508 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy. 



eleven examples fi'om this find in the British Museum, ten are of the 

 plain leaf-shaped form, with rivet-holes, and one with segmental open- 

 ings. The E.ev. Dr. Rohinson described twenty-nine spear-heads from 

 this find in Lord Rosse's possession, all of the leaf-shaped form, with 

 rivet-holes.^ Drawings of these are in the Academy's scrap-book. 



An objection may be taken to the arguments on which the pre- 

 ceding classification has been based, namely, that inasmuch as the 

 dagger-blade was seciu'ed to the haft by means of rivets, many of the 

 dagger-blades still retaining their rivets, it is difficult to account for 

 the development of the looped spear-head with its more primitive 

 means of attachment from the riveted dagger-blade. The explanation 

 of this point is probably the following ; — The attachment of a flat blade 

 by means of rivets is certainly one of the earliest methods of hafting of 

 the Bronze Age, and appears to have preceded the knowledge of the 

 socket. We can trace the history of the socket in the series of the 

 stopped and flanged celts, the sides of which were beaten up until the 

 overlapping of the flanges formed side pockets, developing finally into 

 the true socket. These celts were mounted axewise, and secui'ed to the 

 handle by means of the eye or loop at the side of the socket. The loop 

 is found even in flanged examples preceding the true socket. The 

 socket and loop is thus shown to have been developed in the history of 

 a particular form of implement along a distinct line of utility of its 

 own. Having reached the stage at which sockets were brought into 

 general use with a side loop for attachment, the looped and socketed 

 spear-heads are explained by transference of idea. The application of 

 rivets to socketed implements comes in later, and was probably derived 

 £rom the Continent without reference ia development to the earlier 

 riveted blades found in this country. 



The points of difference in the types of the spear-heads of the looped 

 and riveted classes noticed in the preceding pages seem to jiistify the 

 following conclusions : — 



1. The looped form has been developed from the dagger-blade. If 

 the idea of the spear was introduced into Ireland fi'om without, and in 

 this connection the Arreton Down type should be considered, still, 

 as the history of the development from the dagger-blade to the true 

 spear-head can be illustrated fi'om Irish examples, we are justified in 

 looking on the looped form as of native production. 



2. The leaf-shaped and riveted form appears to mark the introduc- 



1 Proc. R.I.A., vol. iv., p. 237. 



