390 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy. 



APPENDIX I. 



The Serine of the Cathach. 



By E. C. p. ARMSTEONG, M.R.l.A. 



Dr. Lawlor has dealt with the early history and romantic adventures of 

 the Shrine in his account of the Cathach ; this appendix is confined to a 

 description of the ornamental features of the Cumdach. 



The shrine of the Cathach is one of the six early Irish book-shrines which 

 still surwve (the others being the Shrine of St. Molaise's Gospels (1001- 

 1025 A.D.) ; the Shrine of the Stowe Missal (1023-1052 a.d.) ; the Bomnach 

 Airgid (Shrine of St. Patrick's Gospels) (eleventh century); the Shrine of the 

 Book of Dimma (1150 a.d.) ; and the ShriHe of the Book of Mulling (at least 

 as old as the fourteenth century^). It has been noticed by various writers, 

 but only two of the previous accounts need be here mentioned. The first is 

 by Sir William Betham, in " Irish Antiquarian Researches," 1827, vol. i, p. 109. 

 He described the shrine and gave an illustration (not quite correct in all 

 details) of the lid. The second is by Dr. Reeves in his edition of " Adamnan's 

 Life of St. Columba," 1857. Dr. Reeves did not describe the shrine, but 

 recorded the inscription and identified the persons mentioned in it, thus 

 enabling the date when the shrine was made to be ascertained. The sides, 

 ends, aud base of the Cumdach do not appear to have been previously 

 illustrated; on the present occasion the opportunity has been taken to do 

 this by means of photography.' 



The shrine is an oblong box made up of the following parts : — 



1. The base : this is a silver plate cut into a pierced cruciform diaper pattern 



measurmg 172 mm. in breadth, and 239 mm. in length, attached by 

 rivets to a brass plate which measures 184 mm. in breadth and 245 

 mm. in length. 



2. The sides : these measure 240 mm. by 35 mm., and 242 mm. by 37 mm. 



respectively. 



3. The ends: which measure respectively 183 mm. by 60 mm., and 



182 mm. by 60 mm. 



4. The lid : which measures 192 mm. in breadth, and 252 mm. in length. 

 The shrine contains a wooden box, apparently of recent construction. 

 The inside measurement of the case without this box is 241 mm. by 



183 mm.; the inside measurement of the box is 220 mm. by 165 mm., and 

 27 mm. in depth. 



' " Hermathena," vol. viii, p. 89. 



* The National Muaeum supplied the photographs by the Director's permission. 



