Uses of the Round Towers of Ireland, fyc. 



323 



on the inscribed tombstones, they are commonly introduced as ornaments on 

 the monumental stone crosses of the tenth century, as in the example of one 

 of those crosses at Glendalough, given at p. 263, and they are also common 

 in the illuminated ecclesiastical manuscripts of still earlier date. 



But there is another form of cross which is found on some of the sculptured 

 stones of the monastery church at Glendalough, which, with slight variations, 

 is not uncommon on the Irish inscribed tombstones of the niuth and tenth cen- 

 turies, and of which I here adduce as an example that of Blaimac, abbot of 

 Clonmacnoise, whose death is thus recorded in the Chronicon Scotorum at 

 the year 896 : 



" A. D. 896. ftlacmac, ppmcepp Cluana mac Hoip, .1. mac Caipceoaich oo bpejmamib, 

 o'ec." 



" A. D. 896. Blathmac, chief" [Abbot] " of Clonmacnoise, i. e. the son of Taircedach, of 

 Breghmaine" [Brawney] " died." 



Another and more common ornament on our inscribed tombstones anterior 

 to the twelfth century, and which is equally common in our most ancient 

 ecclesiastical manuscripts of the earliest date, is that boss-shaped figure formed of 

 radiating eccentric lines, merging into one another as they approach the margin, 

 and leaving between them pear-shaped spaces, generally three in number, but 

 sometimes two or four, or even a greater number. This ornament is usually 

 found within a circle, which forms the centre of a cross carved on such monu- 



2x2 



