Coffey — Prehistoric Cenotaphs. 27 



malfaisant. Aussi, cles que le cenotaplie etait termine, appelait-on par 

 trois fois I'ame du defunt pour I'inviter a entrer dans la demeure qui 

 lui etait preparee. 



"Les cenotaplies etaient a:ffectes principalement a ceux qui avaient 

 peri en mer ou en temps de guerre. Tin monument de ce genre fut 

 construit par Germanicus, pour les ames des soldats des legions de 

 Yarus. Le cenotaphe etait done un inane hustum, un vacuum sepulcrum 

 at la sepulture etait inanis. 



"II y avait une autre espece de cenotaplie erige en memoire d'un 

 defunt inhume ailleurs : c'etait un honorarium sepulerum. Tel fut le 

 monument construit pour Drusus, sur les bords du Ehin, par les soldats 

 places sous ses ordres, tandis que son corps, transports ^ Eome, etait 

 inhume au Champ de Mars. Le christianisme a conserve I'usage 

 de ces cenotaphes, qui furent eriges en I'honneur des saints. 



"De ces deux sortes de cenotaphes, la premiere a le caractere d'un 

 locus religiosuSy mais non la seconde. Telle est la decision d'un rescrit 

 de Marc-Aurele et Verus, rapporte par TJlpien."i 



The sepulchral character of the cenotaph, and its relation to the 

 primitive theory of the ghost, has now been sufficiently established.'' 

 In the grave-goods, weapons, " food- vessels," &c., accompanying pre- 

 historic interments, we have evidence of the existence of the same 

 fundamental conception of the ghost as a double of the body, which 

 underlies the theory of the cenotaph, and it seems the natural con- 

 clusion that the empty barrows are cenotaphs. But fortunately I am 

 able to relate the evidence collected in this Paper directly to Ireland, 

 and thus close, at least for Ireland, the chain of evidence on the 

 subject. 



1 "Funus," p. 1396. 



- We should perhaps recognise the possihility of some cenotaphs heing what 

 may be described as fictitious cenotaphs. That is to say, where the deceased has 

 been buried abroad, a monument might be erected in his own country, not as a 

 memorial, but to give his shade a dwelling amongst his o^vn people. The case 

 mentioned by Bancroft of a trader dying abroad perhaps is of this class. The 

 cenotaph (tumulum inanem) erected by Andromache in Epirus for Hector (buried 

 elsewhere), at which she made yearly offerings and "called on Hector's spirit" 

 ("-Sneid," iii. 300), is also in point. It is conceivable that a people migrating 

 from one country to another might erect tombs to their hero ancestors in the new 

 country, so that their shades might dwell among them in their new home. There 

 is no evidence that this was done, but the idea seems to be within the range of 

 primitive logic. Cenotaphs such as Cairn d, the most important cairn in the 

 cemetery at Loughcrew, appear to require some such explanation. In any case 

 the suggestion is worth throwing out as indicating a direction in %vhich evidence 

 may be looked for. 



