Kryanan—On Inscribed Stones, Co. Donegal. 2i1 
XLII.—Inscrizep Sronss, Co. Donecat. By G. H. Kryanan, 
M.R.I.A., &. (Plate XIX.) 
[Read, February 26, 1883. ] 
In the Statistical Survey of the County of Donegal, published by the 
Dublin Society in 1802, the author, James M‘Parlan, M. D., calls at- 
tention to a cupped stone near Newtowncunningham, and thus describes 
it: ‘‘ In the deer-park of Castleforward, in the beech-grove, is a flag, 
five feet in diameter, perfectly circular, and regularly indented with 
holes half an inch deep and one inch diameter; it is raised on other 
stones eighteen inches high.’”? From this description it would appear 
that the Castleforward inscribed stone is a table-stone allied to those 
megalitic structures now generally called dolmens or cromleacs. The 
stone to which I would call attention belongs to another type, being a 
gallan or pillar-stone. It stands in the townland of Dooenglebe in Glen 
Swilly, on the margin of the flat of the river Swilly. 
This stone is a little more than two feet in height above the ground, 
is of a rude triangular shape, one side ranging due S. and N., the 
second looking nearly south (S. 20 E.), and the third, which is shghtly 
bowed, looking toward the N.E. The top, which is nearly flat, and a 
little smaller than the base line of the stone, its east corner being also 
broken off, has on it cups of from about three inches to one inch in 
diameter, and from half to quarter inch deep; they are represented in 
Plate XIX., fig. 1, which is a reduction from a rubbing. Plate XIX., 
fig. 2, is also a reduction from a rubbing of the cups on the southward 
face of the stone. Onthe west face there appears to be only one cup, 
close to the 8. E. edge, while on the N. E. face none were found. 
From the maps of the top and south face (Plate XIX., figs. 1 and 2) 
it will be seen that these inscriptions are similar to those in the 
County Fermanagh to which Mr. Wakeman of Enniskillen has called 
attention, and also to those found on flat or lying stones and on the 
sides of pillar-stones in the Counties Wexford and Wicklow, but more 
especially at Ballykean, near Redcross in the latter. The cups on the 
Dooenglebe gallan specially prove that they cannot be due to weather- 
ing, as both sets of cups are similar; yet one set is on a bed surface, 
while the other is on a plane surface at right angles to the structure 
of the rock. If due to weathering, and the first were cups, the latter 
would have to be either thin discs or crescents. The stone appears to 
be an altered basic tuff or slaty gabbro, but I did not knock a chip 
off it. 
NOTES ADDED IN THE PRESS. 
The Dooenglebe cupped standing stone (Glen Swilly) is called the 
‘‘ King’s Stone’; the tradition about it being that the ancient kings 
were crowned at it. In its vicinity is an ancient well, and imme- 
diately above it on the brow of the hill a caher, or stone fort. 
