Wkstkopp — Ancient Sanctuaries of Knockaincij and Clogher. 65 



probably a local goddess, reverenced with ceremonies and races at 'Oenacli 

 Ciili, or 'Oenach Clocliair, by the Dergthene, who reverenced Nuaila. Of 

 course " fair " is a most inadequate translation of the ancient " 'Oenach." 



The remains suggest a place of ancient worship, and resemble other pagan 

 cemeteries. At " Brugh " we have three great tumuli, several small ones 

 (like the Clogher mounds), ring works, and pillars, also wells and streams. 

 Mounds were there, one called " the Dagda's Head" (like " Cuchulaind's Head " 

 at Tara) ; others as " the Comb " and " the Casket of the Dagda's wife," and 

 the Duma Tresc ; rings like the Fert of the Dagda's son Aedh ; twin mounds 

 like the " Two breasts of the Morrigu." So at Tara we find great conjoined 

 works like the Teach Cormaic and the Forraidh, large disc barrows like the 

 " Shield of Cuchulaind," conjoined mounds like Treduma Nesi, mounds like 

 the Duma na ngiall, and lesser ones like Dal and Dorcha ; ring-forts and 

 pillars, wells and streams, and tracks. 'Oenach Carmain had seven mounds 

 where the dead were bewailed, twenty-one raths, a cemetery, and three 

 markets. A large track leads southward from Ushnach, which has its 

 cemetery, conjoined rings, and its holy rock and springs. Cush, the Cenn 

 Febrat cemetery, has ring-forts, conjoined rings, large and small tumuli, 

 tracks, springs and streams, and pillar-stones. The Clogher group is closely 

 similar. 



The Remains. 



The site has three (or four) rising grounds, hardly hills ; the northern 

 called Clogherbeg, the north-eastern Clogher Hill, the south-western Knock- 

 aunatarriff, or " bull's hillock," 1 the south-eastern nameless. Clogherbeg has 

 on its summit a small perfect mound, a bowl barrow, with no fosse, 7 to 

 11 feet high, and about 99 feet across the base. Near the road to Knockloug 

 village is Eaheenamaddra, the dog's little fort, a flat-topped mote, or barrow, 

 10 to 14 feet high. An old raised causeway, farther on, leading from the 

 north-east to Knockloug Hill, is also noteworthy. 



Turning southward, past the " Cross of the Tree '"- and over a brook, we 

 enter the fields to the west. Crossing a very regular depression, probably 

 natural, and very likely the limit of the oenach eastward, we find, on the 

 eastern rise, traces of enclosures. One is a platform, certainly ancient ; it is 

 oblong, 93 feet east and west, by 61 feet; raised 2 to 4 feet over the field, 



1 It may be a casual name, but bull feasts were a feature of Irish pagan assemblies. 

 For the uame Donnotaurus and its connexion with the " Dmiii liull " anil "Tarvus 

 trigaranus,'' see MacCulloch, Diet. Relig. and Ethics, vol. iii, p. 'JitU, cf. ]>. 2!M ; and men 

 masquerading in bull hides, ibid., vol. v, p. S3S. 



- The "Tree " was enclosed by Mr. Ryan, of Searteeu, 1S02. 



