268 



Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy. 



end, and an upper store}' at the other, not extending along the tcholc length of the 

 Hall. Figure 2 shows, in outline, the only design which will satisfy all the 

 conditions of the story. The upper loft was the soller of Bricriu ; it terminated 

 in a party wall with windows or spy-holes, through which the ill-conditioned 

 master of the house could gloat over the proceedings below. Between this 

 party wall and the opposite end. where the couch imda of Conchobar stood, 

 the roof was open. It may be objected t" this restoration that the royal couch 

 i- inconveniently and impossibly high. The objection can be met by supposing 

 that the author of Fled Uricrend pictured the ground as tailing away in 

 Bricriu's house, as it does in Teh Midchuarta. 



Two considerations indicate that the same design was followed in Tech 

 Midchuarta as is here indicated for Tech Bricrend — a long hall, with the 



CRIANAN BRICREND 



*o 



TTTT 



t— r 



IMDA^ 



- ion of the House of Bricriu. 



roof trusses open :it one end and masked by an uppei storey at the other. In 

 the first place, the ground falh nsiderably towards the north, so that 



there is i much greater height at the north than at the south — thus 

 giving greater head-room for such an upper loft. In the second place, it 

 will be noticed that the Lecan plan shows the three hearths all concentrated 

 .it the southern end. This would be inexplicable, except on the hypothesis 

 that then- was an up] • at the northern end. which would prevent the 



escape of the Bmoke. In the restored elevation on Plate IX, I have inserted 

 dormer windows, merely as a convenient indication of the probable extent of 

 the up] v. but without the intention of suggesting that this was 



actually the way in which the loft was lighted— a point on which we have 



no information. The three chimney-openings show that there is i betruc- 



tion for the smoke at the southern end. To these argument* foi an upper 



rey we may perhaps add the testin y of VTJ that then- were i. 



chambers in Tech Midchuarta. The flooi being wholly occupied with the 

 arrangements for the feasts and the assemblies, we must suppose that the 

 dormitories were elsewhere in the building, 



