PROCEEDINGS 



or 



THE ROYAL IRISH ACADEMY 



PAPERS READ BEFORE THE ACADEMY 



A STUDY OF THE CHEONOLOGY OF BEONZE-AGE SCULPTUEE 



IN lEELAND. 



By M. L'ABBE BREUIL, Hon. M.E.I.A., 



AND 



E. A. S. MACALISTEE. 



Head April 25. Piiblislied August 15, 1921. 



Inteoductoky JSTotb. 



During the Easter vacation of 1920 I had the privilege of conducting 

 M. I'Abbe Henri Breuil, and Mr. Miles Burkitt, Lecturer on Prehistoric 

 Archseology at Cambridge University, over a number of the bronze-age 

 tumuli of Ireland which display ornamental sculpturing. Our itinerary 

 included the cams of the Lochcrew Hills : Dowth and New Grange : Sess 

 Kilgreen, Knockmany, and Clover Hill : as well as the very remarkable 

 incised stone at Cloonfinloch, near Clonmacnois. We also visited the 

 curious Christian " cup-and-ring " stones to be seen in the graveyards at 

 TuUy and at Eathmichael, near Dublin ; and from Clover Hill we explored 

 thoroughly the great dolmeu-field at Carrowmore, in Co. Sligo. The most 

 important omission from this list is the monument in the Deerpark of 

 Castle Archdale, Co. Fermanagh : this structure is sadly dilapidated, and 

 the sculpture upon its stones could not be examined without excavation. 



M. Breuil's long experience in the study of the engravings and paintings 

 on the cave walls of Southern France and of Spain enabled him to detect 

 certain facts with regard to the superposition of styles and motives, to which 

 attention had hardly, if at all, been previously directed. Analogous observa- 

 tions, in the caves just mentioned, have made it possible to determine the 

 course and development of Palffiolithic art ; and the result of the examina- 

 tion now reported upon will be to put in the hands of Irish archeeologists, 



p.. I. A. I'ROC, VOL. XXXVI, SECT. C. [1] 



