Mr. Petrie on the Book of Mac Firbis. II 



Page 854, — A general index to the work, giving the proper names of men 

 and places, excepting the saints and their churches. 



Page 926, — An index to that part of the work treating of the Irish saints. 



Page 935, — The topographical poem of O'Dugan, on the Northern Division 

 of Ireland., 



Page 948, — The topographical poem of O'Huidhrin on the Southern Division 

 of Ireland. This poem, which is in the handwriting of Michael O'Clery, ends 

 the volume at page 957. 



Such are the principal contents of this valuable manuscript, which, it will be 

 seen, contains much important historical matter not to be found elsewhere, and 

 which it was of great importance should be deposited in some public library, easy 

 of access to those who could turn It to useful account, as well as that the chance 

 of its loss, while dependent on a single copy, should be diminished, by the exis- 

 tence of a faithful transcript. Of its value the Academy will form some idea 

 from the following observations, made by one in the highest degree qualified to 

 form a just estimate — I allude to the venerable Charles O' Conor of Belanagare, 

 who writes as follows in his preface to Ogygia Vindicated, p. xx. " Ptolomey 

 could know but little of Ireland in the second century ; his defects, however, 

 have been supplied in the Lecan records, as copied by the late celebrated 

 Mac Firbis. In that copy (now in the hands of the Earl of Roden,) we have an 

 account of the several tribes of Ireland in the beginning of the second century. 

 It throws additional light on the history of that and some subsequent ages, and 

 is undoubtedly the most ancient document of Qpltic topography hitherto dis- 

 covered." 



That the transcript now finished is not inferior in penmanship to the original 

 manuscript, will be obvious to every one who inspects it. But I have the pleasure 

 of adding, that it is superior in many more important respects. The original has 

 suffered much injury from its margins having been cut down by a modem binder, 

 and a considerable portion of its contents has been wholly obliterated by stains. 

 The losses thus sustained have nearly all been supplied from two abstracts of the 

 work now, through the favor of their proprietors, in my hands. The first of 

 these was written in 1726, by James Maguire of Slleve-da-Con, in the county 

 of Fermanagh ; and the second is a transcript from an abstract of the original 

 work, with considerable additions, made by Mac Firbis himself in 1666. And 



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