[ ^7 ] 



This brings to my mind another inftance of ^Egyptian hiero- 

 glyphics having been ufed by the Iriih, and of having been 

 blended vi'ith their monumental ornaments fince Chriilianity, as 

 in that of Walter Dermot before us. 



On the walls of the ruined abbey of Alagheo* or Knockmoy, 

 the burial place of many kings of Connaught of the Hy-Briun 

 race, are the fkeletons of feveral of thefe kings, painted in frefco 

 over their tombs, and on the hands of the figures are reprefented . 

 hawks in the attitude of rifing to fly, to fignify the feparation of 

 the foul from the body. 



These hieroglyphics are perfectly agreeable to the Irifh lan- 

 guage as well as to the i5<lgyptian, for bai\ be, bi, ba, fignify life, 

 the foul and wind ; badbh or ba-dubh, the north wind, becaufe 

 blowing from dub^ the bear, urfa major, or north pole. 



In my Vindication of the ancient History of Ireland^ 

 p. 79 and p. 541, feveral ^Egyptian hieroglyphics are explained by 

 fynonima of the Irifh language, and to this language the learned 

 muft be indebted for the explanation of moft other i^gyptian 

 fymbols where the old Egyptian dialed is loft. 



The learned Gebelin feems to have formed fome idea of in- 

 terpreting or reading the i5igyptian hieroglyphics by the various 

 meanings of the word, expreffing the fymbol, but he has not 

 made more obfervations than one, viz. that hours or days were 

 reprefented by an ape, becaufe the word fignifying an ape, does 



* Magh-eo, \. e. the plains of the graves or the field of fepulchres. 



alfo 



