[ 279 ] 



XVII. 



REPORT ON THE ISLAJs'D OGAM AT BRACKLAGHBOY, 

 NEAR BALLYHAUNIS. By PROFESSOR RHYS. 



[communicated by ROBERT COCHRANE, F.S.A.] 



[Read NovEMHEK 13, 1899.] 



On Monday, July 24, I Joined Mr. Coclirane, Dr. Crean, and others in 

 an attempt to explore the small mound on which stands the Island 

 Ogam-stone ; but my attention was devoted chiefly to the Ogam. I 

 had not seen it before, bu.t I had received a copy of it together with a 

 rubbing from Mr. Cochrane, whose account of the Ogam proved most 

 accui'ate. Unfortunately the edge has been damaged, apparently long- 

 ago, at two points, which will be readily understood by glancing at 

 Mr. Cochrane' s reduced rubbing : 

 This I read as follows : — 



C V NALEG lAVEQU UNACANOS 

 E I C 



It may, perhaps, be Englished,. " Coulig descendant of Connacan " ; 

 but it is not to be concealed that the inscription offers several difBcul- 

 ties ; and I would call attention at the outset to those of the reading. 

 The first of them occurs in the case of the first vowel, for here the 

 edge has been chipped, leaving only one notch, where there is room for 

 three — possibly four. The latter would make e and the former u, 

 which is, doubtless, the reading to be preferred, as the name occurs 

 elsewhere, to wit at Drumloghan, in Co. Waterford, where we have 

 the genitive as Ounalegea. The next difficulty occurs at the top of the 

 stone where a piece of the edge is gone. This has carried with it the 

 upper ends of the v scores and all the vowel-notches, also the base of 

 the consonant following the vowel. The principal doubt is as to the 

 vowel : there seems to be ample room for four or five notches, that is 

 for e or i. Had there been consonant scores there, one might expect 

 the ends of them to show, but I could detect no trace. So I would 

 suggest ave or avi^ but the latter is ruled out by the fact that Cunahgi 



