324 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academj/. 



entrenchment between ancient Ulster and the provinces of Meath and 

 Connaught, which is the subject of this paper, centre round a still earlier tale, 

 entitled " The Eate of the Children of Tureann," a version of w^hich has been 

 published by Douglas Hyde. From this most of the legends relating to the 

 Eace or Valley of the Black Pig in the ISTorth of Ireland and in Cos. Louth 

 and Meath derive their motif. . ' 



This ancient tale is referred by competent authorities to the cycle of 

 Celtic mythology of the earliest period, and deals with an age supposed to 

 have been long prior to the events dealt with in the Ossianic tales, which are 

 sometimes referred to the first century B.C. In a rare little volume published 

 in 1856 by IST. O'Kearney, entitled " Prophecies of St. Columbkill," the 

 Louth legend is given as follows in the introduction : — 



" Tradition says that Cian mic Cainte was a wicked Druid who kept an 

 academy near Drogheda, and was wont to change his pupils into swine for the 

 purpose of setting his wolf-dogs after them and amusing himself. This 

 wicked practice having at length become known to the friends of his pupils, 

 who had often been lacerated by the fangs of his hounds, while some had been 

 killed in the chase, the three sons of Tureann resolved to take revenge on the 

 Druid ; and on the occasion of his changing himself into a black pig pursued 

 and killed him near Cnoc-Cian-mic-Cainte, sometimes called Killeen Hill, 

 which is north of Dundalk ; and Cian's grave was seen on the hill till about 

 1836, when a farmer named Dickie tore it down in course of excavating for 

 materials for his lime-kiln." Killeen Hill is near Meigh, Co. Armagh, near 

 the " Dane's Cast." 



The commencement of the original story of the Children of Tureann is 

 shortly thus. Clan, arriving from Tara at Magh Murthemne (i.e., the plains 

 north of Dundalk), found himself followed by the three sons of Tureann, who 

 were his enemies. To save himself from them, he changed his form into that 

 of a black pig, and associated himself with a herd of swine. The three, 

 losing sight of the man whom they had seen at a distance, suspected what 

 had happened ; and Brian turned his two brothers into hounds, who chased 

 the magical pig, which the other swine avoided ; and Brian slew him with a 

 spear. These incidents are related as contemporaneous with the southern 

 battle of Moy tura, in which the De Danaans overthrew the Fomorian invaders. 

 The date given for this conflict is a.m. 3330. 



It is startling to find that the Louth legend still preserves in its modern 

 shape so much of the original pagan myth, namely, the name of Cian, his 

 having assumed by magic the shape of a black pig, his vain attempt to 

 hide himself in a herd of real swine, and his detection, pursuit, and death by 

 the hand of his enemies, the three sons of Tureann. At Carrickmacross, 



