sides of
the handle, which appears to have passed below them’; this will be seen
by the groove projecting into the cutting half of the implement. The
external knob was probably intended for holding the tying in its place.
Fig. 6 is a broad-winged and stop-ridged celt with sides and faces
ornamented. To the flanged type of celt the name ‘Palstave,’ a word of
Scandinavian origin, is generally applied.
[Illustration: Figs. 5 and 6. Winged or Flanged Celts.]
The implements were mounted by inserting the handle between the
flanges, and secured by a ligature of some kind tightly coiled round
the butt. To secure the head from flying off the handle a loop was,
in time, added to the inside edge of the celt by which it was firmly
braced to the haft. The loop is almost invariably single; double-looped
celts (see fig. 7) are very rare, and but a few specimens have been
found in Ireland. The discovery of a mounted celt is also very rare,
as the wooden handles, to which they seem generally to have been
attached, decayed in the lapse of time. A very interesting example is
shown in fig. 8. This celt was found in the bed of the River Boyne near
Edenderry. The handle is about 14 inches long, and the head possessed
a loop which was worn through--probably, as Wilde thinks, by a metal
brace which secured it.
[Illustration: Fig. 7. Double-looped Flanged Celt with Stop-ridge.]
[Illustration: Fig. 8. Looped Celt with Original Handle.]
* * * * *
_The Socketed Celt._--In tracing the development of these celts, with
specimens, it will be noted that the flanges grow bolder and more
projecting, and in time curve inwards, and that the stop becomes
more prominent. By merging it, as we have said, into the wings, and
gradually removing the decreasing shank, the socket was formed. There
was a marked advance here in casting, as provision had to be made for
a core to form the socket. ‘The lip of the socket,’ says Wilde, ‘is
generally ornamented, and very frequently by one or more raised bands
or fillets; sometimes by a very well-cast roped ornament, evidently
made to represent a cord of twisted gut. A special description of cast
ornament, consisting of longitudinal raised bars, generally ending in
annular or button-like projections, sometimes occupies the side of this
implement; ... but in no case is the ornamentation produced either by
the hammer, punch, or graver, as in the flat simple celt.’[97] There
are several varieties of the socketed celt, as the illustrations show.
Figures 9 and 10 are 4 inches and 4¼ inches in length respectively,
and are characteristic of the plain class of Irish socketed celt,
though differing materially from each other in particulars of shape,
breadth, position of the loop, and ornament. Of the same variety are
figures 11 and 12, drawn one-fourth the actual size. Fig. 13 represents
a small and well-decorated celt, and is drawn one-half the size of
the object. Fig. 14 represents a flat celt 4½ inches long, with oval
socket internally, and a small raised linear ornament. Fig. 15 shows
a type of celt rare in Ireland. It is a good example of the axe-shaped
implement; it is 3¾ inches long, and about the same across the cutting
edge. Fig. 16 is a fine specimen of the long narrow quadrangular celt:
it is 5⅜ inches in length and 1⅜ inches in breadth. It is very rare in
Ireland, and but a few specimens have been found in the country. Some
of these socketed celts are so diminutive that they could not have
served for chopping of any kind. Fixed at the end of a wooden handle,
they might, no doubt, well answer the purpose of chisels. The process
of development here indicated must, as Sir John Evans points out, have
taken a considerable period of time.[98]
[Illustration:
Fig. 9. Fig. 10. Fig. 11. Fig. 12.
Fig. 13. Fig. 14. Fig. 15. Fig. 16.
Varieties of Looped, Socketed Celts.]
* * * * *
[Illustration: Fig. 1.
Celt Mould, Co. Leitrim.]
[Illustration: Fig. 2.
Celt Mould, Co. Down.]
_Celt Moulds._--That Irish bronze weapons are of home manufacture,
no one who has given the subject any consideration can doubt. Though
bearing a general resemblance to remains of a similar class found
in Britain, and on the Continent of Europe, the nationality of the
majority of such relics found in the bogs, beds of rivers, and newly
broken land of Ireland, is sufficiently indicated by certain minute
peculiarities which, to a skilled observer, are almost invariably
perceptible. Besides, the stone moulds in which many of the objects
were cast have, from time to time, been turned up by the plough, or
otherwise brought to light in various districts of the country.
The moulds are of two kinds: the first single, containing a cutting
on the surface into which the metal was poured; this was used chiefly
for the flat, axe-shaped type of celt. The second was a double mould
consisting of two parts fitted together, and was chiefly used for
casting the winged or flanged variety of celt. Fig. 1 represents
a mould found in Lough Scur Crannoge, Co. Leitrim; and fig. 2 was
discovered at Ballynahinch, Co. Down.
* * * * *
_Bronze Swords._--Ireland is particularly rich in bronze swords; and a
greater number have been found in it than in England or Scotland. The
colour of the metal in the swords is usually lighter than that in the
celt, as it seems to have suffered less from oxidation. Bronze swords
are usually divided into (1) the leaf-shaped, (2) the rapier, and (3)
the broad scythe-shaped varieties. On page 214 are given examples of
the _Leaf-shaped Swords_ found in Ireland. Of these, No. 1 is the
longest blade preserved in the Royal Irish Academy’s collection in the
National Museum. It measures 29⅝ inches in length; and as it has been
drawn to about one-sixth scale, the proportion of its parts can be
relatively ascertained. The covering or mounting of the handle has been
lost; but six bronze rivets, by which it was secured to the tang, still
remain. In the ends of each of these are small circular depressions
which were probably intended for the reception of some coloured
enamel.
[Illustration: Varieties of Bronze Swords found in Ireland.]
Blade No. 2, though somewhat smaller, is in style very like that just
noticed. It is finely cast, and has, like the first, a bevel-edge. Its
tang exhibits five plain bronze rivets, and three apertures for the
reception of others which no longer remain; its length is 28½ inches.
No. 3 is 26 inches long, and retains ten handle-rivets, and provision
for the reception of two more which have been lost. It has a narrow
grooved feather-edge, but no midrib.
No. 4 is a very beautiful leaf-shaped sword richly moulded, and
presenting a broad and finely graduated central rib, by which great
strength is added to the blade, rendering it equally fit for thrusting
or striking. The tang appears to have originally possessed ten rivets,
of which only two remain; the length is 23½ inches.
No. 5. This blade is remarkable for the shortness of its tang, which
is pierced for four rivets only. It is not bevelled at the edges, but
shows a sharp central ridge of unusual thickness.
No. 6 is 18½ inches long; it ‘has a thick flat midrib and grooved side
bevels, or feather-edges, with hilt notches in the base of the blade.
The handle-plate, which is slightly defective, has four rivet-holes,
and has been welded by an over-lap.’ (Wilde.)
The precise manner in which the swords were hafted remained until
lately a matter of conjecture. It has been shown, however, by existing
examples, that the mounting probably generally consisted of bone;
wood also may have been largely used. While in the northern and other
parts of the Continent of Europe, bronze swords are commonly found with
handles of the same metal, we cannot point to a single Irish specimen
so furnished. Rapiers and dagger-knives of bronze, the blades and
handles of which are of the same material, have frequently been found
in Ireland. The handle-plates of swords are often found broken; and in
some cases the break has been welded, which shows that this was the
weakest part of the weapon. Bronze swords everywhere seem to have been
used more for thrusting in close combat than for striking; and although
the weapon ultimately developed into possessing a massive bronze
handle, it was not until iron came into general use that the warrior
was armed with a weapon strong enough at the hilt to deliver a downward
stroke without snapping the blade.
[Illustration: Dagger hafted with Bronze.]
* * * * *
The _Rapier_ partakes very much of the character of the leaf-shaped
sword, having the broad triangular and the long narrow types, and
are probably from the same school of manufacture. Except in the
circumstance of being usually very long and narrow in the blade, they,
as a rule, differ little from the swords and daggers with which they
are sometimes found. Instead of a handle-plate, the butt of the blade
of the rapier widens out for the reception of the haft, to which it
was fastened by two or more rivets. In some cases the blade was only
notched instead of pierced for the rivets; while in others it was both
perforated and notched. Like the daggers, the handles were occasionally
of bronze; but there is reason to believe that their mounting was more
usually of bone. Moulds of stone used for the purpose of casting this
class of weapon are rare; but a couple of specimens may be seen in the
National Museum.
* * * * *
_Broad Scythe-shaped Swords._--These are usually thick, heavy,
round-pointed weapons, from about 8 to 16 inches in length and several
inches broad at the butt, where they were attached to the haft by two
or more heavy rivets, the heads of which are sometimes an inch across.
About one-half of those in the National Museum are of the peculiar
curved or scythe-shaped kind, and the greater proportion have thick
central midribs. These, according to Wilde, seem to have been fastened
at right angles to the hafts ‘like modern halberds.’ This view is
generally accepted; but their great antiquity among metal weapons is
probably not so great as Wilde seemed to think.
The swords discovered in Irish lake-dwellings are very varied; but
they are all strikingly Celtic in character. A few have been formed
of bronze, and differ in no respect from the greater number of those
discovered in districts where, apparently, crannogs did not exist.
The great majority of the crannog swords are, however, of iron, and
are remarkable, as a rule, for their comparatively small size--their
handles in particular. From this it has been inferred that the race
or races by whom they were used must have been diminutive people. But
the same remark may be applied to nearly all the swords of antiquity
of which we know anything. The bronze swords discovered by Schliemann
in the shaft-graves of Mycenæ are about 3 feet long--small weapons
compared to the long, heavy, two-handed sword of the Middle Ages.
In shape the crannog swords may be described, generally, as of two
kinds: the one increasing in breadth from the handle to the end,
which terminates in the form of a triangle; the other shorter, with a
broad blade, quite in the Roman fashion. Both are double-edged, and
are usually strengthened by a central ridge, while some rare examples
are fluted. Their handles were for the most part composed of bone or
horn, though sometimes wood was used; they were, as a rule, finished
by a pommel, or knob of a semicircular or triangular form, secured and
strengthened on the inner side by a plate of bronze, curving backwards.
There is no hilt or guard, properly speaking, though the haft or handle
usually somewhat overlaps the sides and edges of the blade, presenting
a crescent-like figure, the curve of which tends in a direction
opposite to that of the pommel. Bronze mountings frequently occur.
* * * * *
[Illustration: No. 1. Upper and Lower Portions of Sword-sheath of
Bronze, from Lisnacroghera. Now in the Grainger Collection.]
[Illustration: No. 2. Upper and Lower Portions of Sword-sheath of
Bronze from Lisnacroghera. Now in the British Museum.]
[Illustration: No. 3. Upper and Lower Portions of Sword-sheath of
Bronze from Lisnacroghera. Now in the Grainger Collection.]
_Bronze Sword-sheaths._--Through the kindness of the Council of the
Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland, illustrations are here
reproduced, from their _Journal_ (1883, 1889), of several bronze
sheaths which were found at Lisnacroghera, near Broughshane, Co.
Antrim, in connection with at least three swords of the crannog class.
Very few remains of the kind have been discovered in Ireland; and
no specimen had been found when Wilde compiled his _Catalogue_. He,
however, notices some small, undecorated objects, composed of bronze,
little larger than a lady’s scissors-case, which, in all probability,
were the sheaths of small knives or skeans. At Lisnacroghera crannog,
four fine and nearly perfect examples of bronze sword-sheaths, which
had contained iron blades, have, in recent years, been brought to
light; some portions of at least four others also occurred in the same
place. In Kemble’s _Horœ Ferales_ several short swords or daggers are
illustrated identical in type with that so clearly shown in Ireland,
for the first time, by the Lisnacroghera ‘finds.’ The illustrations
in that work[99] show both sides of a sword and sheath, and their
likeness to the Ulster examples is very striking: the haft of the
sword is of a similar character, and the ends of the bronze sheaths
identical. This relic was discovered in the river Witham, in England.
The bed of the Thames has, from time to time, presented examples of
equal interest.
The Lisnacroghera remains are, in some respects, the most remarkable
that have been discovered in recent years in Ireland. The special
importance of the ‘finds’ lies in the interesting series of iron swords
with bronze mountings and ornamental bronze sheaths, already referred
to, and iron spears, the wooden handles of which had bronze knobs at
the end. One of the sheaths is perfect but unornamented; of the others
which are here illustrated only one side of each remains. These are
very finely ornamented by sharp and clear incised lines. The pattern
was evidently intended for the reception of enamel, which was probably
black, and of which some faint traces seemed to remain. If this was so,
the contrast, when finished, between the black enamel and the burnished
golden-hued bronze must have been very striking and effective.
The advanced stage of art reached in the ornamentation of these objects
has been styled ‘Late Celtic’ by Sir A. W. Franks, in editing Kemble’s
_Horæ Ferales_. The objects on which the early craftsmen lavished this
decoration, and in which the metal-workers of the British Islands were
in no way behind those of Central Europe, consist of shields, swords,
sheaths, horse-trappings, fibulæ, armlets, &c. These were of both
bronze and iron, the latter prevailing in the La Tène period, and
they were often embellished with enamel. Sir A. W. Franks, on a very
careful examination of many of these objects, attributes them to Celtic
sources, and not to Roman, Saxon, or Danish. He is inclined to fix the
date of their production at about 100 B.C.; and as a discussion of
the evidence involved in these questions is outside our limits, it is
sufficient here to state that the early Iron Age was fully developed
among the Celtic races of Central Europe long before the new metal was
generally adopted by the inhabitants of the British Islands and the
North of Europe. It is now generally admitted that the art and industry
represented in the objects under consideration had their origin in
the influences emanating from the civilization of Hallstatt and La
Tène. Commencing about 800 B.C., these influences extended; and the
results may be traced from the British Isles, throughout Europe, to the
plains beyond the Alpine barriers, until we reach the shores of the
Mediterranean and Adriatic Seas.
* * * * *
_Bronze Spear- and Javelin-heads._--These have been found in large
quantities in Ireland; and the number in the National Museum is about
320. The classification given by Wilde is that usually adopted: (1)
the leaf-shaped, either long and narrow, or broad, with holes in the
sockets for the purpose of riveting into the shaft. (2) The looped,
with eyes on the sockets below the blade and on the same plane with it.
(3) Spear-heads with the loops formed at the junction of the blade
with the socket. (4) Those with the loops in the body of the blade, on
either side of the midrib or main line of the weapon. These spaces are
sometimes crescent-shaped, and are considered to lighten the weight of
the spear. This division seems more or less arbitrary, depending on
accentuated points of difference. A more satisfactory classification
has been attempted by Mr. George Coffey, showing their probable type
development.[100]
[Illustration: Varieties of Spear-heads of Bronze.]
The looped spear-head is a distinct type; and, according to Sir John
Evans, it is hardly known outside the British Isles. It is more
numerous in Ireland than in England or Scotland. Of the spear-heads in
the Academy Collection here figured, No. 1 is, with a single exception,
the largest known to have been discovered in Ireland. It is 27 inches
in length, and composed of fine gold-coloured metal, run very light and
thin; it is furnished near the socket with two loops, and has a broad
concave bevel round the edge. This weapon was found near Maghera, Co.
Londonderry.
No. 2, which measures 13½ inches in length, is composed, like No. 1, of
bright gold-coloured bronze. It is remarkable for the breadth of its
blade, and for the position of its loops as shown in the illustration.
No. 3 is 15 inches long, and presents a very unusual form, being
concave on its curved sides. Here, as usual, we find loops upon the
socket; they, however, present a somewhat rare feature, being connected
with the base of the blade by narrow lateral fillets. It will be seen
that the end of the socket is richly engraved with lines and chevrons,
like those which are found in great variety upon many objects of the
Bronze Age.
No. 4 is an excellent and typical example of the leaf-shaped spear-head
so often found in Ireland. It is 13½ inches in length, and has no side
loops, but the socket is pierced for the reception of a rivet, which
was probably of wood, by which the head was secured to the shaft or
handle. It may be observed that the sockets of this class of spear-head
are almost invariably of abnormal diameter, and that the metal of the
head is usually of a duller or more copper-like colour than that of the
ordinary bronze of the period.
No. 5 is a curious specimen composed of pure bronze, and unique in the
collection. It is 13⅞ inches in length; and its peculiarity is in the
position of the side loops--one appearing near the end of the socket,
while the other is considerably above it, and very close to the side
of the blade. The loops, too, are of unusual character, being almost
semicircular in form, while features of their kind are, as a general
rule, of a quadrangular shape; the socket is quite plain.
* * * * *
[Illustration:
Fig. 1. Fig. 2. Fig. 3. Fig. 4.
Ornaments on Spear-heads.]
_Ornamented Spears._--The spear-head indicated by fig. 1 in the
accompanying illustration measures 7½ inches in length. It is a
beautiful example in every respect, and when first lifted from the bed
of the Shannon, was as bright as gold. It has no patina, and is now of
a dull yellow colour. Fig. 2 is drawn upon a larger scale than that
adopted in the general view of the spear-head, in order to illustrate
the design with greater clearness. The work is very similar to some
that appears on gold lunettes and other relics of the Bronze Age to
be seen in the Academy collection. Fig. 3 illustrates the socket of a
spear-head boldly and richly decorated in the same style. Fig. 4 is a
full-sized engraving of the smallest bronze spear, or javelin-head,
preserved in the collection. Like Fig. 4 of the group of spear-heads
already given, it is composed of dark-coloured bronze, and exhibits,
for the size of the object, a most disproportionate diameter in the
socket.
* * * * *
[Illustration: Butt mounting of Crannog Spear-shaft. From the Grainger
Collection.]
_Crannog Spears._--Very few spear-heads of bronze have been found
in Irish lake-dwellings, while arms of that class, javelins and
arrow-heads, composed of iron, are very numerous. As may be judged
from examples found at Lisnacroghera, the spear-shaft was usually
about 8 feet in length; but one complete specimen, now in the Grainger
collection, Belfast, has, so far as we are aware, been preserved: it is
of ash. Objects of antique bronze, similar in form to that of a modern
door-handle, may be seen in most of the important collections of Irish
antiquities. Up to a recent period they were a puzzle to archæologists.
That they were mountings for the butts of spear-shafts is now certain.
Indeed, at Lisnacroghera a couple were found still retaining within
them portions of the handle-ends. The mode in which they had been
attached to the shaft is thus described by Canon Greenwell, who had
secured at least five specimens from that crannog: ‘The end of the
shaft is split, and into the split is inserted a wedge of wood, so
that, when driven home, the wedge expanded the end of the shaft, and
kept it firm in the butt.’ Iron spear-heads are often very elegant in
form; and in some instances their sockets are ornamented with chevron
and other tasteful patterns. They were secured to the handle by bronze
ferules, or by rivets of the same metal, or of iron, which sometimes
projected beyond the sides of the shaft, as we see depicted in the
drawings in Anglo-Saxon manuscripts. The ferules occasionally exhibit
depressions, or scorings, which would seem to have been intended for
the reception of enamel. In no instance have the side loops, so common
in bronze examples, been found on spear-heads of iron.
Arrow-heads of copper or bronze are rare; the metals were too valuable
to be used in any general sense in such weapons. Javelin-heads,
generally differing from the spears in size only, have been found in
our principal crannogs; but no trace of a bow, so far as we are aware,
has been recognized amongst the numerous relics formed of wood which
usually accompany the metallic remains. Many of the smaller heads in
the National Museum were probably used as bolts for cross-bow purposes.
* * * * *
[Illustration: Bronze Shield from Lough Gur.]
_Shields._--There can be little doubt that the lake-dwellers in
Ireland--such of them at least as were able to bear arms--were in the
possession of shields, some of which were formed of bronze. Not far
from Lough Gur--a sheet of water with crannogs--in the County Limerick,
a very fine shield composed of bronze was accidentally brought to
light. This occurred during drainage operations some fifty years ago,
when a large number of bronze arms and implements were discovered.
This is known as the ‘Lenihan’ shield; it is circular in plan, the
diameter being 28 inches, and slightly convex; the centre rises about
1¼ inches above the rim; and the _umbo_, which is 6 inches wide at the
base, rises in conical form 1¾ inches above the shield. ‘The hollow of
the _umbo_ internally is crossed by a stout handle, firmly riveted to
the shield, of sheet bronze bent into a round. The metal of the shield
is formed at the edge into a round hollow rim by being most skilfully
turned inwards into a roll ¼ inch wide; between it and the _umbo_ are
six beaten-up circular ribs, and six rows of small studs. In the circle
next the rim there are seventy-three studs, and in that next the _umbo_
twenty-two. The bronze, which is of a fine golden colour, is about the
thickness of a worn shilling next the rim, and of a sixpence near the
centre.’ The metal is much too thin to have been of any service by
itself, so that it probably was the outer and ornamental covering of
a ‘tough bull-hide.’ Plates of this kind, examples of which have been
found in Great Britain, seem to belong to the close of the Bronze Age.
Sculptured upon one of the crosses at Kells, Co. Meath, are armoured
figures with round shields, showing that these defences were used in
the early Christian period at least.
Many pieces of hammered sheet-iron, which appear to have belonged to
shields, have from time to time been found in crannogs. It is probable,
however, that shields were, as a general rule, formed of wicker-work,
or wood, covered with a piece of animal hide. It was not until man, as
Sir John Evans points out, had made considerable advance in the use of
bronze that he could have prepared plates, like that of the Lough Gur
type, wherewith to cover a shield.
* * * * *
_Bridle-bits._--Amongst the rarer remains of a period when bronze was
very largely used in the production of arms, implements, and objects
of various descriptions, bridle-bits, remarkable for their beauty
of design and excellence of workmanship, are, in some respects, of
the highest interest. Some examples were evidently intended for the
reception of enamel as portion of their decoration; and, in at least
one instance, the cheek-pieces, or rings to which reins had been
attached, are richly embossed with coloured material, in every way
resembling the enamel found on some of the finest remains of the Late
Celtic period.
On several ancient crosses will be seen sculptures of chariots, showing
that these were in use among the chiefs or other high personages at an
early date. The vehicles are represented as furnished with large-sized,
spoked wheels, and drawn by pairs of high-stepping, evidently
mettlesome, horses. The body of the machine is of elegant design; and
we have records that it was at times artistically embellished with
_findruine_, a white metal more precious amongst the ancient Irish than
silver. At Tara was a space known as the ‘Slope of the Chariots,’ where
it is supposed, as its name implies, chariot races were held.
The three bronze bridle-bits here figured, and showing different
varieties, are in the National Museum, where a large number, complete
and fragmentary, may be seen. Fig. 2 was found in the valley between
the hills of Screen and Tara. Fig. 3, which was found near Navan,
County Meath, accompanied with gilt bronze trappings, and the skull and
other remains of a horse, is most likely of a later period than the
others. Almost immediately with it were about a dozen human skeletons,
and traces of fire. In general form and in its details, this bit
closely resembles some specimens formed of iron which were dug out
from the crannogs of Lagore and Ardakillin.[101] The bridle-bits here
illustrated are practically identical with examples of the Hallstatt
and La Tène periods, found both in bronze and iron.
[Illustration: Fig. 1.
Fig. 2.
Fig. 3.
Bronze Bridle-bits.]
In connection with bronze-bits of the earlier kind, spur-shaped
objects, usually, but vaguely, described as ‘headstalls,’ have
frequently been discovered. There is some evidence that they were
attached to the cheek-pieces, or rings, and hung with their knobs
downward. They may, however, have stood above the head and had plumes
or some such things fixed in them. The central figure in Fig. 4 is
given to show the style of ornamentation that appears upon the external
side of the terminal loops. The lines, which are deeply cut, were
probably enamelled. In Fig. 5 the cross-like figures are very curious,
but they need not be supposed to have any connection with Christian
symbolism.
[Illustration:
Fig. 4. Fig. 5.
Trappings of Bronze, called ‘Head-stalls,’ found with Bronze
Bridle-bits.]
Yokes, formed of wood, by which horses, oxen, or other animals of
draught were coupled, have often been found in our peat bogs. Some
examples exhibit much taste in their style of decoration. There is a
valuable collection of these and other wooden objects in the National
Museum.
* * * * *
[Illustration: Bronze Caldron, Academy Collection.]
_Caldrons._--Caldrons--in Irish _coire_--formed of thin plates of
beaten bronze curiously riveted together, were important articles of
domestic use in Ireland at an early date, being mentioned among the
special property of kings; and many fine specimens have been found
in Ireland from time to time. Tradition tells that among the great
treasures brought to this country by Tuatha De Danaan was the Coire
an Daghdha or ‘Magic Caldron.’ Caldrons are usually of very graceful
form, and were furnished with two rings, or handles, placed opposite to
each other at or near the rim of the vessel, and held by straps, which
were fastened by stays either to the inside or outside of the vessel.
Most of the known specimens must have been long in use, as they are
generally more or less patched and mended in places where the metal
had given way. The added pieces are of the same material as the body of
the utensil, and are kept in position by rivets, never by soldering.
One vessel of this class was found nearly full of celts, palstaves,
daggers, crotals,[102] and other objects of bronze. This discovery was
made at Dowris, near Birr, in the King’s County, in 1830. The bronze
of which the objects were made is of a bright golden hue, which it is
supposed was due to a mixture of lead in its composition; this type
of metal is known in consequence as ‘Dowris bronze.’ Bronze caldrons
similar to the Irish, both of the round and elongated forms, have been
found among the Hallstatt remains.
Caldrons are constantly mentioned in ancient Irish manuscripts. In the
_Book of Rights_ the following passages occur, showing that the caldron
formed part of the tribute paid to a king:--
‘A caldron is giving to the King of Caiseal
By the King of Teamhair, the mighty chief,
To be presented in due form,
And to be brought to Teamhair Luachra....
Entitled is the King of Saithne to this,
To a steed and to two score of cows,
For his rising out is not less,
Neither is his caldron nor his vat.’[103]
Caldrons formed of iron, similar in shape and style of workmanship to
those of bronze, have recently been found in Ireland. The Grainger
collection, Belfast, contains two important examples from the
Lisnacroghera crannog. A third, from Lough Erne, has been presented to
the Royal Irish Academy collection by Mr. Seaton Milligan.
Among other bronze objects of domestic use discovered are small dishes,
an interesting example of which is here illustrated. It is 7¾ inches
wide, and is hammered out of a single piece of metal, and ornamented on
the inside with a series of curved-line patterns.
[Illustration: Bronze Dish from Cloonfinlough Crannog, Co. Roscommon.]
* * * * *
_Bronze Trumpets._--A large number of war-trumpets have been found in
Ireland during the past two centuries; and an interesting series of
these in the Academy collection is to be seen in the National Museum.
These instruments are usually classified into (1) those blown in
the ordinary way from the end; and (2) those having the end closed,
and sounded from an opening some distance from it in the body of
the instrument. Among the examples found, some are cast, and others
riveted; many are ornamented, and some have highly decorated discs
of the Late Celtic period round the mouth. When not in use they were
probably slung from the shoulder, some of the instruments exhibiting
loops to which straps could be attached.
[Illustration: Bronze Trumpets, Academy Collection, National Museum.]
An interesting group of trumpets from the Academy collection is here
represented. The trumpet to the left of the lower central figure is
of cast bronze and is 24 inches in length along the convex side. ‘It
requires,’ says Wilde, ‘a great exertion to produce even a dull sound
with this instrument.’ The central figure, and that immediately above
it to the right, are also cast, and have holes on the inner sides.
It has been thought that this type of instrument was used more for
speaking than blowing; and Latin writers notice the clamour and noise
of trumpets made by the Celts on the battle-field. The fourth trumpet
is of two portions, and the combined length is about 6 feet. It is
not cast, but made of thin sheet bronze; the edges are not soldered,
but are held together by thin stripes of metal running along the seam
internally and externally, and riveted to each side by alternate studs
of bronze. The disc at the end is about 3 inches wide, and has a fine
design of Late Celtic pattern punched on the metal. The fifth figure
in the illustration represents an exceptionally fine trumpet, and one
of the most remarkable yet discovered in Europe for its size. It is 8
feet 5 inches in length, and is in two portions, formed, like the last,
of sheet bronze, the edges being held together by an internal strip
of metal riveted to the side. This, as Wilde well says, is the most
perfect thing of its kind yet discovered; and if the instrument was
originally of one piece, exceptional skill and ingenuity were shown in
the riveting.[104]
* * * * *
_Bronze Ornaments._--Pins of wood or bone seem to have been the
material used in the earliest articles for fastening the dress. Bone
pins have been found in considerable numbers in early burial sites, and
in crannog remains; many are ornamented and they were very probably
used long after the introduction of bronze. On the discovery of this
metal the beauty of the colour naturally led to its immediate adoption
for objects of personal use and decoration. The number of these objects
that have been found in Ireland is very great, and they consist of
pins, fibulæ, brooches, rings, bracelets, &c. The bronze pin, which was
derived from the ring-brooch, shows a regular development; first in
the solid head, which is very varied; later the head was pierced for a
ring, or a ring was riveted to it. The ring in time became the special
object of development, similar to the process of the parent ring-brooch
which ended in the production of those splendid examples of metal
work--the Celtic brooches.
[Illustration:
Fig. 1. Fig. 2.
Disc and Penannular Types of Ring Pins.]
The accompanying figures illustrate varieties of ring-pins not uncommon
in Irish collections. Fig. 1 has a ring of the disc type with a plaited
design, which plays freely in the loop of the pin-head. Fig. 2 has
the penannular type of ring with coin-shaped ends. Spring brooches or
fibulæ of the kind shown in fig. 3 are rarely found in Ireland. This is
a beautiful example of the ‘serpent’ type, and ‘is curiously frosted
with a raised irregular pattern all over the surface; but whether
produced in casting, or caused by sudden cooling of the metal, is
uncertain.’ Fig. 4 represents a beautiful example of the hinge-brooch
and one of the finest ever discovered. It was found in Ardakillin
Crannog, near Strokestown. The ends show Late Celtic design; and the
ornament was produced by punching from the back. The curved body of the
brooch has a raised plaited design of the usual type; and this piece
appears to have been cast.
[Illustration: Fig. 3. Bronze Fibula.]
[Illustration: Fig. 4. Bronze Hinge-Brooch, drawn full size.]
Penannular rings, more common in gold than in bronze, have frequently
been found, the larger size having been used as bracelets or armlets.
Two of the latter are figured on next page. One is a massive ornament
consisting of a double rope-like band joined to a small ring. The
second consists of ‘a double circlet of thin bronze, with free ends,
one of which is perforated for looping on a stud placed behind the
central enlargement; the other extremity, as well as the central space,
is decorated with an embossed bird-head pattern.’ (Wilde.)
[Illustration: Figs. 5 and 6. Bronze Armlets, one-half real size.]
* * * * *
_Gold Ornaments._--By far the largest number of important objects for
personal decoration of the Bronze Age found in Ireland are of gold.
The quantity that has been discovered is very large; and Ireland has
perhaps the richest collection in Europe of prehistoric gold ornaments.
There are many references to gold in the Irish ‘Annals’; and, judging
from them, its antiquity in Ireland is great. We are told, under date
3872 A.M.: ‘It was Muineamhon that first caused chains of gold (to be
worn) on the necks of kings and chieftains in Ireland.’ In the _Book
of Rights_, numerous allusions are made to rings, chains, brooches,
and other objects of gold and silver as tribute paid by petty kings and
chiefs to the reigning monarch.
The _Annals of the Four Masters_, at A.M. 3656, state: ‘It was
by Tighearnmas also that gold was first melted in Ireland, in
Foithre-Airthir-Liffe. (It was) Uchadan, an artificer of the
Feara-Cualann, smelted it. It was by him that goblets and brooches
were first covered with gold and silver in Ireland.’ A similar entry
occurs in the _Annals of Clonmacnoise_.[105] The district referred to
includes parts of the counties of Wicklow and Dublin. It is interesting
to note that even to this day gold is found in several of the mountain
streams of Wicklow. In the National Museum may be seen the model of a
Wicklow nugget found in 1796 which weighed 22 ounces; in a few weeks
subsequently, 800 ounces were sold for £3000. One has been found of
nine and another of eight ounces. It has been computed that in the
early part of the last century the jewellers of Dublin paid annually
an average sum of £2000 for nuggets from the Wicklow streams, secretly
sold to them by the finders. Much has been written, and various
theories advanced, to show that the sources from which the ancient
Irish derived gold were foreign, and not native. It has been attributed
to the Levant, Gaul, Spain, and Scandinavia; while one writer labours
to prove that Roman coinage was melted down to supply the material for
the manufacture of ornaments. The instances here given--of Wicklow
furnishing considerable quantities of the precious metal in modern
times--supplies strong presumptive evidence that the main source from
which the ore was derived was Ireland itself.
The recorded instances of the discovery of gold ornaments and other
objects in Ireland are very numerous, and date back for several
centuries.[106] The collection of the Royal Irish Academy is one of
exceptional interest and value, and numbers over 350 specimens. These
have been classified by Wilde as follows: ‘Diadems, tiaras, lunulæ,
hair-plates, and ear-rings; those used for the neck--as, for example,
gorgets, small torques, flattened beads, globular balls, and necklaces;
for the breast--as circular plates, fibulæ, and brooches; for the
limbs--as armillæ, bracelets, and finger-rings; and for the chest and
waist, in the form of large torques: besides several minor trinkets
and miscellaneous articles, such as bullæ, small circular boxes,
penannular-shaped articles--supposed to represent money--bracteate
medals, and some other objects of undetermined use.’[107]
Notwithstanding the great number of gold objects found in Ireland, and
preserved in public museums or private collections, the majority of
those discovered found their way to the melting-pot; some jewellers,
according to Wilde, estimated that they had purchased as much as
£10,000 worth. This is a matter much to be regretted, for the loss
to archæology is great; and it cannot be too widely known that the
Council of the Academy and the Trustees of the National Museum are
prepared to pay, not only the full bullion value of any object found,
but its estimated antiquarian value, which depends on its condition,
rarity, ornamentation, and the very special circumstances under which
it has been discovered. As examples of the losses in question, we may
mention that in 1860 a letter appeared in the _Athenæum_ from Mr.
Clibborn, the then Curator of the Museum of the Royal Irish Academy,
stating ‘that a considerable gold find had been made near Athlone to
the value of £27,000, which had been entirely lost to the antiquarian
world.’ Again, in 1854, during the construction of the Limerick and
Ennis Railway, certain labourers found under a rude cairn an immense
treasure of the precious metal. So great was this find that four days
after the discovery four men departed to America with about £6000 each.
Large numbers of the objects were immediately melted down in Limerick
and neighbouring towns; a few only seem to have been saved from the
crucible.
* * * * *
_Torques._--The term ‘Torque’ is applied to the various kinds of
collars generally worn round the neck, by the Celtic tribes of the
Continent and the British Isles. Those of the largest kind were worn
round the waist, or across the breast, and the smallest on the arm or
wrist. The torque, familiar to all readers of Roman history, and worn
round the neck, was a twisted rope-like ornament with bulbous ends at
the front. Frequent mention is made of the torque in Irish records, and
their use ranged over a long period of time. Considerable numbers, and
of great variety, have been discovered in Ireland; and some are among
the largest yet found in Europe. ‘The simplest form,’ say Wilde, ‘is
that of a square bar of gold, twisted so as to present a funicular, or
rope-like figure. In the more complete forms, two or more flat stripes
of metal, joined at their inner edges, are twisted spirally.’
[Illustration: Gold Torques, Royal Irish Academy Collection.]
The subject of the above illustration is a group of four torques of
types usually found. The two outer examples were dug out of a bank
of earth on the Hill of Tara. This was in 1810--a time when little
was known about Irish antiquities; and the torques were hawked about
the streets of Navan for sale as old brass, but nobody would purchase
them. They were found in the immediate vicinity of the monuments
identified by Petrie as Mael Bloc and Bluicni, two magical stones of
the pillar class. Wilde states that these ornaments were purchased by
the Duke of Sussex, from whom they passed to the firm of West; and in
1839 they were purchased by subscription, and presented to the Royal
Irish Academy. The outer figure represents as far as we are aware,
the largest ever recorded to have been found anywhere. It is 5 feet 7
inches long, weighs 27 ounces and 7 pennyweights, and is formed of four
flat bars, united at their edges when straight, and then twisted.
The next in size measures 5 feet 6 inches in length, and is twisted
closer; its weight is 12 ounces, 7 pennyweights, and 13 grains. These
large torques were seemingly intended to be worn over the shoulder and
across the breast; the smaller examples were evidently for the neck.
* * * * *
_Lunulœ or Lunettes._--A number of these interesting objects, which
there is good reason to believe belonged to royal persons, may be seen
in the same collection. In Irish they are called ‘Min’ or ‘Mind,’
and consist of ‘a thin crescentic or moon-shaped plate, with the
extremities formed into small, flat, circular discs at right angles
with the plane of the article.’ They are remarkable for the elaborate
ornamentation worked upon them, the pattern being filled with closely
engraved lines single and cross-hatched; the design is of the type
found on bronze weapons and sepulchral urns. These ornaments are
considered to have been worn upright on the head, and held in position
by the terminal plates set behind the ears. They are similar in form
to the ‘nimbi’ in pictures of saints; and in those on panels, the
‘glories’ were often represented by silver-gilt plates of metal.
[Illustration: Gold Lunette, or Min, Royal Irish Academy Collection.]
The above figure represents a beautiful and finely decorated example of
lunette; it is 7 inches high, and about the same broad, and weighs 18
dwts. 2 grs. The terminal plates are of oblong shape and not circular.
* * * * *
[Illustration: Gold Tiara or Diadem, Royal Irish Academy Collection.]
_The Diadem or Tiara_ is another and not uncommon type of the ‘Min.’
They are made of thin plates of gold; and the illustration here shows a
semi-oval-shaped object, wide at the top and narrowing at the ends, and
elaborately decorated. The ends are fixed in double plate-discs; and
when worn, these terminals are supposed to have been in front of, and
partially covering, the ears. This object is a magnificent specimen,
and perhaps the finest of the kind yet discovered. It weighs 16 oz.
10 dwts. and 13 grs., and measures in height, internally, 11 inches by
the same in breadth. It consists of three rolls or ridges, the hollows
being occupied with fine rope-shaped bands. It is richly ornamented
with rows of conical studs; and the discs are also decorated with rows
of small studs round a central umbo.
Many penannular rings have been found in Ireland; and from these were
developed a remarkable series of ornaments usually called _Fibulæ_,
and which are typical of Irish collections. A slight enlargement
at the ends of the ring gave rise to a cup-like expansion, which
in time developed into such a size that the connecting ring became
quite a minor feature in the ornament. The terminals are either flat,
or cup-shaped; the former are usually plain, and the latter highly
ornamented.
[Illustration: Gold Fibula, Trinity College, Dublin.]
The fibula here represented is a massive ornament weighing 33 oz., and
is the heaviest of its kind yet discovered. It is 8⅜ inches long, and
stands 3½ inches high. The external surface of the cups is ornamented
with a concentric circle pattern; while the inside edges and the
junction of the handle and cups are decorated with a triangular design
similar to that on the lunette.
The great interest aroused in the recent discovery of gold ornaments,
the possession of which has formed the subject of debate in and out
of Parliament, renders a brief reference to them necessary. They were
discovered at Broighter, near Limavady Junction, on the Derry and
Coleraine Railway line, in a ploughed field not far from the shores of
Lough Foyle. This great ‘find’ consists of:--(1) A boat of beaten gold,
7¼ inches long by 3 inches wide, weighing 3 oz. 5 dwts.; it has eight
seats, and 15 oars, with other fittings. (2) A bowl also of beaten
gold, 3½ inches in diameter, with 4 small rings for suspension, and
weighing 1 oz. 5 dwts. 12 grs. (3) Two chains of delicate workmanship,
one 14¼ inches long, weighing 2 oz. 7 dwts.; and another 16½ inches,
weighing 6 dwts. 12 grs. (4) A small torque, 5 inches diameter,
weighing 3 oz. 7 dwts. 9 grs.; and a portion of another weighing 1½ oz.
(5) A collar of very remarkable workmanship, and one of the first of
the kind ever discovered. A small portion is missing; but when closed,
it forms a circle 7½ inches diameter. It consists of a highly decorated
hollow tube, 1⅛ inches diameter, formed by two plates soldered
together. It is fastened at the ends by a T-shaped projection and slot.
The ornament is in _repoussé_ work, in the trumpet pattern of the Late
Celtic period, the spaces between being filled with finely engraved
lines like the back of a modern watch.
Mr. A. J. Evans had little doubt that the hoard was a thank-offering
dedicated by some ancient Irish sea-king, who had escaped from the
perils of the waves, to a marine divinity.’ Mr. Robert Cochrane,
however, in a scholarly paper, suggests, with more reason for
acceptance, that the offering might have been made to one of the
neighbouring churches by Aedan, King of the Albanian Scots, who
accompanied St. Columba to the Convention of Drum Ceat.[108]
CHAPTER IX.
LAKE-DWELLINGS.
ORIGIN OF LAKE-DWELLINGS--FIRST DISCOVERIES IN IRELAND--DESCRIPTIONS
OF CRANNOGS--LAGORE--DRUMKELLIN HUT--LOUGH GUR--CRANNOG
‘FINDS’--BALLINAMORE AND BALLYCONNELL--STROKESTOWN--SWISS
LAKE-DWELLINGS--SCOTCH CRANNOGS--DISCOVERIES IN ENGLAND--
MOYLARG--LAKE STONE-DWELLINGS--ARCHÆOLOGICAL PERIOD OF
CRANNOGS--CRANNOG POTTERY--CANOES.
The systematic exploration of lacustrine habitations in the latter
half of the nineteenth century has achieved remarkable success; and
the results are among the most satisfactory in the whole field of
archæological investigation. Water--usually a destructive element--has,
in the case of lake-dwellings, so far preserved these remains of early
races that we are enabled to learn much of their habits and modes of
life, of which we could otherwise glean but little knowledge. Man has
at all times familiarised himself with water; and he readily adapts
himself to the conditions of dwelling near or upon it, whenever he
adopts it as a surrounding for his home. Primitive man saw easily that
islands afforded a safe retreat in the great struggle for existence
between him and his natural foes--man and beast. In selecting water,
where islands did not exist he created them for himself, and brought
considerable mechanical skill and ingenuity, and immense labour, to
bear upon their construction. To hollow out a log-canoe, and to make an
artificial island with trunks of trees, branches, stones, and earth,
were but stages, though greatly advanced ones, in the development of
human intelligence from its low condition in the cave-dwellers and
men of the river-drift. It is evident, however, that these artificial
islands had been long used in Europe before they had been adopted in
Ireland as dwelling-places.
Many a desolate moorland district, and many a shallow waste of water,
throughout Ireland, now showing no other signs of animal life than the
wild fowl which frequent them, were at one time the sites of human
habitation, industry, and even art of no mean character. A slight
elevation on the surface of a bog, some bleached sprays of birch, ash,
or sallow, or the appearance of a few grey or white reed-surrounded
stones, rising a few inches above the surface of a lough, will often,
to the practised eye, indicate the position of a _Crannog_, by which
name lake-dwellings in Ireland are usually designated. It is, however,
to turf-cutting operations, or to drainage, that the discovery of the
great majority of these interesting sites must be attributed. The term
‘Crannog’ is derived from _crann_, a tree; but whether it was given
originally to the wood used in constructing the island, or to the huts,
cannot now be determined.
[Illustration: Lake-dwellings in Lough Eyes, Co. Fermanagh.]
‘To understand,’ says Sir William Wilde, ‘or appreciate the nature of
these dwellings, we must bring back our minds to the period when the
country around the localities where they occur was covered with wood,
chiefly oak and alder, and when the state of society had passed from
that of the simple shepherd or pastoral condition, to one of rapine,
plunder, and invasion. Certain communities, families, or chieftains
required greater security for themselves, their cattle, or their
valuables than the land could afford, and so betook themselves to the
water. With infinite labour, considering the means and appliances at
their disposal, these people cut down young oak-trees, which they
carried to the lakes and drove into the clay or mud around the shallows
of these islands, which were usually, I believe, covered with water
in winter; and having thus formed a stockade which rose above the
water into a breastwork, probably interlaced with saplings, they
floored with alder, sallow, or birch, to a suitable height above the
winter flood, the space so enclosed, and on this platform erected
wooden cabins. One large flag, at least, was also carried in for a
hearthstone, or common cooking-place; and one or more querns, or
hand-mills, have almost invariably been found in the remains of these
crannogs.’
As far back as 1810 a lake-dwelling was discovered at Roscrea, but
no special attention was given to it, as its precise nature was not
understood. In 1839 the curiosity of Wilde and Petrie was aroused by
the very frequent visits of a dealer bringing quantities of antiquarian
objects for sale to the Royal Irish Academy. These, he said, had been
found in the bog of Lagore, near Dunshaughlin, Co. Meath. A visit
was paid to the spot, and a large collection of weapons, articles
of personal and domestic use, objects of bone and wood were seen.
This collection was unfortunately soon scattered, though some of it
was secured for the Academy Museum. The Lagore lake-dwelling stood
at a slight elevation above the surrounding bog, and consisted of a
circular mound 520 feet in circumference. The waters of the lake in
which it stood had been drained many years before, and during some
subsequent operations on the stream, a quantity of bones were found;
numbers of bone-gatherers came and carted off 150 loads, which were
sent to Scotland for the manufacture of manure. The island was formed
by ‘upright posts of black oak, measuring from 6 to 8 feet in height;
these were mortised into beams of a similar material laid flat upon
the marl and sand beneath the bog, and nearly 16 feet below the
present surface. The upright posts were held together by connecting
cross-beams, and (said to be) fastened by large iron nails; parts of
a second upper tier of posts were likewise found resting on the lower
ones.’
The plan of the huts--there were probably six or eight originally--is
described from the personal observation of Mr. Wakeman, made in the
summer of 1848, at which time a portion of the ‘island’ was re-opened
for the purpose of turf-cutting. Here a foundation, consisting of
four rough planks of oak, each about 12 feet in length, was arranged
so as to form a quadrangle. The ends were carefully fitted together,
and secured by strong iron nails, with flat heads about the size of a
shilling. From the angles of this square rose four posts to the height
of about 9 feet. In these grooves were cut, into which roughly-split
planks of oak had been slipped, so as to form the sides of the
dwelling. There seems to have been no provision for the admission of
air or light, except a small opening in one of the sides, which must
have served as a doorway. The roofs, like the sides, were formed of
oak boards, quite flat, and were probably covered originally with sods
or other vegetable matter. The enclosing circles of piles ‘or hedges,’
as they were sometimes styled, at Lagore, had been all but obliterated
before any archæologist had visited the place. Nevertheless, down to
the period of the first visit some traces remained. These consisted of
half-burnt beams, intermixed with large quantities of wood-charcoal. We
gather from history that Lagore once stood as one of the safest and,
as there is reason to believe, richest of the lacustrine habitations
of Ireland. It belonged, in fact, to the O’Melaghlins, a regal family
in Meath, and was probably their principal stronghold. Upon this place
the Danes of Dublin had long set their eyes, but had never been able
to place their feet; until mustering an army, and carrying with them
from Dublin Bay one of their war-vessels, they were able, by aid of the
latter, to take and sack the crannog. This was in the ninth century.
Other remains of log-walled huts have been found in Irish
lake-dwellings, particularly in Ulster. The most interesting example
yet known--one indeed that is unique among those hitherto discovered
in the lake-dwellings of Europe--is that described by Captain Mudge in
1853. It lay 16 feet beneath the surface of a bog at Drumkellin, near
Inver, County Donegal; and, not allowing for the lake depth, at least
26 feet of bog must have grown on the site since its erection. Within
the hut was found a stone hatchet, the cutting edge of which is said
to have exactly fitted certain indentations which were observable in
several of its timbers, all of which were of oak. Dr. Keller found
that the piles used in the construction of the dwelling at Ober Meilen
had been cut with stone implements; and experiments made on green
timber with the stone axes found on the site clearly demonstrated the
fact.[109] The Drumkellin hut was perfectly square in plan, 12 feet
each side, and 9 feet high. ‘The framework was composed of upright
posts and horizontal sleepers mortised at the angles, the end of each
upright post being inserted into the lower sleeper of the frame, and
fastened by a large block of wood or fore-lock.[110] The interstices
were filled with a composition of what appeared to be grease and fine
sea-sand. The interior was divided by a flooring into an upper and a
lower chamber, which were probably only used as sleeping-apartments.
Portions were found of the gates of the staked enclosure within which
it stood, resting on a floor of hazel branches covered with fine sand.
There is a model of this hut in the Royal Irish Academy collection.
At Kilnamaddo, County Fermanagh, and other places, remains of log-huts
have been found. The huts at Kilnamaddo were of a very primitive kind,
and lay buried under 17 feet of peat; they were but 4 feet in height
and constructed of oak beams. Some of these showed long clean cuts; and
others, 7 feet in circumference, had mortise-holes pierced through,
which could only have been done with metallic instruments. The remains
at Dunshaughlin--or, more correctly, Lagore--crannog, though probably
of later date than the Drumkellin hut, were very similar to it in
character; they, however, presented no upper chamber.[111]
Soon after the discovery at Lagore, another lake-dwelling was
discovered in lowering the waters of Roughan Lake, near Dungannon.
Here were found many fragments of pottery and bones, some bronze
spear-heads, and a fine sandstone quern, having an old Irish cross
carved in high relief. To this ‘fortified island’ Sir Phelim O’Neill
retired after the surrender of Charlemont, and held out until boats
arrived, when he was captured in 1653. About the time of these
discoveries, another ‘island’ was laid bare in Lough Gur by similar
draining operations; and a large number of objects of antiquarian
interest, and quantities of bones, were discovered. This is considered
to be one of the earliest lake-dwellings in Ireland; and the district,
as we have already intimated, is exceptionally interesting from an
archæological point of view. There appears to have been no staking or
surrounding timber enclosure in connection with this crannog. Other
discoveries quickly followed; three stockaded lake-dwellings were found
in Monaghan (1843–4). One in Ballinderry Lake, near Moate, yielded
a large quantity of antiquities and bones, and two canoes. In the
drainage of Lough Faughan, County Down, another ‘dug-out’ canoe was
found. During the work of the Commission for the Arterial Drainage and
Inland Navigation of Ireland, twenty-two crannogs were discovered in
the Ballinamore and Ballyconnell districts. The report of the officers
of the Board of Works may be thus briefly stated: The crannogs were
generally circular, and from 60 to 80 feet in diameter; some were
larger, of an oval shape. The stakes were mostly of young oak trees,
from 4 to 9 inches broad, usually sunk in a single row; some, however,
were double, and in a few cases treble. The portions remaining in the
ground usually showed hatched marks. Within the enclosure, the surface
was sometimes covered over with a platform of round logs, from 4 to 6
feet in length, on which was a layer of mixed stones, clay, or gravel.
This construction was in some cases confined to a portion of the
island. ‘Besides these, pieces of oak framing, with mortises and cheeks
cut in them, have been found within the circle of the outer work.’ In
almost every instance a hearth made of flat stones was found near the
centre of the crannog; and in some instances two or three such hearths
existed. One or more querns were usually discovered; and upon the
enclosure or around it were found large quantities of bones, usually
those of cattle, deer, and swine.
Some of the lake-dwellings were of considerable dimensions, and
contained the remains of several huts. Others were of very small
proportions, and capable of holding but one poor dwelling. All,
however, were strongly stockaded, and were fairly secure retreats
for their occupiers, who, no doubt, would have managed that no boat
or currach, except those which they had with them upon the island,
remained in the neighbourhood. The remains of causeways connecting the
islands with the shore and with each other have, in many cases, been
found. These were built in the same manner as the lake-dwelling--on
piles, with branches, earth, and stone thrown between. In some
instances, the approaches may have been submerged, as, from the winding
direction they took, they could only be used by those well acquainted
with them.[112]
[Illustration: Bone Pins, &c., from Lake-dwellings in Counties Sligo,
Leitrim, and Roscommon (scale, about one-third).]
The larger crannogs, like those of Ballinderry, Lagore, and Lough Gur,
were of the character of fortresses, differing in little, except in
position, from the dun or cahir on land. Their ‘kitchen-middens,’ when
examined, brought forth exactly the same class of remains--stone,
flint, bronze, iron, bone, wood, and glass. A peculiarity of the
‘finds,’ in connection with the greater islands, was the enormous
quantity of animal remains, often amounting to hundreds of tons, with
which the stockades were found surrounded. These usually consisted
of the bones of the _bos longifrons_ and _bos frontosis_, of the
_cervus elaphus_, or red deer, wild boars, horses, asses, sheep, foxes,
wolf-dogs, and occasionally of human beings. Intermixed with the
osseous _débris_ of crannogs, very frequently occur numerous articles
of early manufacture--pottery, swords, spear-heads, battle-axes,
knives, chains and fetters, spears, reaping-hooks, saws, gouges,
brooches, whorls, small frying-pans and pots, horse-furniture,
crucibles, beads--of jet, of glass, and of amber; combs, tweezers, pins
and needles.
[Illustration: Glass Beads, from Lake-dwellings.]
[Illustration: Comb, from Lagore Lake-dwelling.]
[Illustration: Comb, from Ballinderry Lake-dwelling.]
Few ornaments or other articles formed of gold or silver have been
found in Irish crannogs. There is also an absence of coins, except
those of very late date, the celebrated ‘brass money,’ from the mints
of James the Second, being the most common. Such coins had probably
belonged to outlaws or rapparees, who, after the downfall of the Stuart
cause, were compelled to live in places difficult of access, and had
sought the ancient crannogs as exceptionally safe retreats.
[Illustration: Comb (restored), from Ardakillin Lake-dwelling.]
[Illustration: Section of Ardakillin Lake-dwelling, Co. Roscommon.]
By drainage operations, crannogs were laid bare in the Lakes
Ardakillin, Cloonfinlough, and Clonfree, near Strokestown, in 1852.
These proved exceptionally rich in ‘finds,’ consisting of implements
and personal and domestic articles of bones, bronze, and iron. The
surface of Cloonfinlough seemed to have been twice laid. Here a skull
was found; and among the bronze articles was a lamp of Roman type.
One of the four crannogs in Ardakillin yielded 50 tons of bones. The
section of another is here given. ‘Under a slight earthy deposit,
there was a deep layer of loose stones, bounded by an enclosing wall,
the foundation supported by piling. The lower portion of the island
consisted of clay, peat, and stones, mingled with strata of ashes,
bones, and logs of timber. The various rows of oak-piling are shown in
the section; the sheet-piling, driven in obliquely, formed an unbroken
circle round the island.’[113] The ‘finds’ were numerous and varied,
including bone pins and combs, articles of bronze, beads of stone,
glass, and amber. Near the crannog was found a canoe 40 feet long, made
from a single oak trunk; in it were discovered a skull, spear-head,
and bronze pin. The skull showed that it had received twenty cuts with
a sharp weapon, and though no one cut necessarily proved fatal, death
no doubt ensued from the accumulated injuries. Up to the year 1857,
forty-seven lacustrine dwellings had been discovered; and since then
the work of investigation of these sites has been steadily carried
on; and the number now known is over 230. Of these, Ulster has about
one-half, and Connaught one-third. The Lisnacroghera crannog, near
Broughshane, County Antrim, was discovered in 1882; but its features
had been destroyed before a proper examination could be made of the
site. Most of the ‘finds’ fell into the hands of the late Canon
Grainger; many of them were of exceptional value, and will be treated
of in another chapter.
But the impetus given to this branch of archæological exploration
throughout Europe was more directly due to the discovery of dwellings
similar in character in the lakes of Switzerland. In 1829, piles were
discovered at Ober Meilen, on Lake Zurich; but it was not until the
very dry and cold winter of 1853–4, that the inhabitants, in raising
silt from the shallows of the lake to reclaim the higher portions of
the shore, laid bare the piles of ancient lacustrine dwellings, and
discovered a large quantity of stone and flint weapons, utensils,
broken pottery, dug-out canoes, bones of wild animals, one human
skull, and portions of several skeletons. On a careful examination,
Dr. Keller was of opinion that the piles formed the foundation of a
platform raised above the surface of the water upon which the huts
were built, and that the place had been destroyed by fire after it
had existed for a long period as the site of human habitation. Many
similar discoveries in other lakes rapidly followed; and over 200 of
these sites are now known in Switzerland. Their area of distribution
has been found to extend throughout France, Germany, Austria, South
Europe, and Asia Minor. The plan of the pile-buildings (_Pfhalbauten_),
it will be seen, differed from the fascine method of construction
generally practised in the erection of the British lake-dwellings. In
Ireland, however, clusters of crannogs sometimes occur--as in Lough
Eyes, County Fermanagh--and were, as is evident from existing remains,
connected together by submerged causeways, or by approaches raised high
and dry on piles. ‘A third method,’ says Dr. Munro, ‘was to construct,
in close proximity to each other, a series of rectangular basements
of wood, each basement having its sides formed by horizontal beams
lying one above the other, and overlapping at the four corners, like
the logs in a Swiss châlet. These compartments measured only a few
yards in diameter. Their lowest beams rested on the bed of the lake;
and when the requisite height above the water was attained, the usual
platform was laid across, and the cellular spaces underneath became
covered over.... This plan appears to have been adopted chiefly by
the founders of the sporadic dwellings of the Iron Age.’[114] The
population inhabiting the Swiss lake-villages must have been at one
time very great. The settlements were on an extensive scale; and it has
been estimated that from 40,000 to 50,000 piles were used in a station
of the Stone Age period at Wangen, in Lake Constance, while some still
larger required little short of 100,000. These lacustrine settlements
were especially exposed to the danger of fire; but, as Dr. Munro points
out, this ‘was the most fortunate event from an archæological point of
view that could have happened.’ In the hurry of escape, little would be
carried away; and perishable articles slightly charred were better able
to resist the destructive agency of water.
In Scotland the first important discovery of lake-dwellings was made
in 1863 in draining operations at Loch Dowalton, Wigtownshire, by
Sir Herbert Maxwell. The remains contained Roman articles, which
showed that the crannog was occupied during the period of the Roman
occupation of Britain. With these exceptions, the remains were
precisely similar to those found in Irish crannogs. Fifteen years
later, the Lochlee crannog was explored, which was the beginning of a
series of excavations in the counties of Ayr and Wigtown. Among later
discoveries, the Lochan Dughaill lake-dwelling in Argyllshire disclosed
the remains of a circular hut, in the centre of which was the stump
of an upright post, with which the radiating planks were connected.
The ends of these had square-cut holes in which the ring of uprights
were fixed; but how these were connected with the central support for
roofing was not apparent. Here fragments of glazed wheel-made pottery
were found. Near Lanark, the Hyndford crannog, discovered in 1898,
yielded a polished celt, and other stone objects; portions of querns;
pieces of six different vessels of red ‘Samian’ ware, and others of the
grey Roman pottery; an axe, and other objects of iron.
In England the remains of lake-dwellings are few. In 1868 General
Pitt-Rivers described the discovery of piles in beds of peat, 7 to
9 feet deep, near London wall and in Southwark. The kitchen-middens
yielded articles, chiefly Roman; but there were other objects of bone
of a ruder type. Lake-dwelling remains were found in the Holderness, in
1880, during draining operations. The most important discovery of the
kind yet made in England was that of the Glastonbury lake-dwellings,
by Mr. Arthur Bulleid, in 1892. Here some seventy mounds lay close
together in low ground, which was once apparently under water. The
‘finds’ consisted of a large and varied assortment of stone, bone,
bronze, iron, amber, pottery, glass, etc. There was an absence of
any Roman influence in the Glastonbury settlement; while many of the
objects were of the Late Celtic period. ‘This feature alone,’ says
Dr. Munro, ‘gives to the Glastonbury lake-village an exceptional
importance among the lacustrine researches hitherto prosecuted within
the British Isles.’
Of the exploration of Irish crannogs in recent years, that of
Moylarg, County Antrim, was carefully carried out under the personal
supervision of the Rev. Dr. Buick. The clearing laid bare a quantity
of well-constructed woodwork, showing a system of log-supports to the
piles, radiating beams, and uprights mortised into the base beams. ‘The
layers of branches, rushes, and bracken were tightly packed together;
stones large and small laid in between; and the whole well pinned down
by stakes of hazel about the thickness of a man’s leg. These stakes had
been pointed with a sharp metallic axe, three cuts as a rule sufficing
to complete the operation.’ The ‘finds’ consisted of over 250 pieces
of flint, mostly chips, an arrow-head, stone celt, a number of tracked
stones, whetstones, and quern remains; bones of the ox, goat, pig--all
broken for marrow--and red deer antlers; of bronze, a strainer of
fine type with iron handle, an ingot and its mould, and a few other
articles; four glass beads; fragments of leather: of pottery, a huge
number of pieces; of iron, an axe of gallowglas type, portion of a
mediæval lock, a chisel-like implement, nails, knife, half shears, and
spear-butt; a lead pendant of Late Celtic pattern, and portion of a
cross of ninth or tenth century type.[115] Similar operations have been
carried out recently by Dr. S. A. D’Arcy in several crannogs in the
neighbourhood of Clones. The ‘finds’ were numerous, and generally of
the various classes already described.[116]
An interesting discovery of a ‘submarine’ crannog was made by Mr. R. J.
Ussher, in 1879, at Ardmore. The action of the sea had washed away the
shingle, and exposed a double row of pile remains enclosing an oval
space measuring 100 feet in diameter. The stratum of turf was 9 feet
thick. The encroachment of the sea is due to the subsidence of the land
on the southern shores of Ireland well within the periods of human
occupation.[117]
Examples of what have been designated ‘Lake Stone-dwellings’ or ‘Stone
Crannogs,’ are to be found in the lake-riddled district of Connemara,
to which attention was called by Mr. G. H. Kinahan in 1872. These
islands have been wholly or in part formed of stones, and enclosed by
a wall similar to the cashel of the land fortification. That of Hag’s
Castle, in Lough Mask, with a thick encircling wall, is the largest
of the kind. Others exist in a lake on Goromna Island, in Lough Bola,
near Carna, and Lough Cam, near Roundstone Bay, and in Ballinafad
Lough, near Ballinahinch.[118] Mr. Layard has described those in Lough
Skannive, near Carna; but no exploration of their contents has yet been
attempted in any of these islands.[119]
It is not to be supposed that all lake-dwellings are of great
antiquity; some are no doubt of much earlier date than others, but the
question of their precise age is especially complicated from the fact
that, at whatever period they were constructed, many were occupied
through a long period of historic time. Crannogs are frequently
mentioned in the Irish ‘Annals,’ and they enter into the composition
of several place-names. Many of them suffered from the attacks of
the Norsemen, as records tell us. We have clear historic evidence of
the occupation of some of the lake-dwellings throughout the Middle
Ages, and through the Elizabethan wars down to the middle of the
seventeenth century.[120] In many, as we have seen, flint cores, with
flakes, scrapers, knives, and arrow-heads, have been found. With them
sometimes occurred stone celts, exactly similar to examples found
in primitive cists, with burial urns and evidences of cremation. No
doubt crannogs yielding flint and worked stone should be regarded
as the oldest; yet from the fact that spear-heads, celts, and other
articles of bronze, and even of iron, are at times found plentifully
amongst their piling, or in the surrounding bog stuff, we must conclude
that these islets had been used by a people well skilled in the art
of metallurgy. It is necessary, too, to point out that year by year
additional evidence is produced to show that in Ireland at least the
apparently contemporaneous use of flint, stone, bone, bronze, and
iron in the preparation of weapons, implements, and ornaments for the
person, had existed throughout a long period of time. In addition to
the mixed ‘finds’ already mentioned, there were found, in a Monaghan
lake-dwelling described by Mr. Shirley, stone celts, a worked flint,
apparently intended for an arrow-head, three looped bronze celts,
a dagger and chisel of bronze, as also two bronze arrow-heads and
a shield-boss of the same metal, accompanied by iron remains. At a
place named ‘The Miracles,’ near Monea, Co. Fermanagh, in 1875, a
lake-dwelling, the remains of which Mr. Wakeman had an opportunity
of examining, was discovered by turf-cutters. Here a fairly polished
axe-head, or celt, was turned up, together with a number of articles
composed of bronze, which, from the description given by the people who
had found them, were probably fibulæ. That, during some portion of the
period of its occupation, inhabitants of this crannog were in the habit
of manufacturing objects of iron was evident, as pieces of iron slag,
quantities of wood charcoal, a well-formed crucible, sharpening-stones,
and at least two grinding-stones were found amongst the _débris_. In
the nearly-drained site of Loughavilly, the ‘Loch of the ancient tree,’
near Toppid Mountain, Co. Fermanagh, are the remains of a piled mound,
formerly an island. Here were found a stone celt and lumps of iron
slag. Traces of charcoal were abundant; but, from the softness of the
surroundings, it seemed quite hopeless to penetrate to any extent into
the mud or pulp in quest of discoveries.
Similar cases of ‘finds’ could be multiplied many times; it is
sufficient to state that in nearly every crannog hitherto discovered,
and more or less explored in Ireland, articles formed of flint or
stone, and similar in every respect to remains usually assigned to the
Stone Age, have occurred, and in apparent connection with implements
of bronze and iron. The necessity for the use of stone celts discovered
in the lake-dwellings is not clear; for it is certain that the long
clean cuts which appear on the ends of the pilings or stakes by which
the islands are encircled, could only have been made with sharp
metallic implements of the axe or adze kind. Such objects are very
common in crannog remains; and some have been found furnished with
well-steeled cutting edges, while the remainder of the head consisted
of soft iron. The mortice-holes so often found in the framework of the
islets, and in the larger timbers of the huts, were evidently worked
out by the use of metal chisels, which may have been formed either of
bronze or iron.
The huts of Drumkellin and Kilnamaddo are perhaps among the earliest
remains of lake-habitations yet found within the British Isles; but
whatever claim they may have for classification among the earliest
lake-dwellings of Central Europe, the Irish crannogs, as a whole, seem
to have no such claim. And as regards these huts, ‘the relics,’ as Dr.
Munro says, ‘are too few to justify such a sweeping conclusion as that
these dwellings were constructed at a period when metal implements
were unknown in the country. At any rate, there can be no reasonable
doubt that the period of greatest development of the Scotch and Irish
lake-dwellings was during the Iron Age, and at least as far posterior
to Roman civilization as that of the Swiss Pfahlbauten was anterior to
it.’[121]
* * * * *
_Crannog Pottery._--The remains of fictile ware, discovered in
crannogs, afford an opportunity of comparing the pottery of the
lake-dwelling inhabitants with the urns used for sepulchral purposes,
which are found in the cairns, cists, and tumuli. The fragments found
in the lake-dwellings have been numerous; but, owing to the fragile
nature of the ware, no perfect example has yet been discovered.
They are larger than the cinerary urns and broader at the base. The
shoulders are provided with perforated ears, affording a means of
suspension by leather thong or withe. The colour of this ware varies
from light drab to extremely dark brown, though a few have been found
which were slightly red in appearance. The ornament which they usually
bear is a chevron, or a herring-line pattern, such as are often found
upon fictile ware discovered in sepulchral tumuli, as well as upon
several varieties of bronze celts and other weapons or instruments.
Others have dots and lines; but in general style and finish they are of
a much inferior type to the cinerary urns.
[Illustration: Cooking-Vessel from Lough Eyes, Co. Fermanagh.]
In no single instance has there been discovered a trace on crannog
pottery of what might be called Christian art or design. All the
earthen vessels of this class hitherto found were hand-made, and
appear to have been well burnt. They are invariably unglazed; and in
many examples the action of fire would seem to have been more intense
internally than on the exterior. The material is invariably sandy clay;
possibly the grit was added in order to afford greater consistency to
the paste. Most of the vessels show this sand distinctly; and in the
ruder specimens particles of white stone, occasionally the size of
a small pea, and sometimes no bigger than the head of a pin, may be
noticed roughly projecting from their sides. A number of flat discs of
the same material as the vessels were found with them, which seemed to
have been their covers or lids. A curious provision for the escape of
steam during the process of boiling or cooking is observable in some
of these earthen pots. It consists of a small circular aperture in the
neck or upper side of the vessel, just below the point where the lid
would be supported or caught. It is not possible to determine whether
these vessels, when entire, were invariably perforated or otherwise;
the aperture, however, occurs in some of the specimens preserved.
Vessels which were of this type and exact style of ornamentation
appear to be extremely rare; but they have been discovered in some
districts of North America, and in Indian burial mounds of remote
but unascertained date. The principal sources of this pottery in
Ireland were the crannogs of Ballydoolough, Drumgay, Lough Eyes,
Drumdarragh, and Lankhill, all in the county of Fermanagh; but valuable
specimens have been found at Lisnacroghera, and other places. As these
discoveries were subsequent to the compilation of Wilde’s _Catalogue_,
particulars of this ware do not figure in that work.
[Illustration: Horn Drinking-cup.]
[Illustration: Wooden Mether or Drinking-cup.]
The art of carving designs on bone and wood was largely practised
by the ancient Irish, as many examples on the former material, less
perishable than the latter, found in crannogs and elsewhere, show. They
possessed plenty of timber, and were adepts in manufacturing _Methers_
or _Madders_ (so called from being used in drinking mead or metheglen),
and other household vessels, principally out of alder, oak, yew,
willow, beech, and elm.
* * * * *
[Illustration: ‘Dug Outs,’ or Canoes.]
_Canoes._--Single piece Canoes or ‘dug-outs’ may be divided into
the three following classes: The first are trough-shaped, rounded at
the bottom, and are from 8 to 12 feet in length. Some of these are
furnished at their extremities with handle-like projections by which
they were probably lifted and carried overland from lake to lake, or
from river to river. Some few, instead of having handles, are furnished
at their ends with slits sufficiently large to admit the fingers of
a man’s hand. These indentations or incisions no doubt served the
purpose of the projections referred to. The second are flat-bottomed,
with rounded prow and square stern; they average 20 feet in length and
about 2 feet in breadth. This class varies in depth according to their
state of preservation, while the bottoms of some are rounded and have
both ends square. The third class have a greater length of beam; one
from Lough Owel, in the National Museum, measures 42 feet in length by
from 4 to 5 feet in width. This canoe is shallow, and apparently had 12
holes cut through each side, and about 20 holes through the bottom at
regular intervals; it has unfortunately been sawn across into pieces.
The prow curves upwards, and the bottom is slightly rounded. Many of
the canoes have been found in bogs, apart from known crannog sites,
and in the beds of lakes and rivers. Some fine specimens of these
may be seen in the National Museum. The largest ever discovered in
Ireland has recently been added to the collection. It is hollowed out
of a single trunk, is about 52 feet long, and of great weight. This
remarkable canoe was found at Miltown, near Tuam, and purchased in the
spring of 1902.
Oak paddles, well formed, and measuring about 4 feet in length, often
occur in connexion with the canoes. It is very probable that the
_Currach_ or ‘cot’ formed of basket-work, covered with skin of the cow,
horse, or deer, was in use amongst the lake-dwellers. Owing to the
perishable nature of the materials none of these have been found. That
they were used at an early period in the British Isles is attested by
Roman writers. The primitive willow-ribbed and basket-woven cot, with
water-tight covering, has been used by the fishermen on the Boyne down
to our own day. The canvas-covered skiffs of to-day in Clare, Galway,
the Aran Isles, Mayo, and Donegal are the survivals of a similar type
which have been used by the dwellers on the Atlantic coast from early
times.
CHAPTER X.
ORATORIES: EARLY CHURCHES.
EARLY MONASTIC LIFE--SKELLIG MICHAEL--GALLERUS--KILMALKEDAR--BISHOP’S
ISLAND--HIGH ISLAND--INISMURRAY--DESCRIPTION OF EARLY CHURCHES--
KILLINEY--KILTERNAN--ST. MAC DARA’S CHURCH--GLENDALOUGH AND ITS
CHURCHES--STONE-ROOFED BUILDINGS--FRIAR’S ISLAND--ST. COLUMBA’S
HOUSE, KELLS--ST. FLANNAN’S CHURCH.
It was long considered an established fact that the churches of
Ireland, previous to the twelfth century, were altogether constructed
of wood, or wattles daubed with clay. It was consequently held, on the
authority of Ware, that there remained in the country not a single
example of church architecture of a period much antecedent to A.D.
1148, in which year died Malachy O’Morgair, who is stated to have
erected at Bangor the first ecclesiastical building of stone that had
ever appeared in Ireland. The well-directed labours of George Petrie,
in seeking among the archæological remains themselves for evidence by
which their era might be determined, and in adducing the testimony of
Irish manuscripts relative to such structures as were in use at the
time of their composition, removed the veil of obscurity which had
so long shrouded the subject of Irish ecclesiastical antiquities.
He showed that the country not only contains examples of church
architecture of the earliest period of Christianity in the kingdom, but
also that they exhibit many characteristics of exceptional interest.
Though wood appears to have been the material of which the first
churches were built, where stone was not abundant and otherwise unused,
they were subsequently constructed of stone, and from their small
size and peculiar features are among the most interesting remains now
existing. The buildings called oratories were evidently intended for
the private devotions of the founders, whose graves are so frequently
to be found in their immediate neighbourhood. The most singular of
these are in the west and south-west of Ireland, and they are generally
in sequestered and isolated spots, not only on the small and almost
inaccessible islands off the coast, but on mountain tops and lonely
lake islands.
[Illustration: Clochaun na Carriage, Aran Island.]
Following the ascetic practices and the monastic life of the early
Eastern Church, these places, far remote from the abodes of men,
were selected as retreats by the early missionaries of the Irish
Church. On the wild and almost inaccessible Skellig Rock, on Slieve
League and Brandon Mountain, in Gougane Barra Lake, on High Island,
Inishglora, Inismurray, and numerous other isolated places, stone
cells and oratories were erected, alone or in connection with monastic
settlements. The clochaun form of building found in use was adopted,
and it was upon this type of rude structure that the first buildings
for Christian Church purposes were erected in these places. The
monastic cells soon changed from the pagan circular or oval shape, and
became rectangular, in the first instance internally, as we find in
those of the Skellig remains, which are of a very rude type, and are
perhaps the earliest of the kind now existing.
* * * * *
[Illustration: Plan of Monastic Settlement, Skellig Michael.]
_Skellig Michael._--The Great Skellig lies south-west of Valencia, and
about 10 miles from its nearest point. It is called Skellig Michael,
from St. Michael the patron saint of high places, as in the isolated
rocks in Cornwall and Normandy, also dedicated to him. The Skellig
rises magnificently to a height of 704 feet, and a flight of steps
originally ran up the face of the cliff to the settlement which stood
on an artificial plateau at a height of 545 feet, protected from the
edge by a fine cashel of similar masonry to Staigue Fort. The lower
portion of the path has been cut away by a new road to the lighthouse,
but 620 steps still remain leading to the ruins. These consist of six
beehive cells, two oratories, several cemeteries and rude crosses, two
wells, and the more recent Church of St. Michael. Five of the cells lie
close together in a row, one being at a higher level than the other
four; and in a line beyond to the north is a small oratory, right
on the edge of the cliff. The remainder of the buildings stand on a
lower level of the enclosure. All the buildings, except the church,
are constructed of dry rubble masonry. One of the cells is wholly
rectangular, and the remainder shaped as already stated; the roofs are
formed in the usual fashion, by overlapping, and a small opening was
left at the top to emit smoke. The oratories are similarly constructed,
but are entirely rectangular, and have a window facing the doorway. For
centuries the Skellig was a great place of pilgrimage, and men and
women alike performed it. Having visited the ruins, they climbed the
highest peak, an ascent which was attended with the utmost peril and
risk. The penance is not now practised.
[Illustration: The Great Skellig, or Skellig Michael.]
[Illustration: Bee-hive Cells, Skellig Michael.]
* * * * *
_Gallerus._--The Oratory of Gallerus stands about five miles north-west
of Dingle, and is the most beautifully constructed and perfectly
preserved of these ancient buildings now remaining in Ireland, and
is probably not excelled by any building of the kind in Christendom.
The plan is rectangular; it measures 15¼ feet in length by 10 feet
in breadth inside, and 22 feet by 18½ feet outside; while its height
without is 17 feet 2 inches at the west, and 13½ feet at the east end;
within, the height is 13¼ feet. The roof is formed by the gradual
approximation of the side walls from the base upwards. It is entered
by a square-headed doorway in the west gable, with inclining jambs, 5½
feet high, 21 inches at the top and 27 inches at the bottom (outside).
On each side above the lintel within is a projecting stone with square
holes in which the door hung. The east wall has a deeply splayed
window, with rounded top; it measures 15 inches by 10 inches outside,
and 39 inches by 21 inches inside, inclining to 18 inches at the top.
The batter of the walls is practically straight as high as the top of
the doorway, but from this it is curved ‘giving’ as has been said, ‘an
outline like that of a pointed Gothic arch.’ The surfaces of the stones
within show by the tool-marks that they were dressed flat, and this was
probably done after the courses were laid. At the apex of the east
gable is the socket of a mutilated cross.
* * * * *
_Kilmalkedar._--About a mile to the north is the ruined Oratory of
Kilmalkedar, similar in plan, general features, and nearly of the same
dimensions as Gallerus. It is earlier than the latter, the masonry
being of a ruder type, and the east window having a flat head, with
an inward and outward splay--a unique feature in so early a church in
Ireland. Another similar Oratory in the neighbourhood is Temple Gael,
also in ruins. It differs, however, from the two former, in that the
batter of the walls is straight and not curved.
[Illustration: Oratory of Kilmalkedar.]
* * * * *
[Illustration: Bee-hive House on Bishop’s Island, near Kilkee.]
_Bishop’s Island._--A very interesting example of the monastic cell
occurs upon the rock called Bishop’s Island, near Kilkee, upon the
coast of Clare. It measures in circumference 115 feet; the exterior
face of the wall, at four different heights recedes to the depth of
about 1 foot, a peculiarity not found in any other structure of the
kind; this was probably introduced with the view of lessening the
weight of the dome-shaped roof, which was formed, not on the principle
of the arch, but, as usual, by the gradual approximation of the
stones as the wall ascended. The erection of the Oratory adjoining is
traditionally ascribed to St. Senan, who lived in the sixth century,
and whose chief establishment was upon Inis Cathaigh, or Scattery
Island. It measures 18 feet by 12; the walls are 2 feet 7 inches
thick; the doorway, which occupies an unusual position in the south
side, immediately adjoining the west-end wall, is 6 feet in height, 1
foot 10 inches wide at the top, and 2 feet 4 inches at the bottom;
the east window splays externally, and in this respect is probably
unique in Ireland. Several large monumental pillar-stones stand at a
short distance from the church in an easterly direction, but they bear
no inscriptions or symbols. Bishop’s Island, or, as it is styled in
Irish, _Oileán-an-Easpoiggortaig_, _i.e._ the ‘Island of the hungry
or starving bishop,’ is a barren, precipitous rock, whose sides form
perpendicular or overhanging cliffs, about 250 feet in height. It
contains about three-quarters of an acre of surface, to which access is
most difficult, and only to be effected by a skilful climber, and after
a long continuance of calm weather.
[Illustration: St. Senan’s Oratory on Bishop’s Island, near Kilkee.]
* * * * *
_High Island._--The Island of Ardoileán, or High Island, off the coast
of Connemara, is also difficult of access, and landing can only be had
in calm weather on its precipitous and rocky shores. Here a monastic
establishment was founded by St. Fechin of Fore in the first half of
the seventh century. The ruins, now in a state of great dilapidation,
are near the centre of the northern part of the island which was cut
off from the remainder by a wall. The buildings were surrounded by
another wall or cashel with chambers, the remains of which are still
existing. The church was a small rectangular building, 12 feet by 9½
feet internally, constructed of small stones and uncemented. The door
is 4½ feet high with inclined sides, but the east gable is now defaced.
Many clochauns once existed, but these are mostly destroyed. North-east
of the church are two; one circular without and square within,
measuring 9 feet by 7½ feet high; the other is smaller. In Petrie’s
work the former is suggested to have been the refectory of the latter,
the cell of the abbot.
* * * * *
_Inismurray._--The Island of Inismurray, to which we have already
referred (pp. 21, 181), contains within and without its cashel very
interesting early Christian remains. It probably took its name from
Muiredach, a follower of St. Patrick, who placed him over a Church in
Killala. It is, however, entirely associated with St. Molaise, the
founder of the monastic establishment in this remote spot, and of whom
the _Martyrology of Donegal_ gives the following notice:--‘August 12th,
Molaisse, _i.e._ Laisrén, son of Deglan, of Inis Muiredaich, in the
north, (_i.e._ the north of Connaught); he it was who at the cross of
Ath-Imlaisi pronounced sentence of banishment on St. Columba.’[122]
[Illustration: Plan of Cashel and Monastic Settlement, Inismurray.]
In addition to the beehive cells already mentioned there are within
the cashel of Inismurray three small churches. Teach Molaise, ‘House
of St. Molaise,’ named after the patron Saint of the island, is the
most interesting; it measures internally 9 feet by 8 feet, with walls
of great thickness sustaining a complete stone roof. They are built
of stones, generally of large size, and set with mortar in irregular
courses; all except those forming the doorway and window casings are
rough and unhewn. Teampull-na-Bfear is perhaps more of a church than
an oratory, and forms an oblong 25½ feet by 12 feet. The ground on
which it stands is the burial-place for men, that for women being
at Teampull-na-mBan, or the ‘Women’s Church,’ outside the cashel to
the north-west. It is believed by the islanders that if a woman is
buried in the men’s ground the corpse will be removed, during the
night, by unseen hands to the women’s cemetery, and _vice versâ_.
Teampull-na-Teindh, or the ‘Church of fire,’ is the most modern, and
probably dates from the fourteenth century. There are three altars also
within the cashel, besides others without, numerous cross-inscribed
stones, two holy wells with beehive stone coverings, and the stations
of the pilgrims. The last station is Reilick Odrain, the ‘Cemetery
of Odrain, or Oran,’ the companion of St. Columba, who also gave his
name to a burial-place, Reilig Oran in Iona. St. Molaise or Laisrén,
of Inismurray, is not to be confounded with St. Molaisi Diamhinsi, or
Devenish, son of Nadfraoich, whose festival day is the 12th September.
In Devenish Island in Lough Erne will be found the house or oratory of
this saint, the walls of which were built of massive stones, but the
cell is now in ruins.
The progress of Christianity in Ireland in the first few centuries of
its establishment, and the missionary zeal of its apostles abroad,
brought the Church into close union with ecclesiastical foundations
in Britain and on the continent of Europe. To the connection thus
established is doubtless due the marked improvement in the architecture
of the early Christian churches from the primitive oratories,
although in these we see an advance in certain features on the pagan
clochaun. The early Churches show a further development in dressed
masonry, mortar-built walls, and high pitched roof, and, in point of
antiquity, they may be classed amongst the most remarkable structures
of primitive Christian times now to be found in Europe. Of their usual
characteristics we shall here give a brief description, referring the
reader who may desire more than a general sketch to Petrie’s work, the
_Ecclesiastical Architecture of Ireland_, in which the subject has been
fully discussed.
* * * * *
[Illustration: Doorway, Church of St. Colman Mac Duach, Aran Island.]
_Doorways._--The doorways are generally inclined and are covered by
a horizontal lintel, or headed with a semicircular arch, springing
from plain, square-edged imposts. Occasionally the arch is cut out of
a single stone. At Glendalough are examples in which the lintel is
surmounted by a semicircular arch, the space between being filled up
with masonry. The stones generally extend the whole thickness of the
wall. Few of the very early doorways exhibit any kind of decoration
beyond a plain projecting band, of which there are some fine examples
at Glendalough. The door appears to have been placed against the
interior face of the wall, as in many instances the stones, for a
distance of about three inches from the angle, have been slightly
hollowed, evidently for the reception of a frame. Great blocks of stone
form the lintels of some of the churches; that of St. Fechin, of Fore,
Westmeath, measures 6 feet by 2 feet, and is the full thickness of the
wall--3 feet. The lintel of St. Colman’s, Kilmacduagh, is nearly of the
same dimensions; and the doorway of the church of the same saint within
the cashel, at Kilmurvey, has a lintel 5½ feet long, 1½ feet high, and
extends the full thickness of the wall--2½ feet.
* * * * *
[Illustration: Window, Teampull Ceanannach, or Kilcananagh, Aran.]
_Windows._--These are invariably small, and, with one or two
exceptions, splay internally. They are headed, generally, with small
semicircular arches, either formed of several small stones, or cut out
of a single large one; but the horizontal lintel is common, as is also
a triangular head. The sides of the windows, like the doorway jambs,
almost invariably incline. They are rarely decorated, and then in the
simplest manner, by a projecting band, similar to that occasionally
found upon the early doorways, or by a small bead.
* * * * *
[Illustration: Window, Termoncronan, Co. Clare.]
_Choir Arch._--In the very ancient churches to which chancels are
attached, the connecting arch is invariably semicircular, square-edged,
and plain. In the earliest form the arch springs from the jambs without
imposts; but later these were inserted with chamfered edges, slightly
projecting, the arches sometimes rising from within the edge-line of
the jambs. The arch is usually formed of stones fairly equal in size,
well hammered, and admirably fitted to each other. The greater number
of primitive Irish churches, however, have no chancel, their plan being
a simple oblong. Where chancels, however, occur in these, they were
evidently a later addition, and were not bonded into the walls of the
nave.
* * * * *
_Masonry._--Generally the masonry consisted of very large stones,
well fitted together, as in work to which the term ‘cyclopean’ is
applied. Many of these vary from 6 to 17 or 18 feet in length; one of
the latter size runs the entire breadth of the church called Teampull
Ceanannach, in Inishmaan (Aran). In some of the oldest examples no
mortar appears to have been used; but these instances are very rare,
and mortar is generally found cementing enormous stones, but never in
large quantities. Near the sea-coast, sand and broken sea-shells were
used in making the cement, but in inland places a mixture of gravel and
earth. It seems originally to have been poured in a liquid state upon
the walls, and allowed to filter through.
* * * * *
_Roofs._--The roofs of most of the ancient Irish churches have long
disappeared; but several of stone still remain. The pitch of these
is exceedingly high, and they are constructed upon the barrel-vault
principle. Examples of this kind occur in St. Columba’s House at Kells,
in Cormac’s Chapel at Cashel, in St. Kevin’s House at Glendalough, and
St. Flannan’s at Killaloe.
* * * * *
_Belfries._--The _Cloictheach_, or Round Tower, appears to have been
the most usual belfry. The ancient structure at Glendalough, called St.
Kevin’s ‘Kitchen,’ supports upon its western gable a small tower which
appears to have answered this purpose. Bell-turrets, properly speaking,
were not common before the thirteenth century.
Such are the more usual and prominent characteristics of the early
Irish churches. It should be observed that the doorway, with few
exceptions, is invariably found to occupy a position in the centre of
the west end. The windows in chancelled churches are generally five in
number; one in the east gable, and one in each of the side walls of the
nave and choir.
We shall now refer more specifically to some examples of early churches
whose characteristic features come within those here classified.
* * * * *
[Illustration: Chancel Arch of the Old Church of Killiney, Co. Dublin.]
[Illustration: Doorway in Killiney Church, Co. Dublin.]
[Illustration: Pointed Doorway in Killiney Church.]
_Killiney Church._--The Church of Killiney, situated near the village
of the same name, at a distance of about nine miles from Dublin, will
be found particularly interesting to the student of Irish church
architecture. The length of the interior is 35 feet; the nave measures
but 12 feet 8 inches, and the chancel 9 feet 6 inches in breadth.
The church originally consisted of a simple nave and choir, lighted
in the usual manner, and connected by a semicircular arch; but, at a
period long subsequent to its original foundation, an addition, the
architecture of which it will be well to compare with that of the more
ancient building, has been made on the northern side. The original
doorway, which, as usual, is placed in the centre of the west gable,
is remarkable from having a cross sculptured on the under part of
its lintel. It measures in height 6 feet and 1 inch; in breadth at
the top 2 feet; and at the bottom 2 feet 4 inches. The next feature
to be noticed is the choir arch. This, which may be looked upon as a
most characteristic example of its class, measures in breadth, where
the arch begins to spring, 4 feet 7 inches, and at the base 4 feet
10½ inches; its height is only 6½ feet. The chancel windows display
the inclined sides so indicative of antiquity when found in Irish
ecclesiastical remains; but, with the exception of that facing the
east, they are in a state of great dilapidation. The east window is
square-headed both within and without, and exhibits the usual splay.
The comparatively modern addition on the north side of the nave, which
appears to have been erected as a kind of aisle, is connected with
the original church by several openings broken through the north side
wall. It will be well to compare its architectural features with those
of the older structure. The Pointed doorway offers a striking contrast
to that in the west gable; and its east window is equally different
from that in the ancient chancel, being larger, and chamfered upon
the exterior. The fact of a semicircular arch-head being cut out of a
single stone is of itself no proof of high antiquity, as it occurs in
many comparatively late structures in Ireland; and in England there is
to be seen in the Perpendicular church of Kirkthorpe, near Wakefield, a
door-head that exhibits this mode of construction.
* * * * *
_Kilternan Church._--The Church of Kilternan, situated near the little
village of Golden Ball, about six miles from Dublin, on the Enniskerry
road, presents several features of considerable interest. The south
side-wall and the west gable are original, and of great antiquity. The
latter contains a square-headed doorway, now stopped up with masonry;
and to supply its place, a Pointed entrance has been inserted in the
south side-wall. This alteration was made probably at the time of the
re-erection of the east end, the style of which indicates a period not
earlier than the close of the thirteenth century, about which time
the custom of placing the doorway in the west end appears to have
ceased. There are several other churches in the immediate neighbourhood
of Dublin which contain very primitive features; but they have been
altered and remodelled at various times, and are, upon the whole,
characteristic of later periods. Some of these we shall notice when
describing the Early Pointed style, as found in Irish churches.
* * * * *
[Illustration: St. Mac Dara’s Church.]
_The Church of St. Mac Dara._--The almost barren island containing
the church dedicated to this saint lies off the coast of Connemara,
due south of Roundstone Bay. The church is one of the most remarkable
examples of the small stone-roofed churches now remaining. It measures
14 feet 8 inches by 11 feet 3 inches internally; and the walls are 2
feet 8 inches thick; the side-walls project about one foot beyond the
gables, into which they are not bonded. It is lit by a round-headed
and deeply-splayed window in the east wall, and by a rectangular one
in the south wall. It is built of massive masonry, some of the blocks
measuring from 4½ to 5 feet long, and several feet wide. It had a
high-pitched stone roof resting upon the side-walls, portions of
which still remain. The walls of several circular clochauns, now much
defaced, lie north of the church near the shore. The island is still a
great place of pilgrimage, and passing boats have long been accustomed
to lower their sails three times in honour of the saint.
* * * * *
_Glendalough._--In the lone and singularly picturesque valley of
Glendalough (Co. Wicklow), surrounded by high, gloomy mountains,
upon which clouds almost continually rest, a celebrated monastic
establishment, round which a small city subsequently rose, was founded
in the early part of the sixth century by St. Kevin. The ruins of many
ecclesiastical structures yet remain; and ‘the long continuous shadow
of the lofty and slender Round Tower moves slowly from morn till eve
over wasted churches, crumbling oratories, shattered crosses, scathed
yew-trees, and tombs--now undistinguishable--of bishops, abbots, and
anchorites.’
St. Kevin was of the Royal House of Leinster, and died at a great age
in 618. We are told in a ‘Life’ of him that ‘on the northern shore
of the lake his dwelling was a hollow tree; on the southern he dwelt
in a very narrow cave, to which there was no access except by a boat,
for a perpendicular rock of great height overhangs it from above.’ He
attracted numbers of disciples to the place, and erected a monastery.
This was repeatedly devastated by fire and sword in the eleventh and
twelfth centuries, St. Kevin’s House being consumed in 1163, and the
city is described as having lain waste for forty years, and as being a
veritable den of robbers, ‘spelunca latronum.’ It suffered at the hands
of Dermot Mac Morrough, and was destroyed again in 1398.
That several of the existing churches formed part of the original
foundation, their style of architecture sufficiently indicates. A
cashel, or wall, appears usually to have enclosed most of the ancient
Irish monastic establishments. That such a work at one time existed
at Glendalough is certain, though scarcely a vestige of it at present
remains above ground. One of the gateways, however, stood until
Petrie’s time, which he compares to the Roman-built Newport Gate
at Lincoln; and his prophecy, that for want of care this monument,
unique of its kind, would soon cease to exist, was shortly after
partially fulfilled, upon the fall of the principal arch. The stones,
however, have been re-set, and the work possesses much of its pristine
appearance. It is 11 feet high, 9½ feet wide, and 16 feet deep; it has
external and internal arches, between which rose the tower.
The Church of Our Lady (a modern name) is believed to have been the
first erected in this part of the valley by St. Kevin, ‘qui ibi duxit
vitam eremiticam,’ and here he was buried. It consists of a nave 32
feet by 20½ feet, and a chancel 21 feet 4 inches by 19½ feet: but
the arch has fallen. The doorway is perhaps the finest of the kind
remaining, and exhibits in a striking degree that early Greek form
which is so very commonly found in the doorways of the most ancient
churches, of the round towers, and, though more rudely developed, in
the cahers of the pagan era. It is 5 feet 10 inches high, 2 feet 8
inches wide at the top, and 3 feet at the bottom, being formed of seven
stones of the thickness of the wall; the lintel, 5 feet 1 inch long,
has a cross on its soffit somewhat similar to that of Killiney.
[Illustration: Doorway of the Church of our Lady, Glendalough.]
The Cathedral, standing within the enclosure, is considered to
have been erected about the commencement of the seventh century,
and appears, from its name, dimensions, and position, to have been
originally the _Domhnach-mór_, or _Daimhliag-mór_, or chief church of
the place. Notwithstanding its present state of dilapidation, there are
in Ireland few structures of the same antiquity and extent that retain
so many original features. The nave is 48 feet 6 inches by 30 feet; the
chancel--25 feet by 21½ feet--appears to be of later date; the fallen
arch has been restored to about eight courses above the piers. It is
entered by a square-headed doorway, 6 feet 9 inches high, in which the
weight upon the lintel is taken off by a semicircular arch. The masonry
of the chancel is much less massive than that in the body of the
church, and, moreover, is not bonded into the nave, thus showing its
more modern erection. The east window was remarkable for its ornamental
character, possessing a chevron moulding and a sculptured frieze
running on either side from the spring of the arch.
The most interesting building in the enclosure is St. Kevin’s House or
‘Kitchen.’ This has been to all intents and purposes changed into a
church by the subsequent addition of a chancel and bell-turret, neither
of which, in all probability, belonged to the original building; the
chancel has been destroyed, but it will be seen on close examination
that the walls of the adjoining sacristy are not bonded into those of
the main building. ‘It will be observed also that the chancel arch is
of subsequent formation; for its semicircular head is not formed on
the principle of the arch, but by the cutting away of the horizontally
laid stones of the original wall, in which operation a portion of the
original window placed in this wall was destroyed, and the remaining
portion of the aperture built up with solid masonry.’[123] The arch is
9 feet high by 5 feet wide. St. Kevin’s House was thus originally an
oblong building, 23 feet by 15 feet, with a very high-pitched stone
roof, a barrel-vaulted room below, and a small croft between. It was
entered by a door on the west side, which is now blocked up; it was
square-headed, with the weight taken off the lintel by a semicircular
arch, as in the cathedral door. Above the west gable is the addition
of a small round-towered belfry, rising 9 feet from the roof. The
sacristy was apparently similar to the chancel, being stone-roofed
and ornamented with a rude string-course similar to that of the main
building. It is considered by Petrie that these additions took place
after the death of St. Kevin, whose name was held in such reverence
that naturally it was sought to convert his residence into a church.
Trinity Church, perhaps in a greater degree than any coeval structure
in Leinster, retains the original character of its various parts. It
is near the entrance to the glen, and possesses a fine specimen of
the square-headed doorway, and a choir arch, of its class one of the
finest in Ireland. The east window of the chancel has a semicircular
head, and the arch is cut out of a single stone; there is also a
triangular-headed window in the south wall; in fact, the building
has almost every characteristic of the more ancient style of church
architecture in Ireland, and each perfect in its way. There was
formerly a round tower belfry attached to the western end, which fell
in 1818.
St. Saviour’s Monastery, on the opposite side of the river, near
Derrybawn, is a singularly interesting ruin. It consists of a nave and
chancel, measuring together about 60 feet by 30 feet. The fine chancel
arch, which had fallen, has been restored; it is of three orders
resting upon clustered piers; the capitals are highly ornamented with
fantastic sculptured heads of animals, and the arch displays a variety
of zigzag or chevron moulding, showing work many centuries later than
the most primitive of the buildings.
[Illustration: Chancel Arch, Trinity Church, Glendalough.]
Reefert Church, on the south bank of the upper lake, was the first
founded by St. Kevin before he moved to the lower part of the valley.
It consists of a nave and chancel, the combined length being 43 feet
by 26 feet. The dividing arch is the full width of the chancel. The
doorway is of chiselled blocks of granite; it is 5 feet 9 inches high
and square-headed, with inclined jambs. The enclosure in which it
stands has been strangely interfered with by the Board of Works, and
laid out in a most artificial manner. It was the burial-place of the
O’Tooles; and an ancient inscribed tombstone, popularly said to belong
to the famous king of the tribe, has disappeared, having been broken up
and sold, it is said, by guides in the middle of the last century.
There are other remains of churches--the Priest’s House, St. Kieran’s,
and Temple na Skellig. There are numerous crosses; and the round tower
is one of the largest and most perfectly preserved now remaining. Much
attention is usually paid to the singular chamber called ‘St. Kevin’s
Bed.’ That it is altogether a work of art cannot be satisfactorily
demonstrated. Though, to a certain degree, its artificial character
is distinctly marked, it is quite possible that a natural cavity, the
sides of which have been roughly hewn and squared, may have existed
previously. The Bed, which is situated in an almost overhanging rock,
at some height above the lake, is said to have been the residence
of St. Kevin at some period when pursuing that course of study and
contemplation for which his name, even to this day, is revered; and the
celebrated St. Laurence O’Toole is said to have spent much of his time
in prayer and heavenly contemplation in this cavern.
The early monastic establishments had in their buildings none of the
features found in the monasteries of the great Orders of a later
period. No remains are found at Glendalough, or elsewhere in Ireland,
of great houses, like those of the twelfth and following centuries,
for the accommodation of large numbers. The abbot and other members
of the community had each his own cell, with such buildings as were
needed for guest-house, kitchen, and the like. These were, no doubt,
of a primitive type and perishable material, as all traces of such
structures have long since disappeared. A marked peculiarity of
the churches in these places is their small size. It seems that as
accommodation was required, additional small churches were built, and
hence the many spots in Ireland noted for their collection of such
buildings.
A few structures known as ‘Houses,’ of which St. Kevin’s, already
described, is the best-known example, are stone-roofed and vaulted, and
seem to have combined the purpose of an ordinary dwelling-house with
that of an oratory, and are thought to have been the residence of the
abbot. The church on Friar’s Island, Killaloe, is another and early
example, showing the transitional stage from the false to the true
arch. The chancel measures 10½ feet by 6½ internally, and the walls are
3 feet thick; a very low chamber exists beneath the stone roof. The
principle introduced in the barrel vaulting of these buildings was to
lighten the weight of the heavy stone roof. A space was thus formed
between it and the upper floor of the vaulting, which was turned to
domestic use the more readily when divided by walls. The stone roofs
possess no principle of the arch; they are built of rectangular slabs
of dressed stones, well fitted for weather purposes, the top being
finished with angular coping-stones.
* * * * *
[Illustration: St. Columba’s House, at Kells, Co. Meath.]
_St. Columba’s House._--Another example of this class, less rude than
that of Friar’s Island, occurs in the structure called St. Columba’s
‘House,’ at Kells, Co. Meath. It has a barrel-vaulted roof, which
is completely devoid of ornament, and springs from the side-walls
separating the body of the building from a small croft, to which access
was originally gained by a quadrangular opening, about 19 inches in
breadth, adjoining the west gable. Two walls, crossing and resting
upon this arch, and pierced each with a small semicircular-headed
doorway, together with the gables, support a roof of stone; the total
height is 38 feet. The lower apartment was lighted by two windows,
one in the centre of the east end, the other in the south side-wall.
Both windows are small, and splay inwardly; that to the east is formed
with a semicircular arch, while the other presents a triangular head.
The ancient doorway, which was 8 feet from the ground, in the west
end, has been almost obliterated; the doorway in the south wall is a
later addition. The _Annals of Clonmacnoise_ mention, under date 804,
that ‘a new church was founded in Kells in honour of St. Columb Kill.’
This probably points to the early part of the ninth century for the
erection of these structures. Kells has a remarkably perfect round
tower, several crosses, and has given its name to ‘the most elaborately
executed monument of early Christian art in existence’--the _Book of
Kells_.
[Illustration: Window in St. Columba’s House.
(From the interior.)]
* * * * *
_St. Flannan’s Church._--This building, which is similar to the
‘Houses’ of St. Kevin and St. Columba, is the best built of the class,
and adjoins the Cathedral of Killaloe. The nave is 29 feet long, 18
feet broad, and the walls are about 3½ feet thick; the chancel is
in ruins, and appears to have been about 12 feet broad. The arch is
plain with inclined jambs, and is 8½ feet in height. The nave is
barrel-vaulted, and the croft lit by a semicircular-headed window in
the west gable, and a triangular-headed one in the east. It is entered
by a remarkable doorway in the west gable; the jambs are inclined,
and support a series of recessed semicircular arches. The church is
attributed to Brian Boru, but Petrie considered it much earlier. The
doorway cannot be earlier than the tenth century; and the probability
is that Brian re-edified the building, as he did the Church of
Iniscaltra.
CHAPTER XI.
EARLY DECORATED CHURCHES.
DEVELOPMENT OF STYLE--CHURCH OF INISCALTRA--KILLESHIN--RAHAN--KING
CORMAC’S CHAPEL AT CASHEL--FRESHFORD.
Churches like those described in the last chapter, we have every reason
to believe, were constructed before the Anglo-Norman invasion of this
kingdom. How long the style continued is a matter of uncertainty. We
find in the process of architectural development that the horizontal
lintel appears gradually to have given place to the semicircular
arch-head. The high-pitched roof becomes flattened, the walls lose
much of their massive stone-work character and are generally higher,
and cement appears to have been used. The windows exhibit a slight
recess, or a chamfer, upon the exterior, and are of greater size; a
small bead-moulding is occasionally found extending round an arch
upon the interior. As the style advances, the sides of the doorways,
though still inclined, become cut into a series of recesses, the
angles of which are slightly rounded off. The addition of a slight
moulding--at first a mere incision--upon the piers, would seem to have
suggested pillars. Chevron and other decorations, which in England
are considered to indicate the Norman period, are commonly found; but
they are generally simple lines cut upon the face and soffit of the
arch. Pediments appear; and the various mouldings and other details of
doorways and windows become rich and striking, and, in some respects,
bear considerable analogy to true Norman work. The capitals frequently
represent human heads, the hair of which is interlaced with snake-like
animals. To this style of architecture, which has its own distinctive
characteristics, the term ‘Hiberno- or Irish-Romanesque’ has been
applied. The churches, as a rule, are small in size and simple in
plan, after the manner of the earlier buildings. Horizontal forms,
so strong a feature in the old, are combined with the rounded forms
in the new. The decoration contains elements distinctly belonging to
that ornamentation which is so striking a feature of the metal and
manuscript work of the period. This transition can be traced to the
beginning of the eleventh century, but was not fully developed for a
century later, and would lead, as Petrie says, ‘with every appearance
of probability, to the conclusion that such architecture existed here
previously even to the Norman Conquest of England.’[124]
* * * * *
_Iniscaltra._--The principal church in the monastic establishment
founded by St. Caimin in the seventh century on Iniscaltra, in Lough
Derg, was re-edified by Brian Boru (died 1014), the buildings having
suffered the usual fate of destruction by the Danes. The chancel of
the church is the work of that king, and the nave also was restored.
The west doorway--a fine work though now much decayed--consisted of
three concentric semicircular arches, ornamented with chevron mouldings
in hollow lines. ‘The piers of these arches were rectangular, but
rounded at their angles, so as to form slender semi-cylindrical shafts,
with angular mouldings on each side, and having in capitals well-shaped
human faces carved in low relief.’ The chancel-arch consists of three
receding and concentric plain arches, the piers being rounded into
semi-columns with carved capitals.
* * * * *
_Killeshin._--The church of Killeshin, in the Queen’s County, lying at
a distance of about two miles from Carlow, appears to have been one of
the most beautiful structures of this class ever erected in Ireland.
Its doorway, until very lately, retained, in a remarkable degree,
the original sharpness of its sculpture. We were informed that, many
years ago, a resident in the neighbourhood used to take pleasure in
destroying, as far as lay in his power, the interesting capitals here
represented; and that to his labours, and not to the effects of time,
may be attributed the almost total obliteration of an Irish inscription
which formerly extended round the abacus, and of which but few letters
at present remain.
The church of Killeshin is, perhaps, late in the style of the period.
The arches, of which there are four concentric, forming the doorway,
display a great variety of ornamental detail, consisting of chevron
work, interlaced pattern, heads, &c. A pediment surmounts the external
arch, and a window in the south side-wall is canopied by a broad
band, ascending and converging in straight lines. A window of similar
construction appears in the round tower of Timahoe, and ornamentation
similar in style to the above appears on its fine doorway.
[Illustration: Capitals at Killeshin.]
[Illustration: Capitals at Killeshin.]
* * * * *
_Rahan._--One of the most remarkable remaining examples of this
style of church occurs at Rahan, near Tullamore, in the King’s
County.[125] The monastery was originally founded by St. Carthach,
afterwards bishop of Lismore, at the beginning of the sixth century.
A triple chancel arch, and a circular window, highly ornamented, are
the chief remaining details of the original building. The chancel is
stone-roofed; and the chamber above was lit by the circular window. The
piers of the arch are rounded off into semi-columns, with capitals of
very singular character, quite distinct from Norman work. The bases of
the semi-columns are globular in form; and the blocks are sculptured
in each compartment out of a single stone. The capitals or imposts are
ornamented upon their angles with human heads, the hair of which is
carried back and represented by shallow lines cut upon the face of the
stone in a very fanciful manner. The window, which is 7 feet 6 inches
in diameter, is composed of stones unequal in size, and displaying
chevron ornaments in very low relief.
[Illustration: Window at Killeshin.]
* * * * *
_The Rock of Cashel._--Grouped upon this celebrated Rock, which rises
precipitously from the plain to a height of about 300 feet, is one of
the most interesting collections of buildings in the British Isles.
Cashel was associated with the early kings of Munster; and we are told
a church was founded here by St. Declan in the time of St. Patrick. The
Annalists give the consecration of the chapel of Cormac Mac Carthy,
king of Munster, under the year 1134, thirty-seven years before the
date of the Anglo-Norman invasion. The buildings, in addition, consist
of the Cathedral, founded by Donagh O’Brien, king of Thomond, about
1152, which suffered many vicissitudes, and the Round Tower. A portion
was constructed for defensive purposes, constituting what is called the
Archbishop’s Castle. There is a much-worn cross with an effigy of St.
Patrick; and the ruins of Hore Abbey, founded for the Cistercians in
1272, stand at the foot of the Rock.
[Illustration: The Rock of Cashel.]
Cormac’s Chapel is, with the exception of the round tower, the most
ancient structure of the group. It is not parallel with the Cathedral,
and therefore differs in orientation. It is roofed with stone, and in
its capitals, arches, and other features and details, is distinctly
Irish-Romanesque in style.
[Illustration: Interior view of King Cormac’s Chapel.]
The plan consists of a nave and chancel, with a square tower on either
side, at their junction. The south tower, about 55 feet high, is
ornamented externally with six projecting bands, three of which are
continued along the side-walls of the structure, and it is finished
at the top by a plain parapet, the masonry of which is different from
that of the other portions, and evidently of a later period. The north
tower, 50 feet high, remains in its original state, and is covered with
a pyramidal cap of stone.
An almost endless variety of Irish-Romanesque decorations appear
upon the arches, and other features of the building, both within
and without. Both nave and chancel are roofed with a semicircular
arch, resting upon square ribs, which spring from a series of
massive semi-columns, set at equal distances against the walls. The
bases of these semi-columns are on a level with the capitals of the
chancel-arch, the abacus of which is continued as a string course round
the interior of the building. The chancel-arch causes a singular effect
from its not being quite in the centre between the main walls. There is
no east window; but an altar recess, arcaded, projects externally, thus
forming a third division to the building.
The walls of both nave and chancel beneath the string course are
ornamented with a row of semicircular arches, slightly recessed, and
enriched with chevron, billet, and other ornaments and mouldings.
Those of the nave spring from square imposts resting upon piers; while
those in the chancel have pillars and well-formed capitals. Other
churches of about the same period are found with similar arcades, such
as Kilmalkedar and Ardmore. There are small crofts to which access
is gained by a spiral stair in the south tower, between the vaulting
over both nave and chancel and the external roof. The chamber over the
chancel is 6½ feet lower than that over the nave; these are connected
by a doorway and flight of steps, and are lighted by windows; at the
west end is a fireplace. These little apartments were, no doubt, used
as dormitories by the ecclesiastics. A somewhat similar croft in the
church of St. Doulough’s, near Dublin, is furnished with a fireplace--a
fact which clearly demonstrates that they were applied to the purpose
of habitation.
The doorways of Cormac’s chapel are three in number--one in the centre
of the west end, and one in each of the side-walls of the nave,
within a few feet of the west gable. The north and south doorways are
original, and are headed with a carved tympanum or lintel between
the aperture and the decorated semicircular arches above. They are
both exceedingly rich in sculpture; but the north doorway appears to
have been the chief entrance, as it is considerably larger and more
highly decorated than the other. It is surmounted by a canopy; and the
tympanum is sculptured with a very singular device, representing a
combat between a centaur, armed with bow and arrow, and a huge animal,
probably intended for a lion. The head of the centaur is covered by a
conical helmet with a nasal, and he is shooting a barbed arrow into
the breast of the lion. A small animal beneath the feet of the latter
appears to have been slain in the encounter. The west doorway, which is
of a later date, is not canopied, and its tympanum is sculptured with a
single animal, not unlike the lion upon the other.
* * * * *
[Illustration: Doorway at Freshford, Co. Kilkenny.]
_Freshford._--The doorway at the church of St. Lactan, Freshford, Co.
Kilkenny, is one of the most beautiful now existing in Ireland; it is
‘almost classical,’ says Brash, ‘in the symmetry and chasteness of its
details.’ The original church was erected in the seventh century; and,
in Petrie’s opinion, it was rebuilt about the close of the eleventh
or the beginning of the twelfth century. The doorway consists of a
series of recessed arches richly decorated, in which the bead and
chevron mouldings are conspicuous. On each side of the spring of the
external arch is a piece of sculpture, much worn; one is that of a man
on horseback, and the other that of two standing figures; above the
imposts are grotesque lions’ heads. Two inscriptions are over the inner
arch; that on the under band runs thus: ‘A prayer for Niam, daughter of
Corc, and for Mathgamain O’Chiarmeic, by whom was made this church.’ On
the upper band is--‘A prayer for Gille Mocholmoc O’Cencucain who made
it.’ The latter was, no doubt, the architect, and the former the patron
at whose expense the work was carried out.
Other remarkable examples of Irish-Romanesque architecture are Aghadoe
(_circa_ 1158), Tuam (1161), Clonfert (1166), and Devorgilla’s Church,
Clonmacnoise (1168). The chancel-arch in Tuam Cathedral, and the
doorway of Clonfert, are among the finest of their kind now remaining
of the period.
CHAPTER XII.
CROSSES.
VARIETIES OF EARLY CROSSES--EXAMPLES AT CLONMACNOISE--HIGH CROSSES--
THE HIGH CROSSES AT MONASTERBOICE--THEIR SCULPTURE AND
DECORATIONS--SEPULCHRAL SLABS--EARLY GRAVES.
Early Christian graves were usually marked by stones nowise differing
from the pagan pillar-stone, except that in some instances they were
sculptured with a cross. These were of the simplest form and rudely
cut, and consisted of an elementary line cross, or one slightly
developed and within a circle. Plain undressed slabs or rude stones
were generally adopted in the first instance, the only use of the
cutter’s instrument being on the incised work. Many of the stones of
this class are found in old Christian graveyards, or within the area of
early monastic establishments.
The richest collection of them is to be seen at Clonmacnoise, numbering
188; and inscribed slabs to the number of 74 have been lost from this
one spot alone. Clonmacnoise was founded by St. Kieran in the middle
of the sixth century; and, in time, it was, as Ware says, ‘above all
others famous for the sepulchres of nobility and bishops.’ Petrie, in
his work on _Christian Inscriptions_, shows, by means of the recorded
names and ‘Annals,’ that for over 600 years, beginning with 628 A.D.,
this class of monument was used for sepulchral purposes. The inscribed
crosses are of great variety--Celtic, Latin, and Greek--many being very
chaste with key-end and other patterns. The most typical form of Celtic
cross is that formed from the plain Latin type enclosed in a ring that
connects the arms, and leaves varied spaces between it and the corners
of their intersection.
[Illustration: Early Crosses on sepulchral slabs at Clonmacnoise.]
This style of memorial appears to have been succeeded by a
rudely-formed cross, the arms of which are little more than indicated,
and which is usually fixed in a socket, cut in a large flat stone. Such
crosses rarely exhibit any kind of ornament; but occasionally, even
in very rude examples, the upper part of the shaft is hewn into the
Celtic form already described, the portions of the stone by which the
circle is indicated being frequently perforated or slightly recessed.
A fine plain cross of this style may be seen on the road adjoining the
graveyard of Tully, Co. Dublin; and there is an early-decorated example
near the church of Finglas, in the same county.
[Illustration: Cross on slab, Clonmacnoise.]
[Illustration: Cross on slab, Clonmacnoise.]
[Illustration: Cross on slab, Clonmacnoise.]
In the process of development of Christian art and architecture we
find an advance in the work on the memorials of the dead. The design
becomes more complicated, ornamentation more profuse; and there is a
change to the minuscule form of the alphabet in the inscriptions. From
the rude pillar-stone, marked with the symbol of our Faith enclosed
within a circle, the emblem of eternity, the finely-proportioned and
elaborately-sculptured crosses of a later period were developed. In
the latter, the circle, instead of being simply cut upon the face of
the stone, is represented by a ring, binding, as it were, the shaft,
arms, and upper portion of the cross together. The top of the shaft
is usually in the form of a roof with sloping sides, resembling the
shrines of the period for holding the relics of saints. The spaces
between the binding ring and the intersecting arms are pierced; and
these are finely relieved by rounded bands across the corners of
intersection, or on the inner surface of the ring. The whole sculpture
thus forms the cross, and is in striking contrast to the Scotch type
of memorial, which has the cross carved in relief upon an upright
slab. The inscribed crosses were sepulchral, and principally used in
covering the grave; but the free standing crosses were erected either
to the memory of some famous ecclesiastic or king, or dedicatory, as in
the case of the SS. Patrick and Columba Cross at Kells, or terminal,
marking the bounds of a sanctuary. Of these ‘high’ crosses forty-five
still remain, many of which are in a fair state of preservation. The
striking feature of these crosses is the ornamental and pictorial work
displayed in the carving. As in the manuscript and metal work, and in
the general ornamentation of the churches, this is of a most elaborate
character. There is a profusion of spiral pattern, Celtic tracery, and
zoomorphic design found on these crosses. The whole body of Christian
doctrine finds its expression in their sculpture, intended, no doubt,
by means of symbolical representation, to be great object-lessons
in the way of faith to every beholder. The central idea on the
face of the cross is usually the Crucifixion, and on the back the
Resurrection, or Christ in Glory; the remaining spaces in the panels
and on the sides being filled with various sacred and other subjects.
These highly-sculptured crosses appear to have been very generally
erected between the tenth and thirteenth centuries; and there are few
examples of a later date remaining, if we except a small number bearing
inscriptions in Latin or English, which generally belong to the close
of the sixteenth or to the seventeenth century, and which can hardly
be looked upon as either Irish or ancient.
* * * * *
_Crosses at Monasterboice._--The beautiful remains of this class at
Monasterboice, near Drogheda, are the finest now remaining in Ireland,
though nearly equalled by some of the many others scattered over the
whole island. In these crosses alone there is evidence sufficient
to satisfy the most sceptical of the skill which the Irish had
attained, in more of the arts than one, during the earlier ages of the
Church. They may be regarded, not only as memorials of the piety and
munificence of the founders, but also as the finest works of sculptured
art of their period now existing.
Two of the crosses at Monasterboice remain in their ancient position,
and are well preserved, though one of them, in particular, bears
distinct evidence of a systematic attempt having been made to destroy
it. A third has been broken to pieces, the people say by Cromwell; but
its head and part of the shaft remaining uninjured, the fragment has
been re-set in its ancient socket. The Great Cross, the largest of the
two more perfect crosses, measures 27 feet in height, and is composed
of three stones. A portion of the base is buried in the soil. The
shaft at its junction with the base is 2 feet in breadth, and 1 foot
3 inches in thickness. It is divided upon the western side by fillets
into seven compartments, each of which contains two or more figures
executed with bold effect, but much worn by the rain and wind of nearly
nine centuries. The sculpture of the first compartment, beginning at
the base, has been destroyed by those who attempted to throw down the
monument. The second contains four figures, of which one, apparently
the most important, is presenting a book to another, who receives it
with both hands, while a large bird seems resting upon his head. The
other figures in this compartment represent females, one of whom holds
a child in her arms.
[Illustration: Great Cross of Monasterboice.]
Compartments 3, 4, 5, and 6 contain three figures each, evidently the
Apostles; and each figure is represented as holding a book. The seventh
division, which runs into the circle forming the head of the cross, is
occupied by two figures; and immediately above them is a representation
of our Saviour crucified, with the usual figures of a soldier upon
each side, one piercing His body with a spear, and the other offering
a sponge. To the right and to the left of the figure of our Saviour
other sculptures appear. The figures upon the right arm of the cross
are represented apparently in the act of adoration. The action of those
upon the left is obscure; and, in consequence of the greater exposure
of the upper portion of the stone to the weather, the sculpture which
it bears is much worn, and almost effaced.
[Illustration: Ornament beneath Arm of the Great Cross, Monasterboice.]
The sides of the shaft are ornamented with figures and scroll-work,
placed alternately in compartments, one above the other. Of the circle
by which the arms and stem are connected, the external edges are
enriched; and as an example, the compartment beneath the left arm is
here engraved. The eastern side is also divided into compartments
occupied by sculptures, which may refer to Scripture history.
[Illustration: Cross of Muiredach, sometimes called the Smaller Cross,
Monasterboice.]
[Illustration: Portion of the Sculpture on the Cross of Muiredach.]
The smaller cross is the finest example of this class of Celtic
sculpture now remaining. The figures and ornaments with which its
various sides are enriched, appear to have been executed with an
unusual degree of care and of artistic skill. It has suffered but
little from the effects of time. The sacrilegious hands which attempted
the ruin of the others appear to have spared this; and it stands
almost as perfect as when, nearly a thousand years ago, this unrivalled
work left the sculptor’s hands. An inscription in Irish upon the lower
part of the west face of the shaft desires ‘A prayer for Muiredach, by
whom was made this cross’; but as Petrie, by whom the inscription has
been published, remarks, there were two of the name mentioned in Irish
‘Annals’ as having been connected with Monasterboice--one an abbot,
who died in the year 844, and the other in the year 924--‘so that it
must be a matter of some uncertainty to which of these the erection of
the cross should be ascribed.’ There is reason, however, to assign it
to the latter, ‘as he was a man of greater distinction, and probably
wealth, than the former, and therefore more likely to have been the
erector of the crosses.’ Its total height is exactly 15 feet, and it is
6 feet in breadth at the arms. The shaft, which at the base measures in
breadth 2½ feet, and in thickness 1 foot 9 inches, diminishes slightly
in its ascent, and is divided upon its various sides by twisted bands
into compartments, each of which contains either sculptured figures or
tracery of very intricate design, or animals, probably symbolical.
The figures and other carvings retain much of their original form and
beauty of execution. The former are of great interest, as affording
an excellent idea of the dress, both ecclesiastical and military, of
the Irish during the ninth and tenth centuries. As an example, the two
lower compartments upon the west side are here given; in the first are
three ecclesiastics holding books, the central one with raised hand in
the act of blessing. The lower panel is supposed to represent Christ
being led away by armed soldiers. Within the circular head of the
cross, upon its eastern face, He is represented sitting in judgment;
in His right hand is a cross, indicating His Passion, and in His left
a sceptre, signifying His victory over death and the grave. A choir
of angels occupy the arm to the right of the figure. Several are
represented with musical instruments, among which the ancient Irish
harp may be seen; it is small and triangular, and rests upon the knees
of David, who is represented sitting; the Holy Spirit, in the form of
a dove, rests upon the harp, inspiring the Psalmist. The space to the
left of the Saviour is crowded with figures, several of which are in
an attitude of despair. They are the damned; and a fiend armed with
a trident is driving them from before the throne. In the compartment
immediately beneath is the Archangel Michael, the guardian of souls,
weighing in a pair of huge scales a soul, the balance seeming to
preponderate in his favour. One who appears to have been weighed, and
found wanting, is lying beneath the scales in an attitude of terror.
The next compartment beneath represents, apparently, the adoration
of the Wise Men. The star above the head of the infant Christ is
distinctly marked. The third compartment contains several figures, but
what they symbolise is not known. The signification of the sculpture of
the next following compartment is also very obscure: a figure seated
upon a throne or chair is blowing a horn, and soldiers with conical
helmets, armed with short broad-bladed swords, and with small circular
shields, appear crowding in. The fifth and lowest division illustrates
the Temptation and the Expulsion of Adam and Eve. The head of the cross
upon this side is sculptured with a Crucifixion, very similar to that
upon the head of the larger cross; but the execution is better. Its
northern arm, to the left of the Crucifixion, underneath bears the
representation of the _Dextera Dei_, or Hand Symbol, used in early
Christian art to represent the First Person of the Trinity. It is also
to be seen on the Cross of Flann, at Clonmacnoise, where it is on the
right of the Crucifixion; in both cases it is surrounded by a nimbus.
Of the broken cross, a boss placed within its circle with spiral
ornamentation is here engraved. It is otherwise plain.
[Illustration: Boss of the third Cross, Monasterboice.]
[Illustration: Inscribed Tombstone, Iniscaltra.]
An early monumental stone remains in the cemetery, a few yards to
the north of the less ancient church. The inscription is in the Irish
language and character, and reads in English, ‘A prayer for Ruarchan.’
A simple flagstone, inscribed with a name, and sculptured with the
sacred symbol of Christianity, such as the early Christians were
accustomed to place over the grave of an eminent man, forms a striking
contrast to the tablets which too often disfigure the walls of our
cathedral and parish churches. Many remains of this class lie scattered
among the ancient and often-neglected graveyards of Ireland; but they
are every day becoming more rare, as the country stone-cutters, by whom
they are regarded with but slight veneration, frequently form out of
their materials modern tombstones, defacing the ancient inscriptions. A
characteristic example of a portion of an inscribed slab is here given;
it is from Iniscaltra, an island in Lough Derg, for many centuries a
celebrated burial-ground.
In several cemeteries found in connection with the earlier monastic
establishments of Ireland, graves frequently occur, formed of flat
stones placed edgeways in an oblong figure and covered with large
flags, after the pagan fashion. Were it not that in several instances
the stones at either end of the enclosure have been sculptured with a
cross, they might be supposed to indicate the site of a pagan cemetery,
which the early Christians, for obvious reasons, had hallowed by the
erection of a _cill_. The direction of the grave is generally east and
west; but in the cemetery adjoining the very early church at Saint
John’s Point, in Co. Down, and at Kilnasaggart, the graves are arranged
in the form of a circle, to the centre of which the feet of the dead
converge.
[Illustration: Plan of Cemetery, Kilnasaggart, near Jonesborough, Co.
Armagh.]
The cemetery at Kilnasaggart consists, as the plan here shows, of two
concentric circles of low flat graves radiating towards the centre,
at which stands a small pillar-stone. The outer circle is 55 feet in
diameter, and at the north edge is the well-known Pillar-stone. This
originally contained an Ogam inscription, which was defaced, probably
when converted to Christian uses. It has a number of incised crosses,
and an Irish inscription to St. Ternoe.[126]
A similar mode of interment, which occurs at Town-y-Chapel, near
Holyhead, in Wales, is referred to in the _Archæological Journal_, vol.
iii.; and it is worthy of remark that the place where the graves are
found appears to have been the scene of a battle, fought about A.D.
450, in which many Irishmen were slain.
CHAPTER XIII.
ROUND TOWERS.
OPINIONS FORMERLY CURRENT WITH REGARD TO THE ORIGIN AND USES OF
THE ROUND TOWERS--THEIR CHARACTERISTICS--DOORWAYS, WINDOWS AND
APERTURES--EXAMPLES AT CLONDALKIN, MONASTERBOICE, KILDARE,
DEVENISH.
Round towers of about 18 feet in external diameter, and varying in
height from 60 to about 110 feet, are frequently found in connection
with the earlier monastic establishments of Ireland. The question of
their origin and uses long occupied much antiquarian attention. In
the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries they had been regarded by
archæologists as the work of the Danes; but towards the close of the
latter century General Vallancey propounded various theories, which
assumed them to be of Phœnician or Indo-Scythian origin, and to have
contained the sacred fire from whence all the fires in the kingdom
were annually rekindled. By those who affirmed their Christian origin
they were successively declared to be anchorite towers in imitation of
that of St. Simon Stylites, and penitential prisons, and thus theories
were multiplied until they became almost as numerous as the towers
themselves. Each succeeding writer, instead of elucidating, appeared to
involve the subject in deeper mystery than ever--a mystery that was
proverbial until dispelled by George Petrie in his great work on _The
Origin and Uses of the Round Towers of Ireland_, which was received,
with good cause for the effusion, as ‘the most learned, the most exact,
and the most important ever published upon the antiquities of the
ancient Irish nation.’
That the general conclusions embodied in this work were arrived at
after a long and patient investigation, not only of the architectural
peculiarities of the numerous round towers, but also of the
ecclesiastical structures usually found in connection with them, is
sufficiently shown by the many references to, and illustrations of,
examples scattered over the whole country. But Petrie also, with the
assistance of the best Celtic scholars in Ireland, sought in the
‘Annals’ and other Irish MSS. for references to such buildings as
it was the custom of the early inhabitants to erect; and from these
hitherto-neglected sources of information, much light was thrown upon
the subject of ancient Irish ecclesiastical architecture. The following
is a summary of Petrie’s conclusions:--
1. That the Irish ecclesiastics had, from a very early period, in
connection with their cathedral and abbey churches, campaniles or
detached belfries, called in the Irish ‘Annals’ and other ancient
authorities by the term _Cloictheach_, ‘House of a bell.’
2. That no other building, either round or square, suited to the
purpose of a belfry, has ever been found in connection with any church
of an age anterior to the twelfth century, with the single exception of
the square belfry attached to a church on Inis Clothrann or Clorin, an
island in Lough Ree, which seems to be of earlier date.
3. That they were designed to answer at least a twofold purpose--to
serve as belfries, and as keeps or places of strength, in which the
sacred utensils, books, relics, and other valuables were deposited, and
into which the ecclesiastics to whom they belonged could retire for
security in cases of sudden attack.
4. An examination of ancient Irish literature tends strongly to the
conclusion that the people so generally recognised this use of the
round towers as a primary one, that they very rarely applied to a tower
erected for defence any other term but that of ‘cloictheach’ or belfry.
5. That they were probably also used, when occasion required, as
beacons and watch-towers.
Petrie, while establishing their ecclesiastical character and origin,
gave, however, too wide a margin to the date of their erection, viz.,
from the sixth century to the thirteenth. The investigations of the
late Lord Dunraven in tracing such structures on the Continent narrowed
their first erection down to the ninth century. He shows that they were
founded on European examples, the most notable being those of Ravenna,
where six of its round towers still stand. The round towers were due
to Byzantine influences, and some writers trace their original source
to the towers built in connection with early Syrian churches. Miss
Stokes, following Lord Dunraven, assigns the Irish round towers to
three periods between 890 and 1238 A.D., and classifies them into four
distinct groups, according to their style of masonry and doorways.
[Illustration: Doorway, Round Tower, Glendalough.]
The Norse sea-rovers rendered ecclesiastical establishments most
unsafe. The first period of their invasions extended from the end of
the eighth century to the middle of the ninth century, and the land
was ravaged from north to south with fire and sword. On the sea-coast
and along the river valleys the country lay waste. On the banks of the
Bann, the shores of Lough Neagh, by the Boyne, and broad expansions
of the Shannon, and as far south as the distant Skellig Rock, few
sacred establishments escaped plunder and desecration. To protect their
churches, oratories, and sacred treasures, these towers were built by
the monks, from which watch could be kept, and an easy retreat made to
them as places of safety; their lines can still be traced along the
shores of the waters where the fleets of the Danes are known to have
appeared.
The usual features of the round towers may be thus summarised:
* * * * *
[Illustration: Cross over the Doorway of Antrim Tower.]
[Illustration: Doorway, Donaghmore Tower, Co. Meath.]
_Doorways._--In form these are similar to the doorways we have
described as characteristic of the early churches, but they are
generally more highly ornamented, and appear to have been furnished
with double doors. They are placed almost invariably at a considerable
elevation above the ground. A flat projecting band, with a small
bead-moulding at the angles, is the most usual decoration; but in some
instances a human head, sculptured in bold relief, is found upon each
side of the arch. A stone immediately above the doorway of Antrim tower
exhibits a cross sculptured in _alto-relievo_; and at Donaghmore, in
Co. Meath, a figure of the Crucifixion, in bold relief, occupies a
similar position. This style of decoration may have been much more
common than is generally supposed, as, of the number of towers
remaining in Ireland, the doorways of at least one-third have been
destroyed. Concentric arches, with chevron and other mouldings, occur
at Timahoe and at Kildare.
* * * * *
[Illustration: Window, Round Tower, Cashel.]
_Windows and Apertures._--Generally speaking, these are similar in form
to the windows in contemporary churches--with this difference, that
they never splay, and that the arch-head in numerous examples differs
in interior form from that of the exterior. The windows in the earliest
towers are square-headed or triangular, and in the latest they are well
formed, and of cut stone. The tower was divided into storeys, about
12 feet in height, the floors of which were supported by projections
of the masonry or by brackets. Each storey, except the highest, was
generally lighted by one small window; the highest has generally four
of large size. A conical roof of stone completed the building. The
tower usually rested on a low circular plinth; the walls varied in
thickness, from 3 to 5 feet; the lowest storey had no aperture, and
sometimes its space was filled by solid masonry. The earliest towers
were built of rubble masonry; and the spaces between the stones were
filled with spawls; little mortar was used in laying the courses, but
grouting abundantly. In the latest towers fine ashlar masonry was
used, like the Norman work of the twelfth century; a few have external
string courses, as in the perfect tower at Ardmore, County Waterford.
About seventy round towers still remain, thirteen of which are perfect,
of which ten retain the original conical cap.
* * * * *
[Illustration: Clondalkin Round Tower.]
_Clondalkin._--In the village of Clondalkin, at a distance of about
six miles from Dublin by road, stands one of the best preserved of
the round towers. Its height to the top of the cone is 90 feet. The
doorway, which is approached by a flight of stone steps, comparatively
modern, is square-headed, with inclined sides, and perfectly plain, as
are also the windows and top apertures. Some years ago a gentleman of
the neighbourhood caused this tower to be repaired, upon which occasion
floors were added, and placed in their original position. Access may
be had from storey to storey by the aid of fixed ladders, so that a
visitor has here an opportunity for observation not frequently to be
met with. It should be remarked that the projection at the base, about
13 feet high, and which is nearly all solid masonry, is not found in
any other round tower in Ireland, and it may possibly be an afterwork.
The tower of Clondalkin, though nearly perfect, cannot be considered
a very fine example of its class. It is built of rubble masonry, is
somewhat low, and its roof, which does not appear to be original, is
wanting in that degree of lightness and elegance observable in many.
The other towers in the immediate neighbourhood of Dublin are at
Swords, Lusk, and Rathmichael. That of Swords has been disfigured
by the restoration of the top, and the ivy which threatened its
destruction has been removed. That of Lusk has been incorporated into
the west end of the parish church, and the tower at Rathmichael is a
mere stump.
[Illustration: Doorway of Clondalkin Tower.]
* * * * *
_Monasterboice._--There is a fine example at Monasterboice, within
about six miles of Drogheda. The churches, the tower, and the
magnificent crosses of this ancient foundation form a group of
ecclesiastical antiquities in some respects unsurpassed in Ireland.
A description of the crosses will be found in the previous chapter.
The tower, the erection of which there is every reason to refer to an
early period, is one of particular interest, exhibiting, as it does,
a decorated doorway, the head of which is cut out of two stones laid
horizontally one above the other. A band extends round the head and
down the sides of the doorway, but terminates on a level with the
sill, or rather turns off at a right angle, passing horizontally for
a distance of eight inches, from which point it ascends, and running
upwards round the doorway head, gives the appearance of a double band.
A space between the bands, upon each side of the upper part of the
doorway, and one upon the semicircular arched head, left uncut, appear
suggestive of the cross. The window immediately over the doorway may
be looked upon as a characteristic example of the opening found in a
similar position in most of the towers, and which is supposed to have
answered the purpose of a second doorway, or to have been designed
for the purpose of affording persons within the tower some means
of defending the entrance beneath. In this example, however, it is
unusually small. The other windows are square-headed, as were also the
large apertures of the uppermost storey.[127] The masonry is good, and
characteristic of an early period; the stones are large, well fitted
together, and pass through a considerable thickness of the wall, as
was observed in the injured upper portion of the structure. The tower
has been well repaired by the Board of Works, and flights of steps
laid from floor to floor, by which the summit of the top storey can be
reached.
A church of very primitive construction, and probably several centuries
older than the tower, stands in the cemetery, at a little distance
to the north-east of the other remains. Its only doorway is placed,
as usual, in the centre of the west gable. It is square-headed, and
possesses every indication of great antiquity; but the accumulation of
the churchyard soil has buried the lower portion at least to a depth of
several feet. The church consisted of a nave and chancel; the latter
has been destroyed, but a plain semicircular chancel arch remains. The
church immediately adjoining the round tower is obviously an erection
of the early part of the thirteenth century.
* * * * *
[Illustration: Doorway of Kildare Tower.]
_Kildare._--The round tower of Kildare is in several respects one of
the most remarkable in Ireland. Its doorway, of which an illustration
is annexed, is unusually rich, of Irish-Romanesque work, consisting
of three concentric arches, upon two of which a variety of mouldings
appears. The external arch is quite plain, and evidently not as ancient
as the others. An ornamental canopy, a portion of which still remains,
once surmounted the doorway. A still more remarkable and finer doorway
is that of Timahoe. The tower of Kildare is 105½ feet high, and 55 feet
in circumference; it bears evidence of having been repaired at various
periods. Like the round tower of Cloyne, in the County of Cork, and
like those of Kilkenny and Kilmallock, it is finished with a plain
battlemented parapet, comparatively modern, and added, probably, at
some period when the original roof of stone had been destroyed, perhaps
by lightning.
[Illustration: Round Tower, Devenish.]
* * * * *
_Devenish._--This tower, with other remains of antiquity, some of which
are associated with the name of St. Molaise (see p. 288), stands on
the Island of Devenish in Lower Lough Erne, a couple of miles from
Enniskillen. The tower is 84 feet 10 inches high, and is remarkable for
its symmetry, and the perfection and regularity of its masonry to the
very apex. It has a round-headed doorway 9 feet from the ground; at
this part it is 8 feet in diameter, and the walls are 4 feet thick. It
has five storeys. Above the doorway is a triangular-headed window, and
the top storey has four windows nearly facing the cardinal points. It
has the unique distinction of possessing the only external decoration
not connected with apertures. This is a cornice or band of Romanesque
work, of good design, immediately beneath the conical cap. On the
band, and over the apertures, are quaintly-executed heads, the beards
consisting of interlaced patterns. The tower was thoroughly restored in
1835.
CHAPTER XIV.
EARLY CHRISTIAN ART: METAL WORK.
DEVELOPMENT OF EARLY CHRISTIAN ART--BELLS--THE BELL OF ST.
PATRICK--THE SHRINE OF ST. PATRICK’S BELL--THE SHRINE OF
ST. SENAN’S BELL--THE SHRINE OF ST. MURA’S BELL--BRONZE
BELLS--THE BELL OF CHUMASCACH--CUMDACHS--THE CATHACH--THE
DOMNACH AIRGID--THE BREAC MOEDOC--CROSIERS--THE CROSS OF
CONG--CHALICES--THE ARDAGH CHALICE--THE TARA BROOCH.
We have seen that in the Bronze Age a great advance had been
made in metal work among the Celtic tribes of Europe, showing
great technical skill, taste in design, and delicacy of touch in
manipulation--qualities not excelled in the early part of the
succeeding Christian period. The type of ornament which characterised
the Later Bronze Age and the Early Iron period seems to have flourished
longer in Ireland than elsewhere; and with the introduction of new
elements by Christianity, it found, in time, its expression, not only
in metal work, but in the stone work of ecclesiastical buildings, and
in the illumination of copies of the Scriptures. The latter flourished
especially, as we know, and the manuscripts which were executed by the
early scribes in Irish schools are the finest of the kind now existing.
* * * * *
_Bells._--With the introduction of Christianity came new needs; and
bells were among the first articles provided for ecclesiastical
purposes. Considering, as we have shown, the skill that had been
attained in metal work in pagan days, it is strange that the earliest
examples in Christian times were of a very rude kind. That no fine
example of metal work of the Christian period in Ireland can be
assigned to an earlier date than about the tenth century, may be due to
the fact that the country was repeatedly swept by Norse invaders, and
all such objects became their prey.
We read, in the Lives of St. Patrick, St. Columba, and others, of
the names of various artificers who made bells, crosses, crosiers,
and shrines for churches. Frequent mention is made of bells by the
Annalists. The early bells were of a peculiar quadrangular form,
and made of pieces of sheet-iron fastened together with rivets. The
oldest example of the kind in Ireland is the _Bell of St. Patrick_,
or Bell of Armagh, now in the Academy collection. It is of the rudest
description, and its antiquity apparent. The space between the edges
of the overlapping pieces seems to have been filled in with bronze to
give the body complete cohesion; and the whole coated with a thin layer
of a fusion of the same metal, which not only improved its tone, but
preserved it from decaying by rust. There is good reason to believe
that, as its name implies, it had belonged to St. Patrick himself.
For many ages it was one of the chief treasures preserved in Armagh;
here it was highly revered, so much so, that, about the year 1091,
it was enclosed in a magnificent and costly _Shrine_, which is also
preserved in the same collection. The bell had its own keeper, and
was handed down, as was the custom, from generation to generation in
the same family, with the most scrupulous regard for its safety. The
shrine, which is characteristic of the metal work of the period, is
formed of bronze plates, to which decorated panels are attached by
rivets. The front panel is divided into thirty-one spaces filled with
gold ornament, crystals, and jewels; the setting of the crystals is
evidently later work. The back consists of a fine and perfect silver
plate, in open fret pattern. The sides are of gilt bronze, with
open-work ornament of a highly complicated interlaced pattern. There
are two arms at the sides, pierced, with rings inserted; the arms have
a circular plate setting, and the spaces between them and the rims are
filled with heavily-plated gold ornament. The handle portion of the
shrine is highly ornamented with bird forms and interlaced design,
in different treatment from the faces and sides. The shrine bears
an inscription, in the Irish character and language, of which the
following is a translation:--‘A prayer for Domnall O’Loughlin, by whom
this Bell (or Bell-shrine) was made; and for Domnall, the successor
of Patrick, with whom it was made; and for Cathalan O’Maelchalland,
the keeper of the Bell; and for Cudulig O’Inmainen, with his sons, who
covered it.’
There are many other ancient iron bells in Ireland, examples of which
will be seen in the National Museum. Of bell shrines, several others
exist: that of St. Senan’s is in possession of Mr. Marcus Keene,
whose family have been the hereditary custodians of the Saint’s bell.
The shrine of St. Mura’s bell from Fahan, Co. Donegal, after various
wanderings and changing of hands, is now in the Wallace collection,
London.
[Illustration: Bell of Chumascach Mac Ailello.]
About the tenth century, iron gave place to bronze as the more
satisfactory material in metal for bells. The date of one example at
least is ascertained by an inscription on its outer surface. This is
the Bell of Chumascach, and is also from Armagh. It is 12 inches high
and 8 inches across the mouth, and is of cast bronze, but the handle
and clapper are of iron. It bears the following inscription in Irish:--
[Illustration]
(Pray for Chumascach, son of Ailello). The death of the person
mentioned in the inscription is recorded in the _Annals of the Four
Masters_ as occurring in A.D. 909.
* * * * *
_Cumdachs._--The copies of the Gospels and other sacred writings which
had been used by the early saints of Ireland were generally preserved
by their successors, enclosed in cases formed of yew or some wood
equally durable. Many of those cases were subsequently enshrined or
enclosed in boxes of silver, or of bronze, called _Cumdachs_, richly
plated with silver and occasionally gilt; and in several instances
a third case appears to have been added. Sir William Betham, in his
_Irish Antiquarian Researches_, describes several of those evidences
of early Irish piety still extant and remaining in a state of
preservation. There are two in Trinity College Library, the shrines of
the Book of Dimma, and the Book of Mulling.
The fine shrine of Molaise’s Gospels in the Academy collection dates
from the first quarter of the eleventh century, and is the oldest
of the Cumdachs. The shrine of the Stowe Missal, dating a little
later, and the shrine of St. Columba’s Psalter, are also in the same
collection. A description of one example of these shrines will suffice.
The Cumdach of St. Columba’s Psalter, called the _Cathach_, or _Caha_,
and also known as the ‘Battler,’ is a box about nine inches and a half
in length, eight in breadth, and two in thickness, formed of brass
plates riveted one to the other, and ornamented with gems and chasings
in gold and silver. It was long supposed to contain the bones of
Columba; and a superstitious belief was held as to the evil befalling
him who opened it. This, however, was done by Sir William Betham, and
it was found to contain the customary rude wooden box enclosing a MS.
on vellum, consisting of fifty-eight membranes. The MS. is a copy of
the second revision of the Psalter by St. Jerome, and has been commonly
attributed to St. Columba. The sheets were found to be incomplete
and much injured: they began with the 31st and ended with the 106th
Psalm. The decoration displayed upon the top of the box shows the
comparatively late date of this portion of the relic. The top consists
of a silver plate richly gilt, and divided into three compartments by
clustered columns supporting arches. The central space is somewhat
larger than the others, and contains the figure of an ecclesiastic,
probably St. Columba, who is represented in a sitting posture, giving
the benediction, and holding a book in his left hand. The arch of this
compartment is pointed, while the others are segmental. The space to
the left of the central figure is occupied by that of a mitred abbot,
giving the benediction with his right hand, while in his left he holds
a crosier. The compartment to the right of the central figure contains
a representation of the Passion. There are figures of angels with
censers over each of the side-arches. A border, within which the whole
is enclosed, is formed at the top and bottom of a variety of fabulous
animals; the sides represent foliage, and in each angle there is a
large rock crystal. A fifth setting of crystal surrounded with smaller
gems occurs immediately over the figure, which, as we have said, was
probably intended to represent St. Columba. The sides and ends of the
box are also richly chased. An inscription in the Irish character upon
the bottom desires ‘a prayer for Cathbar Ua Domnaill, for whom this
case was made; for Sitric, son of Mac Aeda, who made it; for Domnall,
son of Robartach; for the successor of Kells, for whom it was made.’
The Domnall here referred to as ‘successor’ of St. Columba is named in
a charter, dating about 1084, in the _Book of Kells_: the end of the
eleventh century was probably, therefore, the date of the shrine.
The Cathach appears to have been handed down from a very early period
in the O’Donnell family, of which St. Columba, the supposed writer of
the manuscript which it was made to enshrine, was a member. It was the
custom to wear it round the neck as a breastplate; and, before engaging
in warfare, it was exhibited in exhortation to the clan, and hence its
name the ‘Battler.’
The _Domnach Airgid_, also preserved in the Academy collection, is
a very interesting relic of the kind under notice. It contained a
considerable portion of the copy of the Gospels which was supposed to
have been used by St. Patrick during his mission in Ireland, and which
was presented by him to St. Mac Carthen. Unfortunately, when opened in
1832, the membranes of which the manuscript is composed had, through
the effects of time and neglect, become firmly attached to each other.
In 1892 the sheets were separated under the supervision of Dr. Maunde
Thompson of the British Museum, and examined by Dr. J. H. Bernard. It
was shown that the box was not made for the MS., being too small; and
the writing and text gave evidence that the copy was not earlier than
the eighth century.
The manuscript has three distinct covers: the first and most ancient
is of yew; the second of bronze plated with silver, of about the
eleventh or twelfth century; and the third of silver plated with gold,
dating about 1350. The outer and latest cover possesses many features
in common with that of the Cathach. It has an inscription to John
O’Karbri, who ordered it; and to John O’Barrdan, who made it. The
former, according to the _Annals of the Four Masters_, was abbot of
Clones, and died in 1353.[128]
_The Breac (Speckled) Moedoc_, from the Petrie collection, subsequently
passing to the Royal Irish Academy, is one of the most curious of the
ancient shrines. It is called after St. Moedoc, or Mogue, Bishop of
Ferns, and is supposed to have contained relics from Rome brought by
St. Molaise. It was preserved in Drumlane, County Cavan, until the
middle of the last century. It is valuable on account of the details
of ancient costumes which appear on eleven of the twenty-one figures
originally attached to its sides. These were gilt or plated with gold;
the case is bronze: the date is doubtful. A leather satchel which
contained it is also preserved in the National Museum.
* * * * *
_Crosiers._--In like manner to the bells, the pastoral crooks and
crosiers which had belonged to the early fathers of the Irish Church,
appear to have been regarded as holy. Their possession was also
hereditary, and certain privileges, such as grants of land, were given
to the custodians. Notwithstanding the frequent pillage of church
property by the Danes, and the destruction of ‘superstitious’ relics
in a later time, numerous examples, remarkable for the beauty of their
decoration and the excellence of their workmanship, have been preserved
to our own day. The Irish crosier has simply the curved handle of a
staff, which seems originally to have belonged to a saint or founder of
a church, on which the metal covering was subsequently laid. It is not
the shepherd’s crook, so familiar as the emblem of episcopal office.
The crosier usually exhibits a profusion of ornament, consisting of
elaborately interwoven bands terminating generally in serpents’ heads,
or in some equally singular device. In several specimens occur settings
formed of stones or an artificial substance, variously coloured;
but this is supposed to indicate a comparatively recent date. The
continental type was probably introduced in the twelfth century, under
the influences already referred to in the foundation of monastic
establishments. A well-known example is the Crosier of Cashel, with
enamelled circular head and figure, one similar to which, and ascribed
to above period, is in the Cluny Museum, Paris.
An interesting and perhaps the oldest crosier in the Academy collection
is that of St. Berach of Termonbarry, which was handed down through
its hereditary custodians the O’Hanlys. The date of the Irish crosiers
is probably not earlier than the end of the tenth century. From the
inscription the crosier of Lismore, it doubtless dates about the
beginning of the twelfth century, during the time in which Niall Mac
Mic Aeducain, or Mac Gettigan, held the bishopric.
* * * * *
_The Cross of Cong._--This Cross is the chief gem of the Academy
collection, not only from its historical associations, but also as it
affords striking evidence of the advancement which the Irish artificers
had made in several of the arts, and in general manufacturing skill,
previous to the arrival of the English. It was made in Roscommon
by native Irishmen, about the year 1123, by order of King Turlough
O’Conor, father of Roderick, the last monarch of Ireland.
This the _Annals of Inisfallen_ state, and the evidence is supported
by inscriptions on the edges of the cross; one is in Latin, mentioning
that it contained a piece of the ‘true Cross’; the others are in Irish,
praying for Archbishop Muiredach O’Duffy of Tuam, who died in 1150; for
King O’Conor; for Domnal O’Duffy, Archbishop of Connaught, and for the
artificer Maelisa Mac Bratdan O’Echan. The cross seems to have been
brought to Cong either by the Archbishop, who died there, or by King
Roderick, who founded and endowed the abbey.
The cross is 2½ feet high, the arms 1 foot 6¾ inches in width, and
it is 1¾ inches thick. It ends in the grotesque head of an animal,
and below this is a large ball, highly decorated, forming the head of
the socket for the shaft when the cross was carried in procession.
The frame is of oak, and over this are laid plates of copper richly
covered with gold tracery. The edges are formed into a raised rim by
a covering of silver, and divided into sections, which are marked by
eighteen rounded projections set with stones or enamels, thirteen of
which remain. A thin silver ribbon is set between the rims, upon which
are the inscriptions in punched lettering.
[Illustration: The Cross of Cong.]
The ornaments generally consist of tracery and grotesque animals,
fancifully combined, and similar in character to the decorations found
upon crosses of stone of about the same period. A large crystal is set
in the centre at the intersection of the arms and shaft, behind which
the relic was set. The cross had been carefully preserved after the
suppression of the monasteries, and was found in an oak chest in the
village of Cong early in the last century. It was purchased by the late
Professor Mac Cullagh for the sum of one hundred guineas, and presented
to the Academy in 1839.
* * * * *
_Chalices._--Among the more singular relics in the Academy collection
is a chalice of stone. Though formed of so rude a material, there is
nothing in its general form or in the character of its decorations
to warrant a supposition that it belongs to a very early period. Few
chalices of an age prior to the twelfth century remain in Ireland; and
any of a later date are not very remarkable as objects of antiquarian
interest. Cups of stone appear to have been not uncommon among the
Irish. An ancient vessel of this material, of a triangular form, was to
be seen by the side of a holy well in Columbkill’s Glen, in the County
of Clare; and another was found some years ago in the County of Meath,
near the ruins of Ardmulchan Church.
The most remarkable object of the chalice class known to have been
found in Ireland is the famous _Ardagh Cup_, or _Chalice_, which
figures amongst the choicest examples of metal-work preserved in the
collection of the Academy. It, together with a plain bronze cup and
some fine silver brooches, was discovered in 1868 in a rath situated
not far from Ardagh, County Limerick.
[Illustration: Chalice of Ardagh.]
We take the following particulars from a description furnished by the
late Mr. Johnson to Lord Dunraven:--The bowl is of silver; but gold,
bronze, brass, copper, and lead are used in the fittings and ornament.
The latter consists of an inscription, interlaced pattern terminating
in dogs’ heads, and at the bottom a circular band with Greek pattern.
The ornamentation is punched, as is shown by the raised edges. A band
of two semi-cylindrical rings of silver ornamented with small annular
dots runs round the cup. Twelve plaques of gold _repoussé_ work fill
the space between the rings, with beautiful ornamentation of fine
filigree work of the usual interlaced pattern. Twelve round enamelled
beads are set between the plaques. The handles are also ornamented
with enamels and filigree work, but in different designs. On the sides
of the bowl are two circular ornaments, with central enamelled bosses
surrounded by gold filigree work. The stem and supports of the bowl
are of gilt bronze engraved in interlaced pattern. The foot of the
bowl is circular; the outer rim of the framework is divided into eight
spaces, filled alternately with gold and bronze gilt plaques of open
work, the designs of which are clearly shown by pieces of mica set as
a background. The inside of the foot is also elaborately executed with
a circular piece of crystal in the centre, enamelled spaces and fine
filigree work.
There are no fewer than 354 pieces of metal, if we include twenty
rivets, in the composition of this most remarkable Cup. The
inscription, in peculiar square-formed letters, is a remarkable
feature, and gives the names of the Twelve Apostles--St. Paul being
included. It runs round the cup under the band already mentioned; the
letters are not easily legible, as the outline is faint. ‘The spaces
between are stippled so as to form a shaded background.’ The late
Lord Dunraven in his interesting paper was inclined to attribute the
Cup to the ninth or tenth century, taking into account the ornament,
lettering, and style of workmanship.
We have already referred to the development of the bronze brooch and
ring-pin (p. 237), and the process can be clearly traced from the
numerous specimens arrayed in the National Museum. The earlier brooch
had open and expanded ends between which the pin passed, and the brooch
was made fast by twisting it round upon the pin. The ornamentation was
Late Celtic, often with enamelled design. In time the enlarged ends
were closed by a bar, and in the latest form the ends became a complete
plate and the pin of great length, to which a chain was attached for
safety. These were highly ornamented with filigree work and enamel; the
design is varied and beautiful in elaborate Celtic pattern.
[Illustration: The Tara Brooch.]
Of the many brooches of this class discovered, the finest without
exception is that known as the _Tara Brooch_. It was found in 1850 on
the sea-shore near Bettystown, Co. Louth, and was bought by Waterhouse,
who gave it the name of ‘Tara’ on account of the beauty of its
workmanship and the associations connected with the celebrated hill. It
was purchased from him for the Academy by the Government in 1867. It is
made of white bronze, a metal harder than silver and composed of copper
and tin. It is gilt and divided into a number of panels, most of which
are filled with filigree work in gold, with settings of amber, glass,
and enamel. The fastening of the gold filigree is hardly perceptible
to the naked eye, and a strong glass is needed to see the full beauty
of the ornament of this work. ‘The Tara brooch,’ says Petrie, ‘is
superior to any hitherto found in the variety of its ornaments, and
in the exquisite delicacy and perfection of its execution.’ Attached
to the brooch is a chain of the work known as ‘Trichinopoli,’ which
was used to fasten the brooch when worn. The divergent spiral, or
trumpet, pattern, which is so characteristic of the decoration of Early
Christian Art in Ireland, is carried to great perfection on the reverse
side of the brooch. If we are to judge by the general disappearance of
this ornament about the beginning of the eleventh century, we get a
probable date for this object.
We have in this chapter only briefly indicated the nature of the metal
art of the Early Christian period, and dealt with but a few of the
best-known examples, as indeed a special work would be required to
cover so wide a field.
CHAPTER XV.
ABBEYS AND LATER CHURCHES: FONTS.
FOUNDATION OF ABBEYS AND CHURCHES--JERPOINT ABBEY, CO. KILKENNY--
CATHEDRALS OF ST. PATRICK AND CHRISTCHURCH, DUBLIN--ABBEYS OF
NEWTOWNTRIM AND BECTIVE, CO. MEATH--CHURCHES OF CANNISTOWN,
NEAR NAVAN--ST. DOULOUGH’S--THE ‘ABBEY’ AND ST. FINTAN’S CHURCH,
HOWTH--EARLY FONTS--EXAMPLES AT KILLINEY--KILTERNAN--ST. JOHN’S
POINT--KILLESHIN--KILCARN, CLONARD, AND DUNSANY, CO. MEATH.
In the preceding chapters early churches and other Christian remains
possessing characteristics distinctively Irish have been described. It
has been stated that at the Anglo-Norman Conquest Irish architecture
may be said to have ceased, the invaders having brought with them their
own fashion of building, which was afterwards adopted by the Irish. How
far the stone-roof style of building, which reached its culmination in
King Cormac’s Chapel, could have been carried by builders working on
their own free and independent lines we need not discuss. But never
at any time could it be said that Ireland lay without the sphere of
new influences, as we have tried to indicate in tracing this sketch of
her pagan and early Christian remains. Irish-Romanesque work reached
its highest development in the twelfth century; and during the latter
half, to the beginning of the thirteenth century, a great change was
witnessed in the style of architecture as applied to ecclesiastical
edifices throughout the land.
The rapid growth of the great monastic orders in England in time
affected Ireland. From the Norman Conquest to the close of the reign of
Edward III. it has been computed that 1200 institutions were founded
in England, and of these 228 were established in the reigns of Stephen
and Henry II.--a development which was more or less felt in the
sister kingdom. A complete change was made at this period in the old
monastic system which had existed from the first days of Christianity
in Ireland. This was due to St. Malachy O’Morgair, the friend of St.
Bernard of Clairvaux, and who died there when on a visit to him in
1148. He introduced the Cistercian Order, the greatest builders of all
the Orders, and founded for them the first of their great monasteries
in Ireland. Mellifont was established by St. Malachy in 1142; and
in nine years Bective, Newry, Athlone, Monasteranenagh, Boyle, and
Baltinglas were founded and affiliated to it; and before 1172 we are
told that twenty-five Cistercian monasteries were established in the
land. This is sufficient to show that modifying forces were at work
before the Anglo-Norman invasion touched Irish shores. As we have seen,
for several centuries previous to it, Irish architecture had been
gradually undergoing a development, and had in some measure become
what in England is known as the Norman style. Towards the close of the
twelfth century the Irish kings and chiefs, and the Anglo-Norman earls
and barons settled in Ireland, appear to have vied with each other in
the erection of abbeys, the ruins of which, to this day, attest the
zeal and power of their founders. Most of the monastic structures of
this period, in their larger arches, exhibit beautiful examples of the
earliest Pointed style, while the doorways and smaller openings remain
semicircular, and frequently exhibit pure Norman details. Almost the
last traces of peculiarly Celtic architectural art appear to have died
out in Ireland about the close of the twelfth century.
* * * * *
_Jerpoint Abbey._--Jerpoint Abbey, belonging to the Cistercian Order,
in the County of Kilkenny, whose foundation is attributed, as well as
to others, to Donogh MacGilla-Patrick, Lord of Ossory, is, perhaps, the
finest structure of this period remaining in Ireland. The plan of the
church was cruciform, with aisles on the north side of both nave and
choir. The greater portion of the southern wall has been destroyed.
The western window consists of three lights, with semicircular heads,
surmounted by a continuous weather-moulding. A fine range of clerestory
windows of the same character appears in the north wall of the nave.
The tower, though of considerable antiquity, is evidently of later date
than the Transition period. The only entrance to the body of the church
from the exterior appears to have been a small doorway in the south
wall of the nave; and this is defended by a bartizan similar to those
found upon the castles of the twelfth century. Of the battlements of
the tower, so conspicuous a feature in many of the early buildings,
Fergusson says they are ‘identical with many found in the north of
Italy, but very unlike anything either in England or Scotland. They
give a foreign look to the whole building, which is very striking.’
Chevroned Pointed arches occur in the nave of Dunbrody Abbey, which
belongs to this period; it was erected for the same Order in 1182 by
Hervey de Montemarisco, Marshal of Henry II., who became its first
abbot.
The Transition style soon gave place to the Early Pointed, and the
finest existing cathedrals and abbeys belonged almost exclusively to
the latter. As early examples, we may mention portions of Christchurch
and St. Patrick’s Cathedrals, Dublin; Kilkenny Cathedral; Gray Abbey,
Co. Down; the Cathedral of Cashel; the Abbey of Newtown, near Trim;
and Kilmallock Abbey, Co. Limerick. Perhaps the finest window of this
style in Ireland is that of the Abbey of Kilmallock. It consists of
five slender lancets, separated by shafts, upon which are two sets of
the bands so characteristic of this period. A large and beautifully
proportioned arch embraces all the lights, which, both internally and
externally, are enriched with a bead moulding.
* * * * *
_St. Patrick’s Cathedral._--The Cathedrals of St. Patrick and
Christchurch, Dublin, were, for the most part, built about the same
period, the former (commenced in 1190) upon the site of an older
church, by John Comyn and his successor Henry de Loundres (1212–28),
Archbishops of Dublin. Its prevailing style is Early or First Pointed,
and it is remarkable as the only structure in Ireland having original
flying buttresses. The nave, choir, and transepts are ascribed to
London masons; and the graceful features of the Lady Chapel have a
marked resemblance to contemporary work in the Temple Church. It was
carefully restored by Carpenter in 1845. The Cathedral suffered many
vicissitudes and rebuildings, so as almost to destroy all details of
the original features. In 1869 it was restored at the sole expense of
Sir Benjamin Lee Guinness, at a cost of £150,000. A recent restoration,
under the direction of Sir Thomas Drew, includes the choir and lateral
aisles, and the replacing of stone groining. Though in point of size
and architectural grandeur St. Patrick’s cannot be compared with many
structures of the same class elsewhere, it is, nevertheless, a very
chaste and beautiful building.
* * * * *
_Christchurch._--Christchurch was originally founded in 1038 by
Sigtryg, son of Amlaf, King of the Danes of Dublin, in conjunction
with Donatus, the first Danish bishop; the crypt beneath nearly all
the church represents the original plan. The oldest portions of the
ancient building, raised by Strongbow and St. Laurence O’Toole on
the Danish foundation in 1170, are the transepts, some of the arches
of which display chevron mouldings, and the Norman doorway, which
forms the principal entrance. It was removed some years ago from the
north transept, and placed in its present position, where it forms
a conspicuous feature. The nave (_circa_ 1230) has the distinctive
features of the English mason work of Glastonbury; and, as in the
case of Kilkenny Cathedral (thirteenth century) and other buildings,
it is very probable that the designers and builders were brought from
the south-west of England and South Wales. The arches of the nave are
remarkably beautiful, springing from piers formed of clustered columns,
and displaying in their capitals foliage of exquisite and graceful
design. An ancient inscription, recently interpreted ‘John, Master
Builder of the fraternity of Parma,’ seems to preserve the name of the
reputed architect of the Anglo-Norman building. The ancient wrought
stone of the two Cathedrals is a very durable Somersetshire oolite, but
its particular source is not known. Christchurch, like St. Patrick’s,
has been thoroughly restored by private munificence,--at the hands of
the late Henry Roe, and at an expense of over £160,000.
* * * * *
_Newtowntrim Abbey._--The Abbey of Newtowntrim, founded by Simon
Rochfort, or de Rupeforti, for Augustine Canons, about A.D. 1206,
and dedicated to SS. Peter and Paul, though now in a hopeless state
of dilapidation, was originally one of the finest of the many
establishments in this part of Leinster. This can be judged from
the beauty of some of the details, such as the capitals, vaulting,
and shafts, which have not been disturbed, and from the numerous
fragments of its once noble windows and arches with which the
surrounding cemetery is strewn. Broad strips of masonry, placed at a
considerable distance apart, project from the walls of the church upon
the exterior--a feature never found except in early work, and which
is generally characteristic of the Norman period. But it is within
the walls that we must seek for evidence of the former beauty of the
building. Several chastely decorated corbel shafts remain, and support
portions of the ribs by which the vaulted roof was sustained. The
windows are of the lancet form, with piers between, and the mouldings
which run round them are ornamented with beautifully designed bands.
Sedilia, in the Norman style of architecture, may be seen in the wall
to the right of the space once occupied by the altar. The ruins on the
opposite side of the river and the ancient bridge at this place are
worthy of notice, although they do not possess any striking peculiarity.
* * * * *
[Illustration: Bective Abbey, near Trim, Co. Meath.]
_Bective Abbey._--The Abbey of Bective, in the immediate neighbourhood
of Trim, was a Cistercian house, founded by Murchard O’Melaghlin,
Prince of Meath, in A.D. 1146. The ruins exhibit, in a remarkable
degree, a union of ecclesiastical with military and domestic
architecture. Their chief feature is a strong battlemented tower, the
lower apartment of which is vaulted, placed at the south corner of
the quadrangular space occupied by the various buildings, and in the
centre of which the cloisters remain in good preservation. The cloister
arches are late in the First Pointed style, and are cinque-foiled. The
featherings are mostly plain; but several are ornamented with flowers,
or leaves, and upon one a hawk-like bird is sculptured. A fillet is
worked upon each of the clustered shafts by which the openings are
divided, and also upon their capitals. The bases, which are circular,
rest upon square plinths, the angles of which are ornamented with a
leaf, growing, as it were, out of the base moulding. Of the church
there are scarcely any remains. As the northern wall of the cloister
is pierced with several windows which now have the appearance of
splaying externally, it is extremely probable that it also served as
the south wall of the church, no other portion of which can at present
be identified. Those buildings which were devoted to domestic purposes
are, for the most part, situated upon the east side of the quadrangle.
Their architectural details are of a character later than those of the
tower and of the other portions; but additions and alterations have
evidently been made. Several of the apartments have large fireplaces
covered with flat arches, the stones of which are dove-tailed into one
another. The flues are carried up through the thickness of the wall,
and are continued through square tapering chimney-shafts, headed with a
plain cornice. In its general arrangements Bective Abbey differs from
every other monastic structure in Ireland. It is, in fact, a monastic
castle, and, previous to the use of artillery, must have been regarded
as a place of great strength.
The smaller churches of the close of the twelfth, and of the early half
of the thirteenth, century, are not different in general form from
those of an earlier age. In a few examples, indeed, transepts occur, as
in the church of Clady, adjoining Bective; but they are not invariably
evidences of comparatively recent work, being sometimes found in
connection with very early churches, to which they have evidently been
added, and from which, in their architectural details, they differ in
every respect.
Down to the very latest period of Pointed architecture the original
plan of a simple nave, or nave and chancel, was followed; and the
chief or only difference observable in churches of an early date, from
those of the sixth and seventh centuries, consists in the form of the
arch-heads, the position of the doorway, the style of the masonry,
which is usually much better in the more ancient examples, and the
use of bell-turrets, the cloictheach or detached round towers having
answered this purpose during the earlier ages.
A beautiful and very characteristic example of an Early Pointed church
may be seen at Cannistown, not far from Bective, upon the opposite side
of the Boyne. As usual it consists of nave and chancel; and there are
the remains of a bell-turret upon the west gable, the usual position.
The choir arch is represented in the annexed cut. There are numerous
instances of churches in this style scattered over Ireland; but they
are usually plain, and the choir arch is generally the least ornamented
feature of the building.
[Illustration: Choir Arch of Cannistown Church, near Navan, Co. Meath.]
As examples, we may refer to the churches of Kilbarrack, Dalkey,
Kinsaly, and Rathmichael, all in the immediate neighbourhood of
Dublin. The church at Dalkey indeed cannot be regarded as a very good
example, as it has evidently been altered and remodelled at various
times. A portion of the north nave wall, including the semicircularly
arched window, may probably have formed part of an extremely ancient
_Teampull_, dedicated to St. Begnet, which is recorded to have stood
here. It may be observed that the piscinas, or stoups, do not occur in
the early churches of Ireland; they appear to have been adopted during
the latter half of the twelfth century, and churches of a later period
frequently contain several.
* * * * *
_St. Doulough’s._--The Church of St. Doulough, the origin of which
is involved in obscurity, is unique, and the most remarkable example
of Pointed architecture remaining in Ireland. Bishop Reeves was of
opinion that St. Doulough lived about the year 600, and had a cell
here. The church lies about six miles north of Dublin, and, owing
to its incongruity, has received much attention from writers on the
ecclesiastical architecture of Ireland. This church has generally been
classed with the stone-roofed chapels and oratories of the early Irish
saints; but in style it differs completely from those buildings; and
numerous architectural peculiarities, evidently original, prove the
structure to belong to the latter end of the thirteenth century. It
is an oblong church, 48 feet by 18 feet, with a square battlemented
tower in the centre. A projection on the south wall of the tower
contains a passage leading from the lower part of the building to an
exceedingly small chamber, in the east wall of which are two windows,
one commanding the only entrance to the church, the other an altar in
an apartment or chapel between the tower and the west gable. The body
of the structure is divided upon the interior by a mass of masonry
which was evidently intended to support the roof, and which contains
a small semicircular arch now stopped up. The western apartment
measures 10 by 7½ feet; it is vaulted, and was originally lighted by
several windows with flat or trefoiled heads. The altar, or ‘tomb,’
as it is popularly called, rests immediately against the masonry
which divides this apartment from other portions of the building. The
chapel or eastern division measures 21 by 9½ feet. It was lighted by
four windows, one to the east, two to the south, and one, now stopped
up, to the north. The east window is larger than the others, and is
divided into two lights, by a shaft, with shallow hollows at the sides
and a semi-cylindrical moulding on its external face. Similar hollows,
and a moulding, run round the arch, and meet those of the shafts. The
north window is of plain early Lancet form. The windows in the south
wall are unequal in size; the larger one is placed beneath the tower,
near the centre of the building, and is divided by a shaft into two
lights, the heads of which are cinquefoiled, while the space between
them and the crown of the arch is left plain. The vaults of the lower
apartments form the floor of a croft occupying uninterruptedly the
whole length of the church. There are the remains of a fireplace in the
centre of the north wall of this singular room, which appears to have
been originally used as a habitation. It is lighted by small trefoiled
opes in the end walls, and is higher by several feet, for a distance
of about four yards from the west gable, than the other part. By this
arrangement, and by a depression of the vault of the western division
of the building, provision is made for a small intermediate chamber,
to which a passage from the tower leads. The latter was divided by a
wooden floor into two storeys, the lower of which contains a small
fireplace. The roof of the church is formed of stones, well cut, and
laid in regular courses. It has been suggested that the tower is more
modern than the church; its upper portion is certainly different in
style of masonry from the rest of the building, and appears to be an
addition or restoration; but the body of the tower is clearly coeval
with the church.
[Illustration: St. Doulough’s Church, Co. Dublin.]
Such are the more remarkable features of this singular structure, in
the erection of which the architect appears studiously to have avoided
every principle of Gothic composition except variety.
The well of St. Doulough, which was probably also used as a baptistery,
is quite in keeping with the curious character of the church. The
spring, which is covered by a stone-roofed octagonal building, rises
through a circular basin, cut out of a single stone, and was, down
to our own day, thought to possess miraculous powers. According to
tradition the interior was once decorated with pictures, and holes
are pointed out as having been made for the reception of iron pins,
or holdfasts, by which they were secured to the wall. Adjoining is a
curious subterranean bath. It is supplied by the well; and even yet
the water rises to some depth within it. According to J. D’Alton, the
historian of Co. Dublin, the well was dedicated to the Blessed Virgin,
and the bath was called ‘St. Catherine’s Pond.’
[Illustration: St. Doulough’s Well.]
There are many interesting old Churches in Fingal, the name by which
the North of the Co. Dublin was known long before the Conquest. Their
history is told in Canon Robert Walsh’s careful work, _Fingal and its
Churches_. To a few of these we briefly refer.
* * * * *
_Howth ‘Abbey.’_--The Church of St. Mary or Collegiate Church, more
commonly known as the ‘Abbey’ Church of Howth, stands near the edge
of a cliff, the base of which was formerly washed by the sea. The
original foundation is said to be by Sigtryg the Dane in 1042; and
a portion of this church still remains at the west entrance. This
was enlarged, chiefly by the addition of a north aisle in 1235 under
Archbishop Luke, on the removal of the prebendal church of Inis Mac
Nessan from Ireland’s Eye to the mainland, a grant of land having been
given by Almaricius, Lord of Howth, for this purpose. Placed upon a
precipitous bank, considerably elevated above the water’s edge, and
surrounded by a strong embattled wall, it presents a striking evidence
of the half-ecclesiastical, half-military character of the time.
Considerable additions were made to the east side in the fifteenth
century. The church was practically a two-aisled structure, the north
aisle being a little shorter than the south. The arches dividing the
aisles are six in number; and with the exception of the two adjoining
the east end, which are separated by an octagonal pillar, they spring
from rudely-formed quadrangular piers. The three to the west end denote
the earlier addition; those to the east are more pointed and show the
later extension. The porch in connection with the south doorway is a
very unusual feature in churches found in Ireland--a fact not easily to
be accounted for, as they appear to have been common in England during
mediæval times. A bell-turret with three apertures rose from the west
gable; the bells are said to be preserved in the castle.
A tomb usually ascribed to Christopher, the twentieth Lord of Howth,
who died in 1589, but which, from its style, is more probably that of
Christopher the thirteenth Lord (_d._ 1430), stands in the nave not
far from the east gable. It is a good specimen of the altar-tomb; but
an inscription which it bears, owing to the neglected state in which
the monument until lately was suffered to lie, has become illegible.
* * * * *
_St. Fintan’s._--The little church of St. Fintan, situated upon the
Hill of Howth, not far from the village of Sutton, cannot be of earlier
date than the ‘Abbey.’ This singular building measures upon the
interior but 16½ feet in length, by 7 feet 8 inches in breadth, yet it
contains five windows: one to the east, two to the south, one to the
north, and one in the west gable. These lights are of various forms:
that to the east has a semicircular head with a multifoil moulding; one
of the windows in the south wall is covered with a single stone, out of
which a semicircular arch-head is cut, while the other is quadrangular.
All the windows splay widely upon the interior. A doorway in the Lancet
form is placed in the west gable, which supports a bell-turret of
considerable dimensions, and strangely out of proportion to the size of
the structure. It contains one small Pointed aperture for the reception
of a bell. Of the origin of this church nothing is known; and there
were twelve saints of the name of Fintan; but the date is very fairly
indicated by its architectural peculiarities, which are characteristic
of the close of the thirteenth or early part of the fourteenth century.
There is a very ancient church remaining on Ireland’s Eye, a romantic
islet, or rock, lying off the North side of Howth. The place was
formerly known as _Inis-mac-Nessan_, from the three sons of Nessan,
viz. Dicholla, Munissa, and Nadsluagh, who some time in the seventh
century erected a little _Teampull_ or _Cill_; the remains of
Kilmacnessan still exist. It consists of a nave and chancel, and the
nave is 1 foot narrower at the west end than at the east. The doorway
has sloping jambs and a rounded head. An arch spanning the east end
formerly sustained a round tower belfry--a later addition, and a
curious feature, as the usual position is at the west end. The whole
building was so restored in the last century that it is impossible to
identify satisfactorily anything of the original structure.
FONTS.
A very considerable number of ancient baptismal fonts still remain
within the walls of the ruined churches of Ireland, and others are
found in graveyards where churches, of which no vestige remains,
formerly stood. The fonts usually found in connection with the more
ancient churches are extremely rude, and of small dimensions, being
rarely large enough to allow of the immersion of infants. They are
almost in every instance formed of a single stone, clumsily hollowed,
and having a hole at the bottom of the basin; but in some instances no
mode of escape for the water appears.
A very early font occurs in the ancient church of Killiney, Co. Dublin;
and there is another in the equally ancient church of Kilternan, about
six miles south of the city. An example, in which there is no passage
by which the water can escape, may be seen in the church of St. John’s
Point, Co. Down. There is a fine twelfth-century font of black marble
in Kilkenny Cathedral; it rests on four columns and a central drum, and
has fluted faces and incised spandrils round the bowl. The earliest
fonts are generally somewhat circular in form; but the stone appears
only to have been roughly hammered, and in no instance can be perceived
any attempt at decoration.
* * * * *
_Killeshin Font._--One of the oldest ornamented fonts remaining in
Ireland is that which stands in the graveyard of Killeshin. It is of
a bulbous form, and the base is cut into the figure of an octagon.
After the twelfth century, fonts of greater size, and supported by a
short column, appear to have become common. Their form is generally
octagonal; but they are seldom enriched in any way, and when ornaments
occur, they consist only of a few mouldings upon the shafts or upon the
upper edge of the basin. From the absence of mouldings in the majority
of instances, it is extremely difficult to assign a date to the
numerous fonts of an octagonal form which remain in many parts of the
country. During the period of debased Gothic architecture, a great many
appear to have been erected in Ireland, particularly in the district
comprising the old English Pale.
* * * * *
[Illustration: Kilcarn Font, Co. Meath.]
_Kilcarn Font._--We have engraved an unusually fine example from the
mediæval church of Kilcarn, near Navan, in the County of Meath, and
now in the Roman Catholic Church at Johnstown close by. Placed upon its
shaft, as represented in the cut, it measures in height about 3 feet 6
inches; the basin is 2 feet 10 inches in diameter, and 13 inches deep.
The heads of the niches, twelve in number, with which its sides are
carved, are enriched with foliage of a graceful but uniform character;
and the miniature buttresses which separate the niches are decorated
with crockets, the bases resting upon heads, grotesque animals, or
human figures carved as brackets. The figures within the niches are
executed with a wonderful degree of care, the drapery being represented
with each minute crease or fold well expressed. They were evidently
intended to represent Christ, the Virgin Mary, and the twelve
Apostles. All the figures are seated. Our Saviour, crowned as a King,
holding in His hand the globe and cross, is in the act of blessing the
Virgin, who is also crowned the ‘Queen of Heaven.’ The figures of most
of the Apostles can be easily identified: St. Peter, by his key; St.
Andrew, by his cross of peculiar shape; and so on. They are represented
barefooted, and each holds a book in one hand. In the Church of Clonard
is another interesting font. The basin is octagonal, and the external
panels are divided into two compartments filled with Scriptural
subjects, such as the Flight into Egypt, the Baptism in the Jordan, etc.
[Illustration: Kilcarn Font. No. 1.]
[Illustration: Kilcarn Font. No. 2.]
[Illustration: Kilcarn Font. No. 3.]
[Illustration: Kilcarn Font. No. 4.]
A font almost precisely similar in design may be seen in the choir of
the ruined church of Dunsany, near Dunshaughlin, in the same county;
but it is of smaller size, and the figures and ornaments with which
it is sculptured are less prominent than those upon the example at
Kilcarn. It is 3 feet 6 inches in height, with an octagonal head.
The panels contain representations of the Crucifixion, many of the
Apostles, and other figures. The shaft is carved in heraldic and
other devices. Its probable date is about the middle of the fifteenth
century. A fine and unusually large font remains in Christchurch,
Dublin; and in several churches referred to in this work, interesting
specimens occur.
CHAPTER XVI.
CASTLES.
GENERAL DESCRIPTION--MALAHIDE--TRIM--MAYNOOTH--IRISH CASTELLATED
HOUSES--SCURLOUGHSTOWN--BULLOCK CASTLE--TOWN GATES AND
WALLS--BRIDGES.
The castles of Ireland are exceedingly numerous and vary from the
single keep-tower of the predatory chieftain to the defensive
fortresses erected under the Anglo-Norman barons and their successors.
All through the Middle Ages, strongholds, necessary in a land torn
by petty wars and successive rebellions, were built, and as occasion
required, strengthened and restored, so that some of the more important
features of the chief castles now remaining date from a much later
period than their original foundation. In a few, indeed, such as
Dublin, Kilkenny, and Lismore, much of the work is of modern date. Many
fine castellated mansions were built in the reigns of Elizabeth and
James I. by the new settlers on the confiscated lands in the North and
South.
The County of Wexford was sprinkled with castles, many of which were
built by the first Anglo-Norman settlers; and a ring of fortresses
surrounded the Pale at an early date. John de Courcy and Hugh de Lacy
were the chief builders of these strongholds to defend the lines of
their new possessions. In the North the remains of Dundrum Castle--a
fine example of the donjon keep--Greencastle, Kilclief, Carlingford,
and others testify to the defences necessary in those days to hold
the conquered lands. In the great territory of the princely Desmonds,
stretching from the Barrow to the Shannon mouth, the ruins of many
of their castles still exist, besides others of lesser clans. Clare
had numerous castles, the Macnamara clan alone being credited with
fifty-seven. Some fine examples still exist, such as Bunratty, which
was used as a residence down to comparatively recent times.
Though the castles of Ireland, in point of architectural magnificence,
are not to be compared with many of the more important structures
of a similar character in England, they are frequently of very
considerable extent. Placed as they often are upon the summit of
a lofty and precipitous rock, the base of which is usually washed
by the waters of a river or lake, or by the sea, encompassed with
walls and towers pierced with shot-holes, and only to be approached
through well-defended gateways, they must, before the introduction
of artillery, have been generally considered impregnable. Several of
the early keeps are circular; but they usually consist of a massive
quadrangular tower with smaller towers at the angles. The internal
arrangements are similar in character to those seen in the military
structures of the same period in England and elsewhere. The outworks
and other appendages to the majority of the most remarkable castles
in Ireland have been destroyed, not by the usual effects of time
and neglect, but by gunpowder, as the enormous masses of masonry
overthrown, and lying in confused heaps, sufficiently testify. The
cannon of the Cromwellian army left most of the strongholds of the
Irish and of the Anglo-Irish in ruins. Shortly after the Restoration
the necessity for castles ceased; and, with some exceptions, the few
that had escaped the violence of the, preceding period appear gradually
to have been deserted and suffered to decay.
* * * * *
[Illustration: Malahide Castle, Co. Dublin.]
_Malahide Castle._--The castle of Malahide, situated about nine miles
from Dublin, is perhaps the most perfectly preserved of the ancient
baronial residences now remaining in Ireland. It owes its foundation to
Richard Talbot, who, in the reign of King Henry II., received a grant
of the lordship of Malahide, and of whom the present lord is a lineal
descendant. The castle, upon the exterior, retains but little of its
ancient character; portions have been rebuilt; the old loop-holes have
given place to modern windows; the tower upon the south-east angle is
an addition of the last century; the formidable outworks have long
been removed, and a grassy hollow indicates the position of the ancient
moat; yet notwithstanding all these changes it is still an object of
much antiquarian interest. The entrance is through a low Gothic porch,
attached to which is an ancient oak door studded with huge nails, and
from which an antique knocker is suspended. The interior presents many
features unique in Ireland. The oak room is of particular interest with
its quaintly carved arabesques, black as ebony, its antique armour,
and the storied panels of the northern side. The banqueting-hall is a
room of fine proportions and retains its original oak roof and gallery.
The walls of the chief rooms are hung with pictures and portraits,
several of which are of much historical interest. Among the former
an altar-piece by Albert Durer is perhaps the most remarkable. It is
divided into compartments representing the Nativity, Adoration, and
Circumcision. This interesting picture, which is said to have belonged
to Mary Queen of Scots, was purchased by Charles II. for the sum of
£2000, and presented by him to the Duchess of Portland, by whom it was
given to Lady Talbot.
The chapel, popularly called the ‘Abbey’ of Malahide, lies a little
to the east of the castle. Though its architectural features are no
way remarkable, it is a picturesque building. The Perpendicular window
in the east end, however, should be noted, as also the tomb of Maud
Plunkett, lying in the nave. Of this lady it is recorded that she was
a maid, wife, and widow in one day, her husband having fallen when
resisting a sudden predatory attack made by a neighbouring clan during
the day of his marriage. The story forms the subject of a ballad from
the pen of Gerald Griffin.
We have noticed the castle of Malahide first, not that it is supposed
to be the most characteristic example of an ancient fortress lying
within easy access from Dublin, but because it remains certainly the
finest structure of its age and purpose at present to be met with in
Ireland, still inhabited, and occupied by a descendant of the original
founder.
[Illustration: Castle of Trim, Co. Meath.]
King John’s Castle at Trim is of at least equal antiquity, and, though
in a state of utter ruin, will impress the visitor with a much more
correct idea of the ancient feudal stronghold. Trim stands upon the
borders of what was once considered the ‘English Pale,’ and lies at
an easy distance from Dublin. It is singularly rich in antiquarian
remains, and figured largely in the past history of the English rule in
Ireland.
The castle consists of a triangular walled enclosure, defended by
circular flanking towers, and a large and lofty donjon or keep in the
centre. The north-east side is 171 yards long, and is defended by
four towers, viz. two at the angles, and two intermediate. The west
side is 116 yards long, and was defended by flanking towers at the
angles, and a gateway tower in the centre. The portcullis groove is
very perfect; and it seems, from the projecting masonry, that there
had been a drawbridge and barbican to the gate. The third side sweeps
round at an easy curve to the Boyne; it is 192 yards long, defended by
six flanking towers, including those at the angles and at the gate.
The gate tower is circular and is in good preservation, as well as
are the arches over the ditch, and the barbican beyond it. The gate
had also its portcullis, the groove for which, and the recess for its
windlass, are perfect. The entire circuit of the castle wall, then, is
486 yards, defended by ten flanking towers, at nearly equal distances,
including those at the gates. The donjon is a rectangular building,
the plan of which may be thus described: on the middle of each side
of 64 feet rectangles are constructed, the sides perpendicular to the
square being 20 feet, and those parallel to it 24 feet: thus a figure
of twenty sides is constructed. The thickness of the walls of the large
tower is 12 feet, and of the smaller towers from 4 feet 6 inches to 6
feet. The walls were carried up 60 feet above the level of the ground,
but on each angle of the large tower, square turrets, 16 feet 6 inches
in height, are built. By this arrangement, a large shower of missiles
might have been projected in any direction.[129]
A castle, which there is every reason to believe occupied the site
of the present structure, was erected by Walter de Lacy in 1173, who
had obtained from Henry II. a grant of Meath. During the absence of
de Lacy, while the castle was in the custody of Hugh Tyrrell, it was
attacked and demolished by Roderick O’Conor, King of Connaught. In
Hanmer’s _Chronicle of Ireland_, the circumstances of its erection are
thus given: ‘Anno 1220. Meath was wonderfully afflicted and wasted by
reason of the private quarrels and civil warres between William, Earl
Marshall, Earle of Pembroke, &c., and Sir Hugh de Lacy, Earle of Ulster
and Lord of Connaught. Trimme was besieged and brought to a lamentable
plight, and when the rage and fury of these garboiles were somewhat
mitigated and appeased, after the shedding of much blood the same year,
to prevent afterclaps and subsequent calamities, the castle of Trim was
builded.’
* * * * *
_Maynooth Castle._--The once great castle of Maynooth, erected in 1176
by Maurice FitzGerald, who came over with Strongbow, can be easily
visited from Dublin. It is a fine example of the kind of structure
which combined the baronial residence with the military fortress.
The keep is of the original Norman work. The ground-floor, like that
of Athenry Castle, and others of the same period, is divided into
two large vaulted apartments, over which were state rooms of fine
proportions. Bedrooms of various sizes occupied the upper portion of
the tower. The servants and members of the household were accommodated
in buildings stretching between the barbican of the outworks and a
strong flanking tower which still remains. It is stated in Holinshed’s
account of the sack of this Geraldine stronghold by Sir William
Skeffington in 1553, as the result of Silken Thomas’ Rebellion, that
‘great and riche was the spoile, such store of beddes, so many goodly
hangings, so riche a wardrob, such brave furniture, as truly it was
accompted for householde stuffe and vtensils one of the richest Earle
his homes under the crowne of Englande.’ It was again restored, and
finally dismantled by the Irish troops of Owen Roe O’Neill in 1647.
It seems to have taken a considerable period to reconcile the native
Irish to the use of castles or tower houses as places of every-day
abode. The free-roving Celt could ill brook the confinement of narrow
vaults and stifling chambers. To him, as a chieftain actually declared,
‘a castle of bones was every way preferable to a castle of stones.’ By
this was meant that the head of a clan, surrounded by his following
of hardy kerns and gallowglasses, was safer and every way better off
than an effeminate sojourner between the four walls of a tower. A time
at length arrived when the native potentates, petty chieftains, and
gentlemen of lesser degree, followed the example of their invaders, and
erected stone dwellings, very similar to those of the strangers with
which they had become familiarised. These almost invariably consist
of a tall quadrangular tower, with or without outworks, but generally
furnished with a bawn or enclosure into which at night, or during
raiding times, the owner’s cattle were driven.
The apartment on the ground-floor was almost invariably covered with a
vault of stone, evidently a precaution against fire. In some instances
all the flooring was supported on pointed or barrel arches of stone;
but, generally, the upper storeys were provided with floors of timber.
A staircase of stone usually led to the upper apartments; sometimes it
ran straight through the thickness of the wall from floor to floor,
access to the various apartments being provided by narrow doorways,
with pointed, flat, or semicircular heads. These three forms are not
unfrequently found in the one building. Sometimes the staircase is
enclosed in a projecting tower, and rises spiral fashion, with doorways
at one side like those already referred to. A second staircase leading
to small apartments, which may have been used as bedrooms, is often to
be noticed.
‘The entrance to an Irish house, castle, or tower,’ writes the late
J. H. Parker, ‘is usually protected in a manner unknown in England--at
least not commonly known--for there are a few instances of a similar
arrangement in England. There is no external porch, but the doorway
opens into a small space, about 6 feet square and about 8 or 10 feet
high; in front is the door to the cellar; on the right is the door to
a small guard-chamber; on the left the door to the staircase; each
of these doors is barred on the other side, so that the visitor can
proceed no further without permission, and immediately over his head is
a small square or round hole, emphatically called a “murthering hole”;
this opens into a small chamber in which a pile of paving stones was
kept ready for use, so that if an enemy had forced the outer door, he
would not be much the forwarder. These precautions were evidently taken
to guard against any sudden surprise.’ But in the Irish tower-houses
there was another provision for security. The outer doorway was
frequently furnished with a portcullis, so that an unwelcome visitor
upon entering the space referred to by the great authority on the
domestic architecture of the Middle Ages, with the doors in front and
at the sides fastened, the ‘murthering hole’ above his head, and the
portcullis grate dropped behind him, would be securely entrapped.
A small projecting bartizan or machicolation set in the top of the
tower, is usually found surmounting the doorway on the exterior.
Similar turrets occasionally protect angles of the building, by means
of which any foe attempting to dislodge the coign stones might be
easily crushed. A large, and often handsomely-constructed, fireplace
is generally found in the principal apartment. The chimney-shafts, as
a rule, are quadrangular. Curiously enough, the kitchen is usually
placed outside the building. In a good many examples well-constructed
‘garderobes,’ or closets, occur.
The windows, which, it should be observed, are commonly very small,
splay internally, and are usually placed slightly above the level of
the floor, from which they are approached by a few steps. There is
generally a stone seat within the splay, upon each side of the light.
This remark, of course, only refers to the principal windows.
[Illustration: Scurloughstown Castle.]
The castle of Scurloughstown, which stood in the immediate vicinity of
Trim, was probably as good an example as any which have remained to our
own day of the lesser keep, usually found in those districts wherein
the earlier colonies of the English or Anglo-Normans obtained footing.
It no longer exists. The above sketch was made a few years before the
tower, which upon one of its sides exhibited a crack extending from
summit to foundation, fell to the ground.
The castle of Bullock, standing immediately above the little harbour of
the same name, not far from the Dalkey station of the Dublin, Wicklow,
and Wexford Railway, is worth a visit. It has been very carefully
restored, and is now used as a residence. The castle of Dalkey is used
as a town hall.
[Illustration: Bullock Castle, near Kingstown, Co. Dublin.]
Of the origin of these very interesting structures, no notice, as
far as we could ascertain, has been preserved. It is extremely
probable that they were erected by English settlers, not long after
the Anglo-Norman invasion of Ireland--their architectural features
indicating an early period; and similar buildings, connected together
by a wall enclosing a very considerable space, occur in several
localities known to have been occupied by the early English.
We may here also mention the picturesque and well-preserved castle of
Drimnagh, lying at a distance of about four miles from Dublin, on the
road to Crumlin. Its bawn is still perfect, and the ancient fosse, by
which the whole was enclosed, remains in fine preservation, and is
still deep. Drimnagh was considered a place of considerable strength
during the rising of 1641, and it appears to have been strengthened,
and in a great measure re-edified, about that unhappy period of
Ireland’s history.
In Swords are the dilapidated remains of what was once a fine mediæval
castle and bawn, which belonged to the Archbishops of Dublin. There are
the remains of other castles, small keeps, and castellated mansions in
the neighbourhood of Dublin, particularly in the south, which lay open
to the predatory incursions of the lawless tribes that once inhabited
the Wicklow Mountains.
CHAPTER XVII.
TOWN GATES AND WALLS: BRIDGES.
DROGHEDA GATES--‘SHEEP’ GATE, TRIM--WALLS OF ATHENRY--KILMALLOCK
WALLS--WALLS OF LONDONDERRY--BRIDGES--KILLALOE BRIDGE--OLD
THOMOND BRIDGE--NEWBRIDGE.
Although it is certain that the Danes, at an early period, encompassed
with ramparts and towers several of the cities and towns which they
held in Ireland, their works have long disappeared, with the exception
of Reginald’s Tower, Waterford, built in 1003. Though the walls and
gates of a few ancient cities or towns remain, they are obviously
of comparatively late date, and invariably found in connexion with
places which we know to have been strongholds of the English. In some,
as at Drogheda and at Athlone, the wall was of considerable height
and thickness. That of Waterford, of which a portion remains, was
strengthened with semicircular towers; but they are usually plain.
The great majority of these works at present remaining in Ireland
were spared as relics, for since the general introduction of cannon
and gunpowder for siege purposes they could no longer be relied
upon as fortifications. The walls of all the Anglo-Irish cities and
towns, which were once remarkable for strength, and the security they
afforded to the besieged, have been almost entirely destroyed. Several
gates and towers, however, remain, and of these the finest may be seen
at Drogheda.
[Illustration: St. Laurence’s Gate, Drogheda.]
St. Laurence’s Gate consists of two lofty circular towers, connected
together by a wall, in the lower portion of which an archway is placed.
The towers, as well as the wall by which they are connected, are
pierced with numerous loop-holes; and it is probable that the latter
was originally, upon the town side, divided into stages by platforms of
timber, extending from tower to tower, otherwise the loop-holes could
not have been used by the defenders of the gate; and we know that even
in their most beautiful buildings, the ancient architects rarely added
an unnecessary feature. The other remaining gate-tower of Drogheda
is octangular in form, pierced with long, narrow loop-holes, wider
in the centre than in the other parts, and was further strengthened
by a portcullis, the groove for which remains nearly perfect. Since
the period of Cromwell’s ‘crowning mercy,’ the successful storming of
Drogheda, the walls of that place have been gradually sinking into
utter ruin; but, from some portions which yet remain in a tolerably
perfect state, an idea may be formed of their ancient strength and
grandeur. Most of the gate-towers remaining in Ireland are square, and
of considerable height. Their archways are generally semicircular; but
there was a beautiful Pointed example at Ross, in the County of Wexford.
[Illustration: The West Gate, Drogheda.]
The tower by which the ‘Sheep’ Gate of Trim was once surmounted
no longer exists. The adjacent wall seems to have suffered a like
denudation. A lofty structure figured in the distance, the belfry of
St. Mary’s Abbey,[130] is of a late period of Gothic architecture.
[Illustration: The ‘Sheep’ Gate and Yellow Steeple, Trim, Co. Meath.]
Portions yet remain of the walls and flanking towers of Athenry, in
the County Galway; but they are much dilapidated. One of the gateways
still stands, through which the road entering the town now runs. It was
originally defended by two towers, one of which has fallen; but the
other has been preserved by the insertion of an archway spanning the
road. In recent times it was with difficulty saved from destruction,
a road contractor desiring to have it for the sake of the material;
and that in one of the stoniest districts in Ireland. Concerning this
structure there was a tradition amongst the neighbouring people that
it was some time or other to fall upon the wisest man in Ireland. But
the selfish official who coveted the stones seems to have had no fear
on that account for his personal safety when passing beneath the arch,
and, in reply to a gentleman who strongly objected to the proposed
removal of the tower, on account of its interesting antiquity, he is
said to have scouted the idea, declaring that any antiquity it ever
possessed had gone long ago!
Kilmallock retains two of its four gates and much of its walls, which
are in a fair state of preservation, and date from the reign of
Edward III. These gates were very strong, and in times of need might
have served as castles. In Clonmel the west gate is the only one now
standing of four, and the remains of the walls surround the churchyard.
Of the walls and gateways of Galway but a few pieces stand. These dated
from 1270, and as late as 1651 the walls were perfect, with fourteen
towers and as many gateways. Little of the four gates and walls which
surrounded New Ross now remain; but one of the towers defending the
wall still stands.
The walls of Londonderry, the most perfect in Ireland, are
comparatively recent--they were raised in 1609--and have now seven
gates. The walls and towers of Limerick were of very early date, and
King John’s Castle is one of the finest Norman fortresses in the
kingdom. The north tower is the most ancient; and it still possesses
the original gateway. Since 1760, when the walls and ramparts were
abandoned as defences, they have been allowed to decay, and much of
them were removed for public convenience. A fine gateway may also
be seen at Carrickfergus Castle, showing all the usual defensive
appliances, portcullis, embrasures, and openings for dropping missiles
or molten lead. The keep is also perfect, and has walls 9 feet thick.
The citizens of Dublin, generally, are not aware that patches of their
old walls, including one gate or bar, still remain. The gateway is
called St. Audoen’s Arch, and may be seen close to the ancient church
of the same name. It is a fragment of an inner wall built by the
citizens during the invasion of Ireland by Edward Bruce, at a time
when he lay encamped at Castleknock, and daily threatened the city.
The adjoining portion of the wall is here high and strong; but the
gate-tower has been lowered almost down to its arch.
Of the structure whose origin is ascribed to Meyler Fitz Henry, but
completed by Archbishop Henry de Loundres, A.D. 1223, a portion may
possibly be concealed beneath the piles of modern edifices which
represent the present Castle of Dublin. The Castle presents little that
is of interest to the architectural antiquary, except he finds it in
the massive walls of the Record Tower, the oldest portion of the group
of buildings between the Castle yards.
* * * * *
_Bridges._--That the Irish at an early period were in the habit of
constructing bridges and causeways over rivers, or from the mainland
to an island, or from one island to another, is a fact recorded in the
‘Annals’; and we are not wholly without some existing remains of that
interesting class of structures. We read that in A.D. 1054 a bridge was
built over the Shannon, at Killaloe, by Turlogh O’Brien. This work was
no doubt of timber. It had probably been long decayed or destroyed when
Richard de Clare obtained possession of the greater part of that county
which still bears his name. But the ford was not so easily obliterated,
and Killaloe was for a considerable time called ‘Claresford’ by the
English. The little island of Begerin, near Wexford, was formerly
connected with another island by a causeway, described by Mr. G. H.
Kinahan as consisting of two rows of oak piles, set four feet apart,
with about five feet between each pair. ‘On these piles,’ he remarks,
‘there would seem to have originally been longitudinal and transverse
beams.’[131] St. Ibar, who died in A.D. 500, had a church and monastery
in Begerin, so that there is every probability that this bridge or
causeway may be referred to a very early date. The islands of Devenish
and Inismacsaint, in Lough Erne, both of which were monastic sites in
the sixth century, had similar communications with the mainland. A
number of the piles at the latter island may still be seen when the
water is low. Many of the lake-dwellings, or crannogs, were, as we have
seen, furnished with causeways connecting them with the mainland, or
with neighbouring islets.
Few, if any, bridges formed of stone appear to have been erected in
Ireland previous to the Anglo-Norman invasion; but the new settlers
and their descendants constructed many, several of which remained down
to a comparatively late period. Of these, perhaps old Thomond Bridge,
which spanned the Shannon at Limerick, was the most remarkable. Low,
flat, and narrow in its proportions, defended at one end by a tower
and gateway, and exhibiting in its fifteen arches a variety of forms,
chiefly Pointed, it constituted, with the castle, and the venerable
tower of St. Mary’s Abbey in the background, one of a group of mediæval
structures as imposing as they were picturesque. The bridge was, in
all probability, coeval with King John’s Castle immediately adjoining.
Having at length, in part, become ruinous, it was, in the past century,
pulled down, and a structure more in accordance with the requirements
of the nineteenth century occupies its historic site.
The Shannon, almost in our own time, was crossed by other bridges of
considerable antiquity. That at Athlone was one of the most interesting
and picturesque features of the old town. In its abutments were
recesses intended for the refuge of foot-passengers whenever any
vehicle was passing--a precaution rendered absolutely necessary by the
narrow proportions of the ancient roadway. Near the centre, on the
northern side, might be seen a very remarkable sculptured and inscribed
monument; the stones which composed it were placed in the collection of
the Royal Irish Academy.
At Newbridge, two miles from Leixlip, and crossing the Liffey, is
perhaps the oldest bridge now remaining in Ireland. This ancient
structure, which still remains apparently as strong as when it was
built, was, according to _Pembridge’s Annals_, as published by Camden,
erected in 1308, by John le Decer, Mayor of Dublin in that year. It
is in every respect an interesting work of its kind, and promises,
unless taken in hand by some ‘restorer,’ to stand the storms and floods
of another five hundred years. Some sixty years ago it was sentenced
to destruction as useless, and only escaped demolition through the
influence of the then proprietor of St. Woolstan’s, Richard Cane, who,
in a spirit worthy of all commendation, declared that he would rather
bear the cost of a new bridge than see one stone of John le Decer’s
work removed.
FOOTNOTES
[1] Camden’s _Hibernia_, p. 67.
[2] _Journal_ R. S. A. I., 1876–8, p. 294.
[3] _Ibid._, 1887–8, p. 432.
[4] _Ecclesiastical Architecture of Ireland_, p. 107.
[5] _Pagan Ireland_, p. 308.
[6] _Asiatic Researches_, vol. vi., p. 502.
[7] _Journal_ Roy. Soc. of Antiq. Ir., 1888, p. 470.
[8] _Pagan Ireland_, p. 308.
[9] _Journal_ Roy. Soc. of Antiq. Ir., 1892, p. 68.
[10] _Annual Volume_ Roy. Soc. of Antiq. Ir., 1892.
[11] _Transactions_ (_Antiquities_), Roy. Ir. Acad., vol. xxiv., p. 421.
[12] _Journal_ Roy. Soc. of Antiq. Ir., 1868, p. 91.
[13] _Ibid._, 1864–6, pp. 357, 497.
[14] _Ibid._, 1883–4, p. 222; 1887–8, p. 427.
[15] _Ibid._, 1879–82, p. 552.
[16] _Ibid._, 1874–5, p. 445.
[17] The cave is known by the name ‘Gillie’s Hole,’ and was used as
a retreat, about a hundred years ago, by a pair of lovers who, in
consequence of an imprudent marriage, had been discarded by their
friends. Such is the local legend.
[18] _Journal_ Roy. Soc. of Antiq. Ir., 1895, p. 64.
[19] April, 1865.
[20] _Journal_ Roy. Soc. of Antiq. Ir., 1883, p. 174.
[21] This--the Royal Society of Antiquaries--collection has been
transferred, with the exception of objects of a local interest, to the
National Museum, Kildare-street, Dublin.
[22] _Journal_ Roy. Soc. of Antiq. Ir., 1874–5, note, p. 281.
[23] _Journal_ Roy. Soc. of Antiq. Ir., 1868–9, p. 349.
[24] _Ibid._, 1874–5, p. 460.
[25] _Prehistoric Scotland_, p. 279.
[26] Mr. G. A. Lebour, in _Nature_, May 9th, 1872, speaking of
the character of the principal dolmens and cist-bearing mounds of
Finisterre, says that ‘in most cases in that department the dolmens
occupy situations in every respect similar to those in which the
tumuli are found, so that meteorological, and indeed every other
but human, agencies must have affected both in the same manner and
degree. Notwithstanding this, the dolmens are invariably bare, and the
cists are as constantly covered; there are no signs of even incipient
degradation and denudation in the latter, and none of former covering
in the first.’
[27] _Dolmens of Ireland_, p. viii.
[28] _Ibid._, p. 430.
[29] _Dolmens of Ireland_, vol. i., p. 8.
[30] _Maol_ may be interpreted ‘servant of.’
[31] Some doubt has been thrown on the story as told in the ‘Annals’:
see _Journal_ Roy. Soc. of Antiq. Ir., 1897, p. 430.
[32] The Rev. Maxwell Close makes the dimensions 12¼ feet by 9¼ feet,
and 5¾ feet thick.
[33] _Proceedings_ Roy. Ir. Acad., 3rd Series, vol. v., No. 3.
[34] The three distinct groups of rocks on the Three-Rock Mountain, a
familiar natural feature from the suburbs of Dublin, were considered by
Beranger to be ‘Druidical remains.’ From a distance they appear like
cairns, but they were never raised by human hands, and their interest
is entirely geological.
[35] _Journal_ Roy. Soc. of Antiq. Ir., 1896, p. 93; and 1876, p. 95.
[36] _Journal_ Roy. Soc. of Antiq. Ir., 1872, p. 523.
[37] _Journal_ Roy. Soc. Antiq., 1872, p. 526.
[38] _Ecclesiastical Architecture_, p. 97.
[39] See _Archæologia_, vol. xxv., p. 233.
[40] _Schliemann’s Excavations_, by Dr. C. Schuchhardt (1891), p. 147.
[41] _The Mycenæan Age_, by Dr. Christos Tsountas and Mr. J. Irving
Manatt (1897), p. 138.
[42] See _Proceedings_ Roy. Ir. Acad., vol. ix.
[43] _Proceedings_ Roy. Ir. Acad., vol. xxvii. (1892–93).
[44] _Rude Stone Monuments_, p. 219.
[45] The MSS. only state that the Ollamh was buried at Taillten.
[46] _Schliemann’s Excavations_, p. 151.
[47] _Egyptian Decorative Art_, chap. ii.
[48] _Journal of Hellenic Studies_, xiv., p. 329.
[49] See _Journal_, 1894, 1895; also _Trans._ Roy. Ir. Acad., vol. xxx.
pt. 1, xxxi. pt. 2.
[50] A somewhat similar example occurs in the sepulchral monument at
Glenmalin, Co. Donegal. See _Journal_ Roy. Soc. Antiq. Ir., 1890, p.
264.
[51] _Rude Stone Monuments of Sligo_, p. 136.
[52] _Catalogue of Antiq._, p. 27.
[53] See _Journal_, R. S. A. I., 1870, p. 579.
[54] _Politics_, Bk. iv., Ch. 2.
[55] _Murray’s Handbook of Ireland_ (1902), p. 350.
[56] See _Reliquary and Illustrated Archæologist_, vol. i., p. 35.
[57] _British Barrows_, p. 19.
[58] _Rambles and Studies in Bosnia-Herzegovina and Dalmatia_, pp. 132,
133.
[59] _Ibid._, p. 400.
[60] _Journal_ Roy. Soc. of Antiq. Ir., 1852–3, p. 295.
[61] _Pagan Ireland_, p. 108.
[62] _Journal_ Roy. Soc. of Antiq. Ir., 1876–8, p. 178.
[63] _Primeval Antiquities of Denmark_, p. 96.
[64] _The Civilization of Sweden in Heathen Times_, p. 32.
[65] _Schliemann’s Excavations_, by Dr. Schuchhardt, p. 86.
[66] _Early Age of Greece_, by W. Ridgeway, p. 495.
[67] _Early Age of Greece_, by W. Ridgeway, p. 495.
[68] _Annals of the Four Masters_, A.D. 537.
[69] _Ibid._
[70] _Ibid._, A.D. 458.
[71] _Manners and Customs of the Ancient Irish_, O’Curry; Introduction,
p. cccxl.
[72] Dr. Sullivan was of opinion that these words are used here in
the sense of funeral pyre; but this is not accepted, as strictly they
are applied to the whole funeral rite, especially to the reciting of
dirges, and the performance of games. See _Manners and Customs of the
Ancient Irish_, vol. i., cccxxiii.
[73] O’Curry, _Manners and Customs_, III. 176.
[74] _Ogam Inscribed Monuments of the Gaedhil_, Richard Rolt Brash, p.
13.
[75] _Irish Names of Places_, vol. i., p. 262.
[76] _Ogam Inscribed Monuments_, R. R. Brash, pp. 99–101.
[77] _Journal_ Roy. Soc. of Antiq. Ir., 1898, p. 1 (Rev. Canon Lett,
M.A.).
[78] _Journal_ R.S.A.I., 1885, p. 362.
[79] _Prehistoric Scotland_, p. 352.
[80] For a full account of this structure see a Paper by the Rev.
William Falkiner, M.A., _Proc._ R.I.A., vol. v., 3rd series, p. 211.
[81] _Journal_ Roy. Soc. of Antiq. Ir., 1860, p. 222.
[82] For an interesting account of this fort by Mr. P. J. Lynch, see
_Journal_ Roy. Soc. of Antiq. Ir., 1899, p. 5.
[83] _Journal_ R.S.A.I., 1893, p. 281; 1896, pp. 142, 363; 1897, p. 116.
[84] See _Journal_ Roy. Soc. of Antiq. Ir., 1898, p. 325, for notes and
admirable plan, by Mr. P. J. Lynch.
[85] Mr. Stewart Macalister says this should be Cathair na Mairtinech,
the ‘Fort of the Martins.’
[86] _Manners and Customs of the Ancient Irish_, iii., pp. 56–72.
[87] _Trans._ Roy. Ir. Acad., vol. xxxi., pt. vii., p. 334.
[88] _Eccles. Arch._, p. 445 _et seq._
[89] Donough Cairbreach O’Brien (d. 1242) built a rath, and Brian Boru
repaired many of the forts of Munster in his own lifetime.
[90] _Scientific Transactions_, Roy. Dub. Soc, vol. i., 2nd ser., p.
200.
[91] _Catalogue_ R.I.A., p. 254; _Journal_ Roy. Soc. of Antiq. Ir.,
1885, p. 126.
[92] For a full description of Irish copper celts, see a paper by Mr.
George Coffey in the _Journal_ of the Anthropological Institute, vol.
xxxi., p. 275.
[93] For an account of the ‘Early Metallurgy of Copper, Tin, and Iron,
in Europe,’ see a paper by W. Gowland in _Archæologia_, vol. lvi., p.
267.
[94] _Ten Years’ Digging in Egypt_, p. 144.
[95] _Egypt under the Great Pyramid Builders_, by E. Wallis Budge
(1902), page 136.
[96] _Ten Years’ Digging in Egypt_, page 28.
[97] _Catalogue_, p. 384.
[98] _Ancient Bronze Implements of Great Britain_, p. 472.
[99] _Horœ Ferales_, Kemble, p. 190, _et seq._
[100] See _Proceedings_ Roy. Irish Academy, vol. iii., 3rd series, p.
486.
[101] _Lake-Dwellings of Ireland_, by Col. Wood-Martin, pp. 136–7.
[102] These objects are a kind of pear-shaped bell, containing a piece
of metal within and admitting ‘a dull feeble sound.’ See Wilde’s
_Catalogue_, p. 613.
[103] _Journal_ Roy. Soc. of Antiq. Ir., 1874, p. 22.
[104] For the process of riveting, see Wilde’s _Catalogue_, p. 632; and
the _Journal_ Roy. Soc. of Antiq. Ir., 1876–8, p. 277.
[105] See Roy. Soc. Antiq. edition, p. 32.
[106] For a summary of these, see an Article by R. R. Brash, _Journal_
Roy. Soc. Antiq. of Ir., 1870–1, p. 509.
[107] _Catalogue of the Antiquities of Gold_, p. 2.
[108] See _Archæologia_, vol. 55, p. 391; _Journal_ Roy. Soc. Antiq.,
1902, p. 211.
[109] _Lake-Dwellings_, vol. i., p. 23. 2nd ed.
[110] _Catalogue_ R.I.A., p. 235.
[111] _Archæologia_, vol. xxvi., p. 361.
[112] _Lake-Dwellings of Europe_, by Robert Munro, M.D., p. 477.
[113] _Lake-Dwellings of Ireland_, Col. Wood-Martin, p. 236.
[114] _Prehistoric Scotland_, p. 427.
[115] _Journal_, Roy. Soc. Antiq. Ir., 1893, p. 27; 1894, p. 315.
[116] _Journal_, R.S.A.I., 1897, pp. 205, 389; 1901, p. 204.
[117] _Proceedings_ R. I. A., vol. ii., 2nd. ser.
[118] _Journal_, R.S.A.I, 1872, p. 10.
[119] _Journal_, R.S.A.I., 1897, p. 373.
[120] _Lake-Dwellings of Ireland_, Col. Wood-Martin, pp. 145–60.
_Catalogue_ R.I.A., pp. 229–33.
[121] _Lake-Dwellings of Europe_, p. 489.
[122] See Adamnan’s _Life of St. Columba_ (Bishop Reeves), p. 286; and
_The Celtic Church_ (Dr. G. T. Stokes), p. 107.
[123] _Ecclesiastical Architecture_, George Petrie, p. 432.
[124] _Eccles. Arch._, p. 284.
[125] This is described in Petrie’s _Eccles. Arch._, pp. 242–6.
[126] _Journal_, Royal Society of Antiquaries, Ireland, 1856–7, p. 315.
[127] See Wright’s _Louthiana_, Plate 14, Book iii.
[128] See _Transactions_ Roy. Ir. Acad., vol. xx.; also vol. xxx., p.
303.
[129] See _Some Notices of the Castle of Trim_ by the late Rev. R.
Butler.
[130] Mr. Butler, in his book on the Castle of Trim, remarks that in
1449–50 Richard, Duke of York, held his Court there; that he was a
benefactor to St. Mary’s Abbey; and that the ‘Yellow Steeple,’ as the
tower is popularly styled, may probably be assigned to his time.
[131] _Journal_ Roy. Soc. of Antiq. Ir., 1872–3, p. 435.
INDEX
N.B.--The Titles of Books, etc., are in _Italics_.
Abbeys, 362.
Bective, 368.
Dunbrody, 365.
Howth, 375.
Jerpoint, 364.
Kilmallock, Window of, 365.
Malahide, 386.
Newtowntrim, 367.
Achill Island, 77.
Adams, Professor Leith, 188.
Adler, Professor, 104.
Aghade, 16.
Alignments, 127.
Allen, Hill of, 171.
Alphabet stone, Kilmalkedar, 22.
_Ancient Bronze Implements of Great Britain_, 212.
_Ancient Stone Implements_, 196.
Anderson, Dr. Joseph, 120.
Anglo-Irish Remains, 3.
_Annals of Clonmacnoise_, 165, 241, 306.
_Annals of the Four Masters_, 82, 100, 140, 241, 349, 352.
_Annals of Innisfallen_, 354.
_Annals of Tighernach_, 101.
Aranmore, 173.
Arch Druid, 72.
_Archæologia_, 89, 205, 250, 257.
_Archæological Journal_, 332.
Ardagh Chalice, or Cup, 357.
Ardakillen Crannog, 231, 239.
Ardnaree, 60.
Ardoileán, 285.
Aristotle, 122.
Arrow-heads, Flint, 191.
Leaf-shaped, 191.
Triangular, 193.
Stemmed, 193.
Mounted, 194.
Bronze, 227.
Art, Early Christian, 345.
_Asiatic Researches_, 15.
_Athenæum_, 243.
Aynia’s Cove, 76.
Ballon Hill, 134.
Ballyconnell, Stone Monument at, 42.
Ballyheabought, 177.
Ballykinvarga, 172.
Ballynasare, 26.
Balor of the ‘Mighty Blows,’ 43.
Banqueting-Hall of Tara, 168.
Barr of Fintona, 61, 113.
Barrows, 121.
Bateman, Mr., 133.
Battle of Sligo, 139.
Battler, The, 351.
‘Beds’ of Dermot and Grainne, 51.
Bee-hive Huts. (_See_ Clochauns.)
Begerin, 402.
Bells, Ecclesiastical, 346.
Chumascach, 348.
St. Patrick’s, or Armagh, 346.
Beranger, Gabriel, 72.
Bernard, Dr., 184.
Bernard, Dr. J. H., 351.
Betham, Sir Wm., 349, 350.
Bishop’s Island, 284.
Board of Public Works, 181, 258, 303, 341.
_Book of Armagh_, 50.
_Ballymote_, 142, 150, 152, 155.
_Kells_, 306, 351.
_Lecan_, 140.
_Leinster_, 150.
_Rights_, 234, 240.
Borlase, C. W., 52, 54, 55, 58, 70, 71, 75.
Brash, R. R., 35, 38, 152, 242.
Breac Moedoc, The, 352.
Breagho, Stones at, 130.
Brehon’s Chair, 42, 72.
Brian Boru, 184, 307, 309.
Bridges, 401.
Athlone, 403.
Killaloe, 402.
Newbridge, 403.
Thomond, Limerick, 403.
_British Archaic Sculpturings_, 35.
Bronze Age, 49, 66, 76, 90, 98, 105, 134, 202.
Bronze, Discovery of, 204.
Armlets, 240.
Arrow-heads, 227.
Bridle-bits, 229.
Caldrons, 233.
Celts, 206.
‘Dowris,’ 234.
Fibulæ, 238.
‘Head-stalls,’ 232.
Irish, Analysis of, 205.
Mycenæan, Analysis of, 205.
Ornaments, 237.
Penannular Rings, 239, 248.
Rapiers, 216.
Ring Pins, 238.
Shields, 227.
Spears, 222.
Swords, 213.
Sword-sheaths, 219.
Trumpets, 235.
Bruce, Edward, 401.
Brugh na Boinne, 81.
Budge, Dr., 206.
Buick, Rev. Dr., 267.
Bulleid, Mr. Arthur, 266.
Bulláns, 43.
Clane, 46.
Dowth, 45.
Garranbane, 45.
Kill o’ the Grange, 46.
Lough Macnean, Upper, 47.
Meelehans, 46.
Newgrange, 45.
Slieve-na-Calliaghe, 45.
Standing stone, 45.
Templenaffrin, 46.
Burial Customs, 49, 132.
Remains, Exploration of, 133.
Butler, Rev. R., 399.
Cahers, 171.
Caher Fada an Doruis, 178.
Cahernamactirech, 178.
Cairbre Lifeachair, 151.
Cairns, 49, 98, 112.
Horned, 120.
Cairns at--
Barr of Fintona, 113.
Belvoir, 113.
Bighy, 116.
Cairn’s Hill, 112.
Doohat, 118.
Knocknarea, 112.
Loughcrew, 98.
Calliagh Vera or Birra, 58, 99.
Camden, 3.
Cane, Richard, 404.
Cannistown Church, 370.
Canoes or ‘Dug-Outs,’ 274.
Carnac, 127.
Carnbawn, 98.
Carrowmore, Stone Monuments at, 75.
Burials at, 135.
Cashels, 171.
Castellated Mansions, 390.
Castles, Anglo-Norman, 383.
Bullock, 393.
Carrickfergus, 401.
Dalkey, 394.
Drimnagh, 394.
Dublin, 401.
King John’s, Limerick, 400.
Malahide, 385.
Maynooth, 389.
Scurloughstown, 393.
Swords, 394.
Castlerock, 189.
_Catalogue of Antiquities_, Royal Irish Academy, 111, 194, 203, 210,
219, 234, 257, 274.
_of Gold_, Roy. Ir. Acad., 242.
Cathach, or Caah, 349.
Cathair Crofinn, 167.
Cat-stone, 5.
Celleach, Bishop, 59.
_Celtic Church, The_, 286.
Celts, _see_ Bronze, Copper, Stone.
Chair of the Tyrone O’Neills, 39.
Chalices, 356.
Ardagh, 357.
Chamber Monument, 51.
Christchurch, 366.
_Christian Inscriptions_ (G. Petrie), 319.
Churches, Early, 289.
Belfries, 292.
Doorways, 289.
Choir Arches, 291.
Masonry of, 292.
Roofs, 292.
Windows, 290.
Friar’s Island, 304.
Glendalough, 297.
Killiney, 293.
Kilmurvey, 290.
Kilternan, 293.
St. Colman’s, Kilmacduagh, 290.
St. Fechin of Fore, 290.
St. Flannan’s, Killaloe, 307.
Churches, Early Decorated, 308.
Aghadoe, 318.
Clonfert, 318.
Cormac’s Chapel, 313.
Devorgilla’s, Clonmacnoise, 318.
Freshford, 316.
Iniscaltra, 309.
Killeshin, 310.
Rahan, 311.
Tuam Cathedral, 318.
Churches, Early Pointed, 365.
Later, 362.
Cinerary urns, 49, 143.
Cistercian Order, Abbeys of, 363.
Cists, 49.
Greenhills, 66.
National Museum, 66.
Phœnix Park, 63, 65.
_Civilisation of Sweden in Heathen Times_, 137.
Clady Church, 370.
Clocha Labartha, 7.
Clochauns, 172, 279.
Dingle, 177.
Fahan, 178.
Inismurray, 182.
Skellig Michael, 280.
Cloch-bhreac, 19.
Cloch-i-neely, 43.
Cloch-lia, 19.
Cloch-na-n’Arm, 79.
Cloghafoyle, 13.
Cloictheach, 334.
Clontarf, 121.
Cochrane, Mr. Robert, 250.
Coffey, Mr. George, 90, 93, 105, 204, 223.
Coire an Daghdha, 233.
Conal Cearnach, 46.
Conchobhar, 101.
Conquer Hill, 121.
Conwell, E. A., 7, 39, 99, 101, 103.
Copper Age, 202.
Arrow-heads, 227.
Celts, 303.
in Ireland, 204.
Cormac Mac Art, 51, 168, 171.
Cormac McCarthy, 313.
Coronation Stone, 9.
Crannogs, 252.
(_See_ Lake-Dwellings.)
Ballinamore, 268.
Ballyconnell, 268.
Clones, 267.
Lagore, 254.
Lisnacroghera, 263.
Loughavilly, 270.
Lough Eyes, 264.
Lough Faughan, 256.
Lough Gur, 258.
Lough Roughan, 257.
Miracles, the, 270.
Monaghan, 258.
Moylarg, 207.
Roscrea, 245.
Scotch, 265.
Strokestown, 268.
Stone, 268.
Submarine, 268.
Crannog Huts at Drumkellin, 271.
Kilnamaddo, 271.
Crannog Pottery, 272.
Spears, 226.
Cremation, 136.
Cromlechs, 49.
Ballyedmond, 73.
Ballymascanlan, 55, 62.
Black Lion, 60.
Brennanstown (Glen Druid), 71.
Castlederg, 77.
Cloghtogh, 76.
Four Maols, the, 59.
Glencullen, 73.
Glensouthwell, 72.
Greenmount, 59.
Howth, 66.
Kernanstown, 57.
Kilternan, 74.
Knockmany, 74.
Labacallee, 58.
Legananny, 61.
Lennan, 77.
Monasterboice, 58.
Mount Venus, 60.
Shanganagh, 71.
Shankill, 74.
Slievemore, 77.
Crosiers, 352.
Cashel, 353.
Lismore, 354.
St. Berach, 353.
Cross of Cong, 354.
Crosses, Early Irish, 319.
Clonmacnoise, 319, 321.
Finglas, 320.
Kells, 321.
Monasterboice, 323.
Tully, 320.
Crotals, 234.
Cruachan, 13.
Cruck-na-clia, 77.
Cup-and-Circle Markings, 23.
Cumdachs, 349.
Book of Dimma, 349.
Book of Mulling, 349.
St. Columba’s Psalter, 349.
Stowe Missal, 349.
Currachs, 276.
Dalkey Church, 371.
Dallans, 5.
D’Alton, J., 375.
D’Arcy, Dr. S. A., 267.
Dathi, 13, 81.
Day, Mr. Robert, 30.
De Courcy, John, 383.
Deer-stone, Glendalough, 46.
De Lacy, Hugh, 383.
Walter, 389.
Denmark, King of, 55.
Dermot Mac Murrough, 298.
Dermot, son of Fergus, 165.
Devenish, 344, 402.
Dextera Dei, or Hand Symbol, 329.
Diarmid O’Duibhne, 51.
Dolmens, 51.
_Dolmens of Ireland_, 53, 58.
Domnach Airgid, 351.
Domnall of Kells, 351.
Donagh O’Brien, 313.
Doon Cave, 164.
Dorban, 80.
Dowris, 234.
Dowth, 45, 48, 91.
Carvings at, 95.
Entrance to, 94.
Drew, Sir Thomas, 366.
Druid’s Altar, 52.
Chairs, 38, 72.
Judgment Seat, 40.
Temple, 125.
Drumnakilly, 45, 146.
Duald Mac Firbis, 13.
Dubh Caher, 172, 176.
Du Chaillu, M., 120.
Dumha na nGiall, 168.
Dunraven, Lord, 335, 357, 359.
Duns, 159, 161.
Ængus, 172, 176.
Aillinne, 171.
Conor, 176.
Dorsay, 161.
Eochla, 176.
Onaght, 176.
Dunamoe, 172, 180.
Dunbeg, 172, 178.
Dundrum, Co. Down, 189.
Du Noyer, George, 30, 52, 58, 70, 100, 177, 189.
Dunsinane, Hill, 163.
Durer, Albert, Altar Piece by, 386.
Dysart, 135.
_Early Age of Greece_, 138, 139.
Early Christian Remains classified, 2.
_Early Metallurgy of Copper, Tin, and Iron in Europe_, 205.
_Ecclesiastical Architecture_ (G. Petrie), 14, 80, 183, 301, 309, 312.
Eglone, 12.
_Egyptian Decorative Art_, 105.
Egyptian Monoliths, 56.
_Egypt under the Great Pyramid-Builders_, 206.
Eirde Houses, 163.
Emania, or Navan Fort, 169.
Eoghan Bel, 59, 139.
Evans, Mr. Arthur, 104, 240.
Evans, Sir John, 195, 223, 229.
_Excursions through Ireland_, 74.
Fahan, ‘Ancient City of,’ 178.
Falkiner, Rev. W., 164.
Feidhlimidh Reachtmhar, 76.
Feis Teamhair, 165.
Fergus Mac Earc, 9.
Ferguson, Sir Samuel, 77, 78.
Fergusson, James, 16, 53, 61, 100, 109, 110.
Fiachra, 142.
Fingal, 375.
_Fingal and its Churches_, 375.
Fin Mac Coul, 51, 68, 168, 171.
FitzGerald, Lord Walter, 20.
Flaking Tools, or Fabricators, 195.
Fleatuch, 12.
Flint, 189.
Arrow-heads, 190.
Cores, 189.
Knives, 194.
Spear-heads, 191.
Florencecourt, 117.
Fonts, 378.
Christchurch, 382.
Clonard, 381.
Dunsany, 382.
Kilcarn, 379.
Kilkenny Castle, 379.
Killeshin, 379.
Killiney, 378.
Kilternan, 378.
St. John’s Point, 379.
Food-vessels in Graves, 147.
Forradh, 8, 167.
Fothach Rath Grainne, 168.
Fothadh Airgthech, 150.
Franks, Sir A. W., 221, 222.
Frazer, Dr. W., 35, 100.
Gallauns, 5.
_Gentleman’s Magazine_, 38.
Giants’ Graves, 51, 63.
Giant’s Load, 62.
Glasgavlen, 43.
Glasinac, 133.
Glastonbury, 266.
Glencolumbkille, 122.
Glen Fahan, 178.
Glenmalin, 110.
Glensouthwell, 42.
Gold in Ireland, 241.
Fibulæ, 248.
‘Finds,’ 243, 249.
Diadem, or Tiara, 247.
Lunulæ, or Lunette, 245.
Ornaments, Varieties of, 242.
Torques, 243.
Goromna, 268.
Gowland, Mr. W., 205.
Grainger, Rev. Canon, 263.
Collection, 143, 226, 234.
Grainne, 51, 168.
Grain-rubber, 44.
Graves, Bishop, 24, 25, 26, 27, 152, 153, 157.
Graves, Early Christian, 331.
Kilnasaggart, 331.
St. John’s Point, 331.
Town-y-Chapel, 332.
Graves, Rev. James, 10.
Graves, Triangular, 120.
Greenwell, Rev. Canon, 227.
Guaire, King, 59.
_Guide to Lough Corrib_, 121.
Hag’s Castle, 268.
Chair, 39, 102.
Hallstatt, 134, 222.
Hatshepsut, Queen, Obelisk by, 56.
_Hibernia_ (Camden), 3.
Hill of Executions, 60.
Rath, 136.
Hissarlik, 205.
Holed-stones, 14.
Aghadoe, 16.
Ardmore, 16.
Castledermot, 20.
Cuil-Irra, 19.
Cushendall, 19.
Doagh, 19.
Inniskeen, 19.
Inismurray, 21.
Kilmalkedar, 16.
Mainistir, 20.
Hore Abbey, 313.
_Horœ Ferales_, 219, 220.
Howth Collegiate Church, 375.
Lord, Tomb of, 376.
Hugh O’Neill, 39.
Hy Fiachrach, 59.
Hyndford Crannog, 266.
Inauguration Stones, 38.
Incense Cups, 148.
Inis Cathaigh, 284.
Inishmaan, 176.
Inishmore, 176.
Inis-mac-Nessan, 378.
Inismacsaint, 402.
Inismurray, 173, 181, 286.
Interments, Primitive, 49.
Ireland’s Eye, 377.
Irish Antiquarian Remains, Classified, 2.
_Irish Antiquarian Researches_, 349.
_Irish Names of Places_, 159.
Irish-Romanesque Work, 309.
Iron, 206.
Age, Early, 222.
Caldrons, 234.
_Journal_, Roy. Soc. of Antiq., Ir., 16, 20, 35, 44, 46, 47, 60, 76,
77, 106, 110, 116, 136, 161, 163, 165, 174, 179, 194, 219, 234,
242, 250, 267, 268, 332, 402.
_Journal of Hellenic Studies_, 105.
Joyce, Dr. P. W., 159, 160, 161.
_Journal of the Anthropological Institute_, 204.
Karnak, Obelisks, 56.
Keller, Dr., 256, 264.
Kelly, Dr. Dillon, 135.
Killee, Stones at, 130.
Kilmacnessan, 378.
Kinahan, Mr. G. H., 11, 30, 44, 188, 402.
King Cormac’s Chapel, 362.
Kistvaens, 49.
Knoc Baine, 76.
Knockaulin, Hill of, 171.
Lacknacor, Flagstone at, 42.
Lagore Crannog, 94, 231, 254.
Lake-dwellings, 263.
(_See_ Crannogs.)
Area of Distribution, 264.
England, 266.
Scotland, 265.
Switzerland, 263.
_Lake-Dwellings_ (Dr. Keller), 256.
_Lake-Dwellings of Europe_ (Dr. Munro), 259, 271.
_Lake Dwellings of Ireland_ (Col. Wood-Martin), 231, 263, 269.
Lake Stone-dwellings, 268.
Laoghaire, King, 50, 140.
Larne Implements, 196.
Late Celtic Art, 221.
La Tène Period, 222.
Layard, Mr., 268.
Leaba Diarmida agus Grainne, 51.
_Leabhar na h-Uidhre_, 80, 150.
Leacht Con Mic Ruis, 108.
Leaghauns, 8.
Lebour, M. G. A., 53.
Le Decer, John, 404.
Lefroy, General, 59.
Legamaddy. (_See_ Stone Circles.)
Lett, Rev. Canon, 161.
Lettered Cave, 31.
Lhwyd, Edward, 82, 97.
Lia Fail, 8, 168.
Lia Lamha Laich, 199.
_Life of St. Patrick_, 6.
Lis or Lios, 159.
Lisnacroghera, 219, 226, 234, 263.
Loch Dowalton Crannog, 265.
Dughaill Crannog, 266.
Lochlee Crannog, 265.
Locmariaker, 89.
Loughcrew, 39, 58, 98.
Lough Ballinafad, 268.
Bola, 268.
Cam, 268.
Derg, 42.
Mask, 268.
Melvin, 35.
Owel, 275.
Skannive, 268.
_Louthiana_, 341.
Lynch, Mr. P. J., 174, 179.
Mab, or Maeve, Queen, 112.
Macalister, Mr. Stewart, 179, 180.
Macbeth’s Castle, 163.
Mac Cullagh, Professor, 356.
Macha, Queen, 170.
Maelmuiri, 80.
Malachy O’Morgair, 277, 363.
_Manners and Customs of the Ancient Irish_, 141, 142, 150, 180.
_Martyrology of Donegal_, 286.
Maxwell, Sir Herbert, 265.
Medune, Tombs of, 205.
Mellifont, 363.
Memphis, Monolith at, 56.
Mesgegra, King, 46.
Metal Work, 345.
Methers, 274.
Milligan, Mr. Seaton, 235.
Miltown, Canoe discovered at, 276.
Min, or Mind, 245.
Minchen Hampton, 16.
Miscan Maeve, 112.
Molyneux, 97.
Monasteries, Later, 363.
Monastic Settlements, 279.
Inismurray, 286.
Skellig Michael, 280.
Montelius, Professor, 106, 137.
Moryson, Fynes, 39.
Mounds, 121.
Mount Callan, 152.
Mountjoy, Lord, 39.
Moytura, 121.
Mudge, Captain, 256.
Munro, Dr. Robert, 48, 133, 163, 259, 264, 266, 271.
_Murray’s Handbook for Ireland_, 127.
Mycenæ, 90, 104, 105.
_Mycencæan Age, The_, 91.
Naper, J. L. W., 99.
National Museum, 2, 45, 64, 65, 155, 195, 197, 202, 203, 213, 217,
222, 227, 230, 233, 235, 241, 275, 352, 360.
_Nature_, 53.
Navan Fort, or Emania, 170.
Neolithic Man in Ireland, 188.
Newgrange, 45, 48.
Tumulus at, 81.
Carvings on stone, 86.
Ober Meilen, 256, 263.
O’Brien, Donough Cairbreach, 184.
Murkertagh, 184.
O’Conor, King Roderick, 354, 389.
O’Curry, Eugene, 73, 141, 150, 180, 199.
Odin, or Wodin, 17.
O’Donovan, John, 167.
Oileán-an-Easpoiggortaig, 285.
Ogam Alphabet, 153.
Characters on other objects, 156.
_Ogam Inscribed Monuments of the Gaedhil_, 152, 160.
Ogam stones, 150, 152.
Number of, 154.
Ballintaggart, 155.
Ballyknock, 156.
Burnham, 155.
Drumloghan, 156.
Dunloe, 156.
Monataggart, 154.
National Museum, 155.
Parknasilla, 155.
St. Dogmael, 155.
Oldcastle, 39, 58, 98.
Ollamh Fodhla, 39, 101, 103.
Tomb of, 7.
Chair of, 103.
One Man’s Cairn, 144.
O’Neill, Henry, 70, 73, 74.
Sir Phelim, 258.
O’Neills, 38, 183.
Oratories, Origin of, 278.
Where situated, 279.
Gallerus, 282.
Kilmalkedar, 283.
Temple Gael, 283.
Ornament, Late Celtic, 221.
Spiral, 104.
_Pagan Ireland_, 15, 16, 135.
Pairc-na-gclochalabartha, 7.
Palstave, 208.
Parker, J. H., 99, 391.
Patrickstown Hill, 98.
_Pembridge’s Annals_, 404.
Petrie, Dr. Flinders, 104, 105, 202.
Petrie, George, 9, 13, 80, 167, 176, 183, 206, 245, 254, 277, 289,
298, 301, 307, 309, 317, 319, 334.
Pfhalbauten, 264.
Picts’ Houses, 163.
Pillar-Stones, 5.
Ballynacraig, 12.
Castlecool, 12.
Finner, 12.
Glenasmole, 12.
Keimaneigh, 13.
Kesh, 11, 79.
Killowen, 79.
Kilmacrenan, 11.
Kilnasaggart, 78, 331.
Muff, 10.
Newgrange, 12.
Tara, 8.
Pitt-Rivers, General, 266.
Plunkett, Colonel, 66.
Plunkett, Maud, Tomb of, 386.
_Politics_ (Aristotle), 123.
Portstewart, 189.
Praying Stones, 21.
Prehistoric remains classified, 2.
_Prehistoric Scotland_, 48, 163, 265.
_Primeval Antiquities of Denmark_, 136.
Proleek Stone, 62.
Querns, 44.
Quoits, Fin Mac Coul’s, 68.
Raised Beaches, 189.
Rameses II., Statue of, 56.
_Rambles and Studies in Bosnia-Herzegovina and Dalmatia_, 134.
Rathcroghan, 13.
Raths, 159.
Number of, 160.
Caelchon, 168.
Downpatrick, 170.
Grainne, 168.
Gurteen, 163.
Naas, 171.
na Riogh, 168.
na Seanadh, 168.
Tara, 167.
Tullahogue, 39.
Whitechurch, 162.
Red Branch Knights, 170.
Reginald’s Tower, 396.
Reilick Odrain, 288.
Rhys, Dr., 154, 157.
Ridgeway, Mr. Wm., 138.
Rock Basins, 43.
Rocking-stones, 36.
Black Lion, 36.
Brown’s Bay, 37.
Highwood, 36.
Northern Moytura, 37.
Rock of Cashel, 312.
Rock-Scribings, 23.
Bantry, 30.
Boho, 30.
Broughshane, 30.
Cloverhill, 30.
Gillie’s Hole, 33.
Knockmore, 31.
Lough Blocknet, 31.
Loughnacloyduff, 33.
Mevagh, 30.
Round Towers, 333.
General conclusions regarding, 334.
Doorways, 337.
Windows and Apertures, 338.
Clondalkin, 339.
Devenish, 344.
Kildare, 342.
Lusk, 340.
Monasterboice, 340.
Swords, 340.
_Round Towers of Ireland, Origin and Uses of_, 334.
Royal Irish Academy, 99, 153, 245, 254, 352, 360.
Collection, 45, 64, 114, 147, 199, 200, 213, 235, 242, 357, 403.
_Proceedings_, 66, 100, 164, 268.
_Transactions_, 27, 106, 180, 223, 352.
Royal Residences, Ancient, 165.
Royal Society of Antiquaries, 219.
_Journal_, 60, 76, 77, 106, 110, 161, 163, 174, 175, 179, 194, 219,
234, 242, 250, 267, 268, 332.
_Rude Stone Monuments_, Fergusson, 100, 120.
_Rude Stone Monuments of Sligo_, Col. Wood-Martin, 19, 75, 100, 111,
120.
Samhain, 170.
Scattery Island, 284.
Schliemann, 205, 218.
_Schliemann’s Excavations_, 91, 104, 138.
Schuchhardt, Dr., 91, 104.
_Scientific Transactions_, Royal Dublin Society, 188.
_Senchas-na-Relec_, 80.
Shearman, Rev. Francis, 46.
Shirley, Mr., 269.
Shrines, 347.
(_See_ Cumdachs.)
St. Mura’s Bell, 348.
St. Patrick’s Bell, 349.
St. Senan’s Bell, 347.
Simpson, Sir James, 35.
Skellig Michael, 279.
Slieve-na-Calliaghe, 39, 45, 98.
Sligo, Battle of, 59.
Slope of the Chariots, 230.
Souterrains, 161.
Spenser, Edmund, 38.
St. Audoen’s Arch, 401.
St. Brigid’s Chair, 42.
St. Caimin, 309.
St. Carthach, 312.
St. Catherine’s Pond, 375.
St. Columba, Flagstone of, 42.
House of, Kells, 305.
_Life of_ (Adamnan), 286.
St. Declan, 312.
Day of, 16.
St. Dogmael’s, 155.
St. Doulough’s Church, 373.
Well, 375.
St. Fechin of Fore, 285.
St. Fintan’s Church, 377.
St. Ibar, 402.
St. Kevin, 297.
Bed of, 303.
House or Kitchen of, 300.
St. Kieran, 319.
St. Laurence O’Toole, 303.
St. Macarthen, 351.
St. Mac Dara, Church of, 296.
St. Madron, Well of, 16.
St. Molaise or Laisrén, 286.
St. Molaisi Diamhinsi, 288.
St. Patrick, 5.
St. Patrick’s Cathedral, 365.
St. Ruadan of Lorrha, 115.
St. Senan, 284.
Stokes, Dr., 157.
Stone Age, 49, 90, 137, 141, 187.
Axe-hammers, Perforated, 199.
Celts, 195.
Celts in Crannogs, 271.
Stone Circles, 122.
Ballynoe (Ligamaddy), 125.
Carrowmore, 75.
Callernish, 130.
Lough Gur, 126.
Newgrange, 124.
Slieve-na-Greidle, 125.
Wattle Bridge, 125.
Stone of Destiny, 8, 167.
Stone Forts, 159.
Aran Islands, 176.
Caherconree, 174.
Co. Clare, 175.
Dingle, 176.
Fahan, 177.
Grianan of Aileach, 183.
Moghane, 175.
Staigue, 173.
Stone Implements, 187.
Sullivan, Dr., 140, 142.
Tacitus, 137, 162.
Taillten or Teltainn, 81, 100, 171.
_Táin-bó-Cuailgne_, 150.
Tara, 165.
Brooch, 360.
Raths on, 167.
Teach Cormaic, 168.
Miodchuarta, 168.
Molaise, 287.
Teampull Ceanannach, 292.
Teampull-na-Bfear, 287.
Praying Stones at, 21.
Teampull-na-mBan, 22, 287.
Teampull-na-Teindh, 288.
Tehuti-hetap, 56.
Tempo, 45.
_Ten Years’ Digging in Egypt_, 205, 206.
Thompson, Dr. Maunde, 351.
Three Rock Mountain, 72, 73.
Timahoe, Doorway of Round Tower, 311.
Tin, 204.
Tiryns, Frieze at, 105.
Tlachtga, Palace of, 170.
Tober Brigid, 47.
Tobernavean, 19.
Todd, Dr. J. H., 6.
Tory Island, 43.
Tower-house, 390.
Town Gates, 396.
Athenry, 398.
‘Sheep’ Gate, Trim, 398.
St. Laurence’s, Drogheda, 397.
West Gate, Drogheda, 398.
Town Walls, 396.
Athenry, 399.
Clonmel, 400.
Galway, 400.
Kilmallock, 400.
Limerick, 400.
Londonderry, 400.
New Ross, 400.
Treasury of Atreus, 90.
Tullakeel, 25.
Tumuli, Chambered, 80.
Tumuli, Chambered, at--
Dowth, 91.
Knowth, 91.
Loughcrew, 98.
Newgrange, 81.
Uley, 84.
Urns, Sepulchral, 143.
Ussher, Mr. R. J., 162, 188.
Valenciennes, M., 35.
Vallancey, General, 152, 333.
_Viking Age_, 120.
Vitruvius, 104.
Wangen, 265.
Ward, Hill of, 170.
Ware, Sir James, 319.
Weems, 163.
Westropp, Mr. T. J., 175.
Whitepark Bay, 189.
Wilde, Sir William, 93, 96, 121, 209, 210, 217, 219, 222, 236, 237,
242, 244, 246, 252, 254.
See _Catalogue of Antiquities_.
Woden, or Odin, 17.
Wood-Martin, Colonel, 14, 16, 19, 24, 50, 60, 75, 110, 120, 135, 231.
Worsaae, 136.
Yellow Steeple, Trim, 399.
Yokes, 232.
THE END.
Transcriber’s Notes
Punctuation and hyphenation were made consistent when a predominant
preference was found in the original book; otherwise they were not
changed.
Simple typographical errors were corrected; unbalanced quotation
marks were remedied when the change was obvious, and otherwise left
unbalanced.
Spelling was not thoroughly checked and most spelling variants were
retained, although some Index entries were changed to match the
spelling on the pages they referenced.
Illustrations in this eBook have been positioned between paragraphs
and outside quotations. In versions of this eBook that support
hyperlinks, the page references in the List of Illustrations lead to
the corresponding illustrations.
Footnotes, originally at the bottoms of pages, have been collected,
sequentially renumbered, and placed at the end of the text, just before
the Index.
The index was not checked for proper alphabetization or correct page
references.
Text mostly uses “cairn,” but sometimes uses “carn;” both retained here.
The List of Illustrations includes a reference to “NEWTOWNTRIM ABBEY,
CO. MEATH” on page 367, but the original book does not contain that
illustration anywhere.
The ornate illustrated drop cap on pages 80 and 362 is the word “In.”
Page 348: Original text contained a transcription in Irish. Here, it is
displayed as an illustration in HTML versions, and just referenced in
Plain Text.
*** End of this LibraryBlog Digital Book "Wakeman's handbook of Irish antiquities : Third Edition" ***
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