428 



examined all the bronze horns in the Earl of Rosse's collec- 

 tion, I have no hesitation in asserting that not even a single 

 one of them was united with rivets. Some of them present 

 at a distant view, to a superficial observer, the appearance of 

 having been riveted ; but, on closer examination, such ap- 

 pearance turns out to be nothing more than a mere nail-head 

 ornament running along the sides or around the wider aper- 

 ture of the horn. It is quite clear that the entire horn was, 

 with its nail-head ornaments, made at a single casting. I 

 send for inspection two specimens of this description of orna- 

 mented horn, marked N and N 2, found at Dowris, and be- 

 longing to my own collection. 



" To two of the horns in Lord Rosse's possession addi- 

 tions have been annexed, not by riveting, but by a more 

 remarkable process, that which is technically termed ' burn- 

 ing.' This mode of uniting metals is, 1 believe, reckoned 

 now of rather modern invention. It is effected by pouring 

 melting metal at a glowing temperature upon the junction of 

 the two pieces intended to be united, and by that means fusing 

 the entire into one mass. 



" No. 12. Gold-coloured pear and spherical-shaped crotals 

 or bells. These form the subject of curious and interesting 

 study. I send a specimen of the spherical-shaped (marked O) 

 from my own collection, and would send some of the pear- 

 shaped, but 1 am aware there are some of them already in the 

 museum of the Royal Irish Academy. 



" No. 13. A variety of gold-coloured celts of different 

 sizes. Mr. Donovan, the able chemist, has kindly analysed 

 one of these celts for me. He found it composed of copper, 

 85-232; tin, 13-112; lead, 1-142; sulphur, carbon, &c., 0.150; 

 and loss, but partially accounted for, 0642 in every 100. I 

 would be guilty of an injustice did I not here return thanks 

 to my scientific friend, Mr. Donovan, for the public service 

 his labours in that analysis have rendered. 



No. 14. Gold-coloured hatchets. One of these (marked S) 



