296 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy. 



similarity of three out of each of these quaternities of names, which may be 

 displayed as follow.- — 



ER OEBA FEKGna 



stAEn iARBOnel FERGus 



— may not 1"' very striking when the names are considered separately ; but 



when they are considered in a group the analogies almost amount to a 



demonstration that the first list is a broken-down form of the second, pro- 



bably derived from some half- illegible record. That Feron does not bear 



any resemblance to Ainnind I explain on the theory that the group was at 



first a triplicity, as such god-groups usually are, and that the fourth was a 



variously-named later addition. 



With all possible reserve I venture to record an idea which has occurred 



tome: that we have an invocation of this triplicity on a very remarkable 



Btone in Pictland. This is the well-known monument at St Vigean's, 



Forfarshire, which will bo found well illustrated in Allen's book (cited above), 



p. 236. < >u face of the Btone namented cross, the upper part of 



which La now broken away; on t lie other face are some of the " Pictish " 



Bymbols, with one of the enigmatical bunting scenes so common on the 



I' tish stoni down on one i - tie- stone is a small panel bearing 



the words 



DROSTEN 



[PEUORET 



•11 rcmembei the surprise I felt, when 1 saw this at main y 



.it the ' this inscription ; it is, as it were, thrust out of sight, 



hough the writer were half ashamed of it. It is not more prominent than 

 the names which monumental masons cut on modern tombstones bo advertise 

 then This would ■ be intelligible if the purpose of the in- 



ption had been t" perpetuate the name and parentage of the owner of the 



monument But if it were the modal of a syncretism, in which the pagan 



faiths '■ md the Christian " dominant," we might understand 



. put in the background in this way. Not one of 



numerous attempts that have been made to interprel this inscription can be 



There is therefore room for anothei tiou, 



th rcely hope t<> have succeeded where so many have failed. 



it is i; e exists at least a superficial resemblance 



ween the words "ii the Btone and the names of the triplicity Bet forth 

 ab" n, ipbuo Is to larbonel, and FORi 



