447 



" Hence, I believe, it comes to pass, that the most ancient 

 native inscriptions in Britain (see Borlase) are in the Roman 

 character. Subsequently, some letters were borrowed from the 

 Greek, by the Christian missionaries, owing to their acquaint- 

 ance with the original language of the New Testament. In all 

 writings and inscriptions, then, of the earlier mediaeval times, 

 we may naturally expect a mixture of Roman and Greek 

 characters. Hence, the strong similarity of the old Irish to 

 the old Anglo-Saxon. 



" This premised, I proceed further to observe, that the 

 inscription above noted seems to be only part of that which 

 originally belonged to the cross of St.Vigean. I conjecture, 

 for reasons which will afterwards more clearly appear, that the 

 first part must have been cut on the top of the cross, above the 

 interlacery, which is now lost. It was not unusual to divide 

 such inscriptions into two parts. An instance of such arrange- 

 ment is to be found in Borlase's Antiquities of Cornwall, 

 pp. 399, 400. Further, in monuments of the age to which the 

 cross of St.Vigean belongs, thebeginning of the inscription was 

 usually prefixed with a small cross, either so (-}-), or so (®) ; 

 but this is wanting in the portion of the inscription referred to. 

 Taking all these circumstances into account, I venture to re- 

 store the inscription (for it has evidently suffered) as follows : 



Cl-ROrCGMPZ/ 



rPeuoReu 



eCUEORPi^O 

 CUP AN I MA; 



that is, using Roman capitals : 



CHKOS. TEMPf7 

 S. DEVORET 

 E T. . T E. OR. PRO 

 CUP A N I M A. 



" I do not pretend to give the originalletters or contrac- 

 tions, which time or accident seems to have effaced from the 



