Armstrong — Associated Finds of Irish Neolithic Cells. 95 



The Academy's collection contains about fourteen hundred polished stone 

 celts and chisels, not including those found in the Shannon fords. Less than a 

 quarter of these have pointed butts ; they are not confined to any particular 

 locality, so they cannot be considered as a local manifestation ; the remaining 

 celts have rounded butts, or belong to intermediate types. A small number 

 are flat in section and have their cutting edges expanded into a typical metal 

 form ; these are considered to have been made under the influence of metal 

 celts, and to belong to the transitional period when metal implements were 

 gradually replacing those of stone. Such celts can probably be considered on 

 typological grounds as the latest form assumed by the stone celt. 



The evidence of the associated finds does not definitely settle the question 

 as to the priority of the type with the pointed butt over that with the 

 rounded butt. In some cases celts belonging to the two different types were 

 found in association ; against this, however, must be placed the evidence of 

 the larger number of finds which only included celts of similar type. 



The two celts found at Lislea have butts of the pointed type, and from 

 their association with a Neolithic form of urn may be placed early in the 

 series. On the other hand, the stone celt found with a food vessel of advanced 

 form at Killicarney, Co. Cavan ;' that said to have been found with a bronze 

 socketed celt at Ballyday, Co. Wexford, and the celt found with burnt bones 

 in the earn on Topped Mountain, have rounded butts. In these cases the 

 associations point to a late date for the celts, so that the evidence, such as it 

 is, is on the whole in favour of what might have been expected on the analogy 

 of other countries, i.e., that the celt with a rounded butt is a later form than 

 that with the pointed butt. 



It might, therefore, be tentatively suggested that Irish celts belonging 

 to the latter portion of the Neolithic Period could be arranged in three 

 classes — those with a pointed butt and a triangular outline being regarded as 

 the earliest ; those which are of a rectangular shape and have a much-rounded 

 or square- shaped butt being looked upon as a later type; while celts which 

 are flat in section, and have slightly expanding cutting edges, would be con- 

 sidered as having been made under the influence of metallic forms and be 

 placed latest in the series. 



1 But see ante, p. 89. If the celt with the pointed butt was really found in association 

 with the urn at Rathbarn (Rathbarron), it would negative the above piece of evidence. 



R.I. A. PROC, VOL. XXXIV, SECT. C. 1.16] 



